Social Media Polarization and Echo Chambers in the Context of COVID-19: Case Study.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Social media chatter in 2020 has been largely dominated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Existing research shows that COVID-19 discourse is highly politicized, with political preferences linked to beliefs and disbeliefs about the virus. As it happens with topics that become politicized, people may fall into echo chambers, which is the idea that one is only presented with information they already agree with, thereby reinforcing one's confirmation bias. Understanding the relationship between information dissemination and political preference is crucial for effective public health communication.

Objective

We aimed to study the extent of polarization and examine the structure of echo chambers related to COVID-19 discourse on Twitter in the United States.

Methods

First

SUBMITTER: Jiang J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8371575 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jul-Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature