Using Twitter for Promotion and Branding: A Content Analysis of Local Television Twitter Sites

Abstract

A content analysis examined the Twitter sites of 488 local television stations in the United States, based on a strategic and tactical model of media promotion. One finding of the study was that news stories were the most frequently occurring items on the sites. However, stations that offered news items also seldom promoted their regular newscasts. Overall, stations did not appear to use Twitter to direct viewers to the station's on-air programming.