ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Social media platforms such as YouTube are hotbeds for the spread of misinformation about vaccines. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to explore how individuals are exposed to antivaccine misinformation on YouTube based on whether they start their viewing from a keyword-based search or from antivaccine seed videos. METHODS: Four networks of videos based on YouTube recommendations were collected in November 2019. Two search networks were created from provaccine and antivaccine keywords to resemble goal-oriented browsing. Two seed networks were constructed from conspiracy and antivaccine expert seed videos to resemble direct navigation. Video contents and network structures were analyzed using the network exposure model. RESULTS: Viewers are more likely to encounter antivaccine videos through direct navigation starting from an antivaccine video than through goal-oriented browsing. In the two seed networks, provaccine videos, antivaccine videos, and videos containing health misinformation were all found to be more likely to lead to more antivaccine videos. CONCLUSIONS: YouTube has boosted the search rankings of provaccine videos to combat the influence of antivaccine information. However, when viewers are directed to antivaccine videos on YouTube from another site, the recommendation algorithm is still likely to expose them to additional antivaccine information.
Subject(s)
Communication , Information Dissemination/methods , Social Media/standards , Vaccines/therapeutic use , Algorithms , HumansABSTRACT
Telling a story for the first time is a profound experience for both a storyteller and story-listener. This essay describes the significance of first tellings as a narrative event that captures the complexities of the untold stories about young women's reproductive healthcare experiences. Additionally, this essay identifies the importance of first-told stories and explores how the storyteller and story-listener grapple with these narrative events. It also considers how first tellings may affect story-listeners' roles and influence storytellers' identity construction and framing strategies for subsequent tellings of the same story.
