This is an analysis that synthesizes a survey of seven state governments’ social media: California, Florida, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, and Oregon. Attention was put towards content that was highly interacted with. Full list of screenshots captured here.
Some governments are partnering with local organizations to create and circulate content. When content is created in partnership, it’s shared first on the partner’s account and then re-circulated by the government’s account. There’s leveraging of state and local celebrities and medical professional heroes.
There’s consistency across Twitter and Facebook and in content when it’s in more than one language. When a state organization has a COVID-related banner image and pinned content on Twitter and Facebook they are visually grabbing and simple.
A type of content that is common and highly interacted with is sharing vaccination milestones. Many times, but not always, the message was first shared by a government official’s account, such as the Governor’s, and then circulated by a department.
Governments are elevating BIPOC medical professionals to share their personal and professional voices. Amid disparities, Black doctors are using TikTok and Instagram to foster restorative justice and encourage healthy behaviors such as getting the COVID-19 vaccine.
Some governments are validating that there are vaccine worries and then addressing them. The voice is empathetic and reassuring about the feelings and decisions their residents need to make.
Acknowledging the impact of the pandemic on mental wellness is a common theme and content type and provided an option for support in social media posts.
Encouraging a staycation, a fun way to frame not traveling to support public health is another example that shows care for residents.
Messaging in physical contexts that some residents have fond memories of is powerful and encourages them to look forward to going back to.
Social media are powerful platforms that create echo chambers, especially for vaccine discourse. Each platform has its own strength and weakness but ultimately are meant to connect people and information.
Below is an analysis of the relationships black, indigenous, and people of color communities (BIPOC) have with social media, especially in terms of health information-seeking behavior.
Social media enables the broadening of marginalized communities’ social networks.
Both of similar and dissimilar communities.
A specific focus seems to be on engaging with dissimilar communities.
There is a stronger trust built with similar communities, i.e. those that have similar appearances and/or experiences.
Less education = limited access to reliable internet connectivity and technology.
Disproportionally affects Black and Hispanic communities.
Social media has dual faces:
Place for support
Discrimination
Video testimonials are effective messaging vehicles.
Particularly effective in Hispanic communities.
Themes related to public health and healthcare
General sense of distrust in large organizations.
Overarchingly low health and technology literacy percentages.
Language barriers: translators not always available and Google Translate is not good enough.
Black social media users are more likely than other BIPOC backgrounds to engage with political action via social media.
Higher percentage of belief in messages’ efficacy via social media.
Hispanic belief is similar though at a lower percentage, followed by Asian Americans.
Young BIPOC (18-49): higher likelihood of using social media than 50+.
Black & Hispanic groups believe social media helps them find like-minded communities.
8:10 BIPOC users believe social media’s efficacy in magnifying important and unnoticed issues, and representing marginalized groups.
Young BIPOC are the biggest consumers of websites created by and for people of color.
Young BIPOC individuals with less socioeconomic resources consume more online media sources than BIPOC individuals with more resources.
Sources for increasing visibility of relevant issues and support:
Black Twitter
Black Youth Project
Presente.org
LinkedIn is not a trusted social media source for Black users due to a history of BIPOC related content being removed without explanation.
Themes related to public health and healthcare
Feel as if they receive different (poorer) treatment.
Sense of distrust, feeling like guinea pigs.
Translated materials don’t resonate with audiences.