Public Discourse of Genetically Modified Organisms in China: An Investigation of Commenting and Reposting Behaviors on Social Media

Nan Yu, Yunya Song*, Qian Xu

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articlepeer-review

Abstract

This study examined the factors affecting user engagement in the genetically modified organism (GMO) discourse on one of the most popular social media platforms in China. A content-analysis study was conducted with a sample of the most commented GMO posts on social media and over 7000 comments. Firstly, posts from well-known and government accounts facilitated the online discourse of GMOs. Secondly, the nature of the event and the features of GMO messages influenced how users engaged with the online discussion. Thirdly, among the commenters, female users were more likely to agree with the original posts whereas male users were more likely to repost the message. In conclusion, social media users held negative attitudes toward GMOs as they tended to repost more and agree more when GMO risks were mentioned. Source and message features, as well as commenters’ characteristics, were found to have a significant impact on user engagement. Social media continued to serve as an important public space to facilitate public debate on a controversial scientific topic.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)70-92
Number of pages23
JournalEmerging Media
Volume1
Issue number1
Early online date30 Aug 2023
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Sept 2023

User-Defined Keywords

  • GMO
  • social media
  • user engagement
  • genetically modified organism
  • science communication

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Public Discourse of Genetically Modified Organisms in China: An Investigation of Commenting and Reposting Behaviors on Social Media'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this