Abstract

Social networks are emerging as a core element in professional and literary accreditation systems, shaping not only a new form of opinion generation, but also an information structure that organizes the rules of the medium. Their organization, syntax and internal rules so determine the forms of participation that whatever doesn’t fit with them simply cannot exist as a cultural product.

Abstract

In the information society where the volume of data grows exponentially, the blossoming of the big data has had an impact on several fields. The popularity of the expression has blurred the outlines of the concept that not only insists on the size but also on the value of the collected and processed data. Social media, which are characterized by a rapid expansion and by the diversity of interactions and contents that circulate in them, have been incorporated to the big data studies to become resource of useful data for researchers, organizations and companies. This paper observes the typical singularities of the social media analysis inside the big data and, after scrutinizing existing measuring tools, reflects on the opportunity and the necessity of a solution to examine trends and the impact of the profiles that get to set extensive networks.

Abstract

The analysis of data from social media and the measurement of the influence of its users are topics of increasing importance from different points of view, including the academic and the economic. In this paper we propose a reflection towards the creation of comprehensive algorithms for the measurement of influence through the analysis of data generated in the interactions of social media users, as well as the detection of new business models on the Net. To do so, the paper reflects on the concept of influence in social media and the role of information and communication professionals in its measurement and analysis, describes several instruments used to measure influence, and presents the project SocialEngagement, a web platform for the analysis and detection of referents, opinion makers and trends.

Abstract

This research analyzes the flow of information and communication about vaccines and anti-vaccines through the monitoring of issuers, groups, news sites and messages in RRSS. We also investigate its effects on attention, emotion and engagement analyzed with Eye Tracking, GSR and Facial Expression respectively. Results: the flow of communication is unstable, in press and sites and informative and neutral tendency, often with non-professional sources. On RRSS, anti-vaccine Facebook messages and groups are identified and an exploratory mapping of influencers is presented. Analysis of the temporal evolution (years 2015 to 2018) of communicative flows showed a positive evolutions: antivaccine tendencies decrease. Emotional responses and engagement do not show differences between antivaccines and vaccines: this important data is interpreted in the terms of processing by heuristics. Gender differences appeared in the pattern of exploration of the information and the emotion provoked (GSR and Expression).

Abstract

The evolution of social networks in general, and Instagram in particular, has led to the emergence and proliferation of digital influencers, a figure that has taken over from fashion bloggers and managed to capture the attention of communication professionals in the sector due to their potential to generate engagement with their public. The objective of the present research is to determine the profile of micro fashion influencers, their casuistics, and the protocols of action that they use when managing their Instagram accounts. For this, qualitative research was carried out through a semistructured interview of a sample selected using the nonprobabilistic snowball technique. Specifically, between May and June 2018, fieldwork was carried out with a group of ten fashion micro instagramers in Spain, analyzing four research questions regarding how micro instagramers interact with and their relationship with brands and communication companies, the nature of their publications, and their motivations for being active on the mentioned social network. The responses of the micro instagramers, with a combined audience of 240,439 followers, suggest that their nonprofessional profile is characterized by the absence of collaboration agreements and minimum economic remuneration. In addition, they are aware of their technical deficiencies when creating and editing their posts.

Abstract

As a result of technological innovation and the changing environment, new professions have emerged in recent years. One of these is the influencer, a person who, through their posts on YouTube (the youtubers), Instagram (the instagrammers), and other social networks, influences the thinking and the way of acting of preadolescents and becomes their new reference. This influence has repercussions for their career choices and life project. This research seeks the variables that influence minors to want to exercise professions linked to the use of social networks. To respond to the proposed objectives and hypotheses, and adopting a quantitative approach, a questionnaire was applied to 343 Spanish students in the fifth and sixth grades of primary education. The results show that the Machiavellianism variable is the one that shows the greatest differences between boys and girls who want to be youtubers and/or instagrammers and those who do not. The second most significant variable is narcissism, a characteristic of postmodern society and the digital environment. The rest of the variables studied (self-esteem, school commitment, and dominance) differ to a lesser extent.

Abstract

Twitter is one of several social networks with the highest numbers of users in Spain. In spite of this, how are communicative relationships developed in the digital environment among influencers who have emerged on the Internet? These personalities have a stronger influence on children and young people than traditional celebrities. The aim of this work is to study the communicative interaction generated on the profiles of Spanish influencers with the most followers on Twitter, based on the number of content items generated and the responses they receive from users. The polarity and sentiment conveyed by these communications have also been analysed. By processing publications in real time using machine learning based on sentiment analysis, 48,878 tweets and retweets from five influencers were studied over a period of 40 days. The results show that the publications reached nearly 200 million followers, and despite being fourth in terms of the number of followers, @IbaiLlanos is the influencer who leads the conversations on Twitter with the highest number of tweets, retweets, and audience share. Among the most popular topics, sporting events stand out. This study has also confirmed that the most frequently stated emotion is surprise, and that positive messages prevail over those that are negative and neutral with regard to polarity. Nevertheless, the linear regression data has verified that the main trend is toward publishing negative messages, with a lower statistical correlation, which is a behaviour that might possibly be duplicated on other social networks.

Abstract

YouTube is currently becoming one of the main international platforms for amateur creators attempting to attract followers through a multiplicity of audiovisual content and engagement strategies based on search and algorithmic recommendation systems. In many cases, this environment, and especially its users, try to adapt to a celebrity network pattern on the basis of the construction of seemingly authentic and close relationships, leading to relevant phenomena such as parenting vlogs. This kind of content is focused on the presence of intimate moments that reflect the daily life of influencers or micro-influencers, capturing large numbers of followers, as well as important communication and information strategies. From this perspective, and through a quantitative content analysis of 1,034 videos and more than 900 viewing hours on two very popular YouTube family influencer channels, this study explores the degree of intimacy portrayed in their video content as performative strategies that configure the profiles’ post through interactions with followers, brands, and self-promotion. The results suggest that the degree of intimacy shown in this content becomes a performative process for these family youtubers, whereby the more intimate the exposure, the more popular the information offered to the user. In short, this type of content prioritizes the routines of the youtubers, who include their closest family members and friends as a means of attracting attention, while dedicating their time to interacting with brands (advertising) and recording, editing, and submitting a vast amount of personal and private information on the platform (dissemination) in a sort of promotional–private performativity.

Abstract

In the digital world, social media have become important for people with disabilities in terms of communication and visibility. They have also become the ideal place for activism, as they allow the self-representation of disability by the content creators themselves. This social group, traditionally segregated and discriminated against, has seen in these platforms a tool to promote social inclusion and confront the dominant discourse. This paper explores the social media Instagram as a space for communication and visibility of instagrammers with disabilities from Europe and Latin America. The main objective of the research is to analyse the publications of Spanish-speaking influencers with physical disabilities to establish if there are similar characteristics or if there are significant differences in the uses they make of Instagram’s functions and how disability is represented in their profiles. Through quantitative, descriptive, and statistical research, a content analysis was carried out of 400 publications corresponding to 10 Instagram profiles, all of them of microinfluencers and macroinfluencers with physical disabilities who had different types of business collaborations. The results show that disability is visible in 85% of the publications, whether in the photos or videos shared, in the text of the post, hashtags or emoticons, although it predominates to a greater extent in audiovisual content. In advertising, mentions or tags of brands stand out, much more than paid collaboration, which appears as a minority compared to other forms of promotion. The degree of influence is decisive for interactions in the form of likes and views per video or reels. Finally, the use of hashtags on inclusion and social awareness reinforces the importance of these platforms for the social integration of people with disabilities.

Abstract

Este trabajo analiza el flujo de información y comunicación de vacunas y antivacunas mediante la monitorización de emisores, grupos, noticias en sites y mensajes en RRSS. También se investigan sus efectos sobre la atención, la emoción y el engagement analizados con Eye Tracking,  GSR y Facial Expression respectivamente. Resultados: el flujo de comunicación es inestable, en prensa y sites y de carácter informativo y neutro, frecuentemente con fuentes no profesionales. En RRSS se identifican mensajes y grupos de Facebook antivacuna y se presenta un mapping exploratorio de influencers. El análisis de la evolución temporal de los flujos comunicativos (años 2015 al 2018) mostraron evoluciones positivas: disminuye la tendencia antivacunas. Las respuestas emocionales y el engagement no arrojan diferencias entre vacunas-antivacunas: este importante dato se interpreta en términos de procesamiento por heurísticos. Sorprendentemente, aparecieron diferencias de género en el patrón de exploración de la información y emoción provocada (GSR y Expression).