GENDER, TWITTER AND NEWS CONTENT

Abstract

With the continuing disparity between male and female mentions in news content, this study seeks to compare how news organizations employ men and women in Twitter feeds and how that connects to portrayals in news stories. In particular, the research examined how mentions of men and women in tweets may influence mentions in news stories that were linked to tweets. The study employed a content analysis of national, regional and local newspaper and television tweets, along with their accompanying news stories to compare media platforms and coverage areas. The results indicated a positive relationship between male and female portrayals in tweets and portrayals in news content. Further, male mentions were more likely to appear in national news stories than in regional or local news stories and more frequently than female mentions in print media than in television. Thus, it appears as if news agencies have not developed new dissemination strategies for employing Twitter.