Twitter news is a great way to engage with your audience and spread news quickly. There are a variety of reasons to use Twitter to share breaking news. Some of these reasons are political and may have an impact on how you cover the news. These users are more likely to be Democrats and engaged with trending topics. Others may simply be using the platform to communicate with journalists and other influencers.
Users are more likely to be Democrats
A new study by the Pew Research Center reveals that Twitter users are more likely to be Democrats than Republicans.
This comes amid allegations of anti-conservative bias on social media. Republicans have accused Twitter of being too liberal and US President Donald Trump has criticised the social media platform. A parliamentary committee in India has also called on Twitter to explain its alleged bias against nationalist accounts.
According to the study, 69% of “highly active” Twitter users identify as Democrats or Democratic-leaning independents. On average, the most active Democratic Twitter users post more than twice as often as the most active Republican user.
However, those “highly active” Twitter users do not represent the majority of Twitter users. Moreover, the majority of Twitter users only post a few times per month. Even though the majority of Twitter users are liberal, they are not as liberal as the average non-user.
In addition to being more liberal, Twitter users tend to be younger and wealthier than the general population. In the study, nearly four in 10 Twitter users were college graduates, and 42 percent reported annual incomes of more than $75,000. While these results may appear alarming, it is important to remember that these results are not indicative of the views of all Twitter users.
Unlike ordinary users, elite users of Twitter are more likely to add comments to posts about out-group candidates and issues. In addition, they are more likely to share negative commentary about out-group politicians, pundits, and media. In contrast, liberals are less likely to add negative commentary to their Twitter feeds.
They’re more engaged
When it comes to Twitter news, it’s important to note that out-group language is the strongest predictor of engagement. This suggests that the social media platform creates perverse incentives for content. For example, if you’re a conservative, out-group language might be more engaging than in-group language.
They follow trending topics
Trending topics are often relevant to the industry you’re in, and Twitter’s trending feature helps you stay updated on these topics. By following topics related to your industry, you can stay on top of customer needs and trends and keep your buyer personas current. Trending topics also give you a good idea of what your competitors are up to.
You can customize your Twitter news feed to follow trending topics. To do so, hover over any topic to reveal a small X. Clicking the X will hide the topic from your news feed, but you can always undo it later.
In addition, Twitter’s trending topics are based on your location, your followers, and global trends. This means that you can change your trending location whenever you like, but it is best to keep it local.
Using trending topics can help you determine where to target your audience. You can also use this information to refine your content.
You can tailor your feed by choosing a location or clicking on the settings link. Trending topics help you better understand your target audience and improve your brand image. Just make sure to be authentic in your campaign.
The survey found that the majority of Twitter news users use the trending topics feature to find the latest news. In addition to searching for trending topics, a third of users also check their news feeds for other news stories.
Another third of Twitter news users follow news curators who curate news and select the best stories. These news curators make it easier for users to find new sources of news. One third of users discover news sources by following other users and 9% use the “while you were away” feature to see what others are tweeting.
Social media users are increasingly looking for hard news and opinion on current events. These users are less emotional and more focused on the importance of the news content. They also tend to be passionate about a small number of topics. Sports and politics rank high on the list of most popular topics on Twitter.
They follow journalists
The following study analyzed Twitter news follow behavior among journalists, activists, and bloggers. The researchers found that content from journalists and activists is more likely to be retweeted than that of non-journalists. This general trend holds across two datasets. Bloggers and activists often re-post journalist content.
If you follow journalists on Twitter, you can keep up with their latest stories and other relevant news. You can also learn whether they have switched outlets or beats, or if their topics are changing.
You can do this by reading their profile description or reading their most recent pinned tweet. In addition to following journalists on Twitter, you can also keep track of the latest news related to your favorite topic.
The use of social media by journalists is not only a good way to reach out to the public, but it also helps them engage in meaningful conversations with their audience.
As a result, many journalists see it as a valuable way to connect with the public and improve their work. And since social media sites enable journalists to interact with the public in a back-and-forth way, journalists are able to make more personal connections and connect with more readers.
Unfortunately, some groups react to journalists’ tweets in a disingenuous manner, and even try to sabotage their careers.
One example of this is the recent firing of Associated Press reporter Emily Wilder, who posted pro-Palestine social media posts two weeks before being fired from the news organization. Conservatives have used Wilder’s case as an example of how journalists are often treated unfairly by news organizations.
They talk about news with friends
A survey of Twitter users shows that most people access news on the site by scrolling through the timeline of people they follow or by searching for trending topics. But about one-third also access the news by looking for hashtags or searching for it.
Moreover, in breaking news situations, more than half of Twitter users click on a link to read more details, while another 26% go to a search engine to obtain more details. More than one-third also mention the news organization in their tweets, which is an important measure of news popularity.
Twitter users are also more likely to discuss the latest news with their friends. When asked why they watch news, a majority of Twitter users said they find it relaxing and entertaining. Those who do not use Twitter said that they use the news to save money when shopping or find it helpful for their job.
The survey also asked people why they follow news stories on Twitter, and found that about half of those non-users engage with the news on the site.
Among non-users, most cited a lack of familiarity with the platform or were unsure about whether it was for them. Another half mentioned a general feeling that Twitter is not for them. And about half were worried that Twitter news stories were fake or inaccurate.
However, Twitter users tend to be less emotionally invested in news and more interested in getting a perspective on current events. They do, however, share their opinions about news, and interactions with it tend to be more rational. In fact, Twitter users are passionate about only a handful of topics.
Sports and politics were among the most popular topics among Twitter users, with 25% and 21% of users sharing their opinions on them. This trend is not surprising considering that sports are tied to scheduled events.
