Tech
Twitter Users Don’t Follow ‘Elite’ Political Accounts, Study Finds
(CTN News) _ Millions of Americans wake up each morning and immediately check their Twitter accounts for the latest news and breaking stories.
Despite this, new research suggests that most users do not follow “elite” political accounts representing members of Congress, the president, or news media outlets.
Researchers at the University of California-Davis and New York University report that the average Twitter user is more likely to follow entertainers and celebrities, such as Tom Hanks or Katy Perry.
Another way to put it is that the smaller percentage of users who follow “politically elite” Twitter accounts usually demonstrate clear political biases and engage with them in a very one-sided manner, resulting in an “echo chamber” effect.
To reach these conclusions, study authors analyzed data spanning 1.5 million Twitter users over a period of four years.
Only one in four people follow all the ‘talking heads’
Researchers found that despite the societal prominence of presidents, congressmen, journalists, pundits, and the news media, only 40 percent of Twitter users follow one or more political “elites,”
While 60 percent follow no political accounts at all.
Is Twitter just a vocal minority of the public?
Overall, the study authors were surprised by this finding. Twitter is generally considered to be an overtly political social media platform in popular culture.
There is no doubt that most Tweeters log on each day to participate in, or at least browse, the latest political discussions.
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