New Media Incentives : A Cross Platform Analysis of Social Media Discourse on 4Chan, Twitter and YouTube

Abstract

This thesis examines the differences across three different social media platforms in how they host public discourse. Relying on a wide theoretical background in cultural sociology and semiotics, it examines the encounter of online communities with new media technology. Focus has been given especially to the role social media platforms have in shaping the way their users use language. The research is done through a comparison of plant-based diets discussion on three social media platforms 4Chan, Twitter and YouTube. Three research questions are answered in this thesis which are 1) Do social media platforms contain aspects of public discourse? 2) What differences are there in the discourse culture of these three social media platforms? And 3) What design choices in social media platforms incentivize discussion to become distinct from offline discussion?

This thesis uses a theoretical perspective combining semiotic research of dialogue with cultural sociology research to formulate a coherent empirical framework to study how material incentives in the changing media landscape are affecting social phenomenon. I will use Peircean semiotics to approach the question of how individuals construct their identities while being shaped by their environment and groups expectations. I will also examine internet culture through the cultural sociology of Pierre Bourdieu and how different social media platforms recreate his concepts of fields and forms of capital. Semiotics and cultural sociology are thus combined in an attempt of creating both a theoretical and empirical framework to study issues currently prevalent in media studies.

Category analysis, a qualitative research method akin to discourse analysis was conducted to study 450 comments from nine different conversations across the three platforms. Social media platforms host productive public discourse to some extent but do host forms of antagonistic hate speech and supportive community feedback as well. Comparison of site differences and previous research led to the conclusion that anonymity and the possibility to reply to multiple comments such as in 4Chan, encourage user-to-user communication and incentivizes the expression of both marginalized voices and hate speech. Social media metrics associated with user profiles, such as follower and like counts incentivize the recreation of social inequality online but does decrease disinhibited behavior. The possibility to sharing messages on other conversations on the platform, such as in Twitter, contribute to conversation becoming more relatable but also makes online shaming more prevalent. Finally, the possibility to share user created content, such as in YouTube, incentivizes more focused discussion that shares a point of reference which might contribute to the existence of either narrow media repertoires or facts-based discussion.

This thesis contributes to previous social media research by outlining an approach of using semiotic concepts to explore the nature of cultural transmission in sociology. It also proposes an empirical framework for a comparative form of discourse analysis to study multiple social media platforms which has been lacking in previous research. The results of the study indicate that platform design contributes to the nature of social media discourse and hierarchies. Platform incentives are thus a central aspect to consider in understanding public discourse and social media. Incentives emerging from platform design should thus be recognized as a contributing factor to challenges in public discourse and social media moderation.