Mapping Online Publics
Axel Bruns / Jean BurgessARC Centre of Excellence for Creative Industries and Innovation, Queensland University of Technology
[email protected] – @snurb_dot_info / [email protected] – @jeanburgesshttp://mappingonlinepublics.net – http://cci.edu.au/
Project: New Media and Public Communication
• ARC Discovery (2010-12) – A$410.000– Axel Bruns (CI), Jean Burgess (SRF) – QUT, Brisbane– Lars Kirchhoff, Thomas Nicolai (PIs) – Sociomantic Labs,
Berlin– Project blog: http://mappingonlinepublics.net/
Year 1 Year 2 Year 3Social network sources:
· YouTube· Flickr· Twitter· blogs
Research tools:
· network crawler· content scraper· content analysis· network
analysis
Research tool development and baseline data
Baseline information:
· data extraction· content creation
statistics· patterns in terms
and themes· baseline social
networking map· interconnections
between social network spaces
Content creation patterns
Changes over time:
· short-term statistics· regular / seasonal
patterns
Cluster profiling:
· common themes / patterns
· lead users
Focus on specific events
Cultural dynamics:
· rapid spread of new ideas
· communication across clusters
· thematic discourse analysis
· relationship with main- stream media coverage
Methodology – Twapperkeeper
Analysis
Capture
Identification #Hashtag Archive
Tweet Statistics and @Replies
Patterns of Activity over Time
Networks of @Replies
(short/long term)
Tweet Texts
Keyword /Key PhraseMapping
Twapperkeeper Data Structure
Twapperkeeper #Hashtag Archive
Activity Patterns• User name• User information• Timestamp
Network Data• @Replies• RT @User
Tweet Content• Tweet text• Embedded links
Analysis – Twapperkeeper
•Volume over time
•Keyword frequencies
Patterns of Activity over Time
•Conversation vs. follower network
•Dissemination of RTs vs. @replies
Networks of @Replies(short/long term)
•Keyword analysis over time
•Keyword co-occurrence maps
Keyword / Key Phrase Mapping
Methodology – Twitter
Analysis
Capture
IdentificationAustralian Twitter users (by location)
and Their Networks
Tweet Statistics and @Replies
Patterns of Activity over Time
Networks of @Replies
(short/long term)
Tweet Texts
Keyword /Key PhraseMapping
Key Tools
• Data capture:– Twapperkeeper / yourTwapperkeeper
• Follow and capture all tweets including set keywords• Export in standardised CSV / TSV format
• Data processing:– Gawk
• Process CSV / TSV files – filter, extract, summarise
– Excel• Statistical analysis and graphing
• Data visualisation:– Gephi
• Static and dynamic network visualisation
#hashtag- / Keyword-Based Datasets
• Hashtags:– Crises and other unforeseen acute events – #qldfloods, #spill– Foreseeable short-term events – #royalwedding, #comtech2011– Longer-term and periodic events – #ausvotes, #qanda– Hashtag communities – #auspol, #phdchat– Ironic and emotive hashtags – #winning, #fail– Hashtag memes – #ThanksGetUp, #tweetlikecharliesheen
• Keywords:– Brands, celebrities, places – Qantas, Obama, Brisbane– Abbreviations and other unique identifiers – NATO, NBA, NCC1701– Markers for current themes – tsunami (vs. #tsunami)– Twitter user names – captures tweets mentioning them
• What’s missing:– Pre-filtering of matching tweets (e.g. by location of participating users)– Capture of follow-on communication (if not using those terms)– ‘Button’ retweets – not currently captured by yourTwapperkeeper
#ausvotes: Overall Activity (17 July – 24 Aug. 2010)
#ausvotes: Mentions of the Leaders
#ausvotes: Mentions of the Leaders (cumulative)
Keyword Co-Occurrence
#ausvotes: Key Themes
#ausvotes: Discussion Network17 July to 25 Aug. 2010 / All @replies / Node size: Indegree / Node colour: betweenness centrality
Dynamic @reply Network Visualisations
• Dynamic visualisation:– Showing @replies / retweets as they are made– Connections fading again after a set timeframe, unless
renewed– Network structure either fixed or dynamically adjusted
• Rudd/Gillard leadership challenge, 23 June 2010:– #spill discussion – from first rumours to confirmed challenge– Visualised for 18:00 to midnight
– see dynamic animation on Mapping Online Publics
Twitter and the 22 Feb. Christchurch Earthquake: #eqnz
22/2 23 24 25 26 27 28 1/3 23 4 5 6 7
Twitter and the Christchurch Earthquake: #eqnz @replies
mainstream media
authorities
utilities
Twitter and the Christchurch Earthquake: tweet types
Twitter and the Christchurch Earthquake: tweet types
Twitter and the Christchurch Earthquake: #eqnz @replies
• Changing @reply patterns with the move from rescue to recovery:
22-24 Feb. 2011 25 Feb. - 3 Mar. 2011retweets @replies retweets @replies
nzherald 5748 713 CEQgovtnz 3349 121NZStuff 1736 312 nzherald 2227 447AnthonyBaxter 1590 62 ChristchurchCC 1830 272TVNZnews 1503 208 NZcivildefence 561 72georgedarroch 1399 55 NZStuff 532 173TelecomNZ 1289 592 NewstalkZB 431 43abcnews 1131 127 operationSAFE 399 547StephenFry 1094 44 nz_quake 350 22vodafonenz 1071 559 TelecomNZ 314 163CEQgovtnz 689 137 VMGiving 277 9rgoodchild 577 125 NZTopModelColin 271 128ChristchurchCC 573 211 georgedarroch 270 6NewstalkZB 554 44 NZRedCross 268 207SocialMedia_NZ 491 26 eqnz_live 240 29HuffingtonPost 478 25 3NewsNZ 200 28
Twitter and the Christchurch Earthquake: #eqnz Themes
Twitter and the Christchurch Earthquake: #eqnz Themes
Twitter and the Christchurch Earthquake
• Towards better strategies for social media in disasters:– February 2011 earthquake building on lessons learnt in 2010
• #eqnz and key Twitter accounts already established
• Several key accounts sharing the load and dividing responsibilities
– More experienced use of Twitter by residents and authorities
• Clear shift in attention after the immediate rescue phase:– Marked differences in list of most @replied/retweeted accounts
– Some tracking of current problems / issues / fears may be possible
– Decline in overall tweet volume / diversification of #hashtags?
And now for something... – #royalwedding
...completely different – ‘Qantas’: @replies + #hashtags
Understanding Australian Twitter Use
• What is the Australian Twitter userbase?– Large-scale snowballing project– Starting from selected hashtag communities
(e.g. #ausvotes, #qldfloods, #masterchef)– Identifying participating users, testing for ‘Australianness’:
• Timezone setting, location information, profile information
– Retrieving follower/followee information for each account (very slow)
• Progress update:– ~550,000 Australian users identified so far
South Australia
Wine
Music
Football (soccer)
Football (rugby)Sports
Media, Journalism,
Politics
Twitter Celebrities
Follower/followee network:~40,000 Australian Twitter users(of ~440,000 known accounts so far) in-degree 20+, dark lines = mutual,colour = indegree, size = outdegree
Business, PR, Marketing
http://mappingonlinepublics.net/
@snurb_dot_info@jeanburgess
Image by campoalto