1. Tweeting with the audience
Audience research and participation using Twitter
@ruthdeller
@sheffieldhallamuni, @AHRC funded PhD candidate
#meccsa2011

2. Tweeting with the audience
• What is Twitter?
• Theoretical context
• Twitter and current affairs
• Participation and interaction
• Tweeting 'Revelations'
• Implications for media audience research-
particularly for those interested in "old" media

3. What is Twitter?
• Social networking service
• 140 character updates
• Following and being followed
• Key question 'What's happening?'

4. What is Twitter?

5. What is Twitter?

6. What is Twitter?

7. Content of tweets
• News
• Debate
• Sports
• Weather
• Media usage
• Local issues
• Memes / Jokes
• Personal
• Character role-play

8. Theoretical issues
• Audience ‘activity’
• Convergence – cross-media platforms, mobile
media etc
• ‘Produsage’ / Citizen journalism
• Star/celebrity studies
• Fan studies
• Online community studies
• Media in everyday life

9. Tweeting current affairs
• Iranian elections: Green profile pictures
(avatars), setting location as Tehran.
• UK and US elections: Used as methods of
interacting with politicians and media outlets,
used as sources for news.
• Stephen Gately, Dunblane, Trafigura etc -
outrage and action.

10. Tweeting current affairs
• Iranian elections: Green profile pictures
(avatars), setting location as Tehran.
• UK and US elections: Used as methods of
interacting with politicians and media outlets,
used as sources for news.
• Stephen Gately, Dunblane, Trafigura etc -
outrage and action.

11. Tweeting current affairs

12. Tweeting current affairs
• High-profile 'opinion leaders'
• (Re-)Circulation of links
• Accessibility
• Immediacy
• Visibility
• Public sphere

13. Tweeting TV and radio audiences
• ‘The invention of real-time social networking
sites (this means Twitter) has added a whole
new dimension to the enjoyment of Big
Brother... now you can hold a conversation
with anyone you want while it's on and enjoy
real-time tweeted commentary from celebs,
pundits and randoms. Or, indeed, be one such
commentator' (Longridge, 2010: 146).

14. Tweeting TV and radio audiences
• What has been your favourite Twitter
experience?
– ‘The group experience of tweeting about The X
Factor on a Saturday night. It’s like having a lot of
friends round and laughing’ (Mark Gatiss)
• What’s the appeal of Twitter for you?
– ‘It makes shows like The X Factor and The
Apprentice even more fun. Everyone can join in
as it goes out’ (Gareth Roberts)
Cook (2011: 63)

15. Tweeting TV and radio audiences
• ‘Liveness – that is, live transmission – guarantees a
potential connection to our shared social realities as
they are happening…‘Liveness’ naturalises the idea
that, through the media, we achieve a shared attention
to the realities that matter for us as a society. This is
the idea of the media as social frame, the myth of the
mediated centre. It is because of this underlying idea
(suggesting society as a common space focused around
a ‘shared’ ritual centre) that watching something ‘live’
makes the difference it does: otherwise why should we
care that others are watching the same image as us,
and (more or less) when we are?’ (Couldry, 2003: 97-
99)

16. Tweeting TV and radio audiences
• Whenever telly or radio is on, wherever in the
world, someone is tweeting.
• Trending topics can identify 'watercooler'
television/radio, not just highly rated shows.
• Those involved in the programmes often
'tweet along', asking or answering questions,
providing commentary or links to additional
resources.
• Celebrities and public figures join in the
conversation.

17. Tweeting TV and radio audiences

18. Tweeting TV and radio audiences

19. Tweeting TV and radio audiences
• Too tired for Newswipe. Have to iPlayer it. Off to
bed with a hot water bottle.
• Band practice means late home. Going to miss
the start of #TBOC [#TBOC = Tower Block of
Commons, a Channel 4 'life swap' series where
MPs lived on council estates]
• Ok folks...what are we watching tonight?? If you
provide a solid argument, I could be persuaded to
DVR 'LOST' & watch it later...
• What should I watch 90120 or vampire dairies?
• #tboc or #glee?

20. Tweeting TV and radio audiences
• ‘Spoilers’
• Hashtags to indicate series (e.g. #bb11 #bb12)
• Trending is to be celebrated
• Trending also causes British users to comment
on what ‘America’ thinks:
– ppl in America might think WTF is Jedward :)
– It's funny. all american/people not in britain, are
like.. "Jedward? What the hell? Edward and
Jacob? Pathetic!"

21. Tweeting 'Revelations'
• Eight-part series of single documentaries on
Channel 4, summer 2009.
• First documentary, 'How to Find God' was
made by Jon Ronson and focussed on the
Alpha course.
• Ronson (@jonronson) is very active on Twitter
and had tweeted about the programme
during its production. He was online during
and after its showing and invited questions.

22. Tweeting 'Revelations'
• Monitored Twitter for three hours before,
during and after broadcast.
• Searched for key terms and saved copies of
tweets.
• Invited people tweeting to an exit survey
(week 1) and to a live chat or forum (weeks 2-
8).

23. ‘How to Find God’
• 829 unique tweets during the period
• Documentary maker Jon Ronson
(@jonronson) was online throughout
answering questions.
• 447 tweets were either retweets or questions
to Ronson (or replies to questions)
• Exit survey RTed by Ronson and some other
users; 80 replies in first two hours after
broadcast.

24. Tweeting 'Revelations'
• Monitored several keywords, including alpha,
c4, channel4, Channel 4, Channel Four,
Revelations, How to Find God, Jon Ronson and
@jonronson. A similar process was used each
week.
• Tweets counted and categorised into types
(e.g. 'am watching', opinions, links, @replies)
and content (e.g. personal experience,
statement of beliefs, commentary).

25. ‘How to Find God’
• "Accidentally". @jonronson you crafty peice of
work! #alpha
• @jonronson Ed sums up why I don't take
Communion when Mam drags me to Mass
back home. Tongues is just weird altogether
#alpha
• @jonronson Sorry I'm late to the Alpha twitter
party, was it uncomfortable waiting to see if
anyone spoke in tongues? BTW Excellent film.

26. ‘How to Find God’
• About to sit down and enjoy @jonronson's
alpha course film on channel 4!
• Documentary about Alpha Course on C4. If
only good things came out of religion (and
mild indoctrination), maybe it wouldn't make
me so angry.
• Watching a programme on the Alpha Course.
Always wanted to go on it to further my
knowledge but I'm scared of who it could
make me become.

27. Different perspectives
• lol @ muslim school. muslim bitches be crazy.
its funny when thr R 2 of them talking to the
camera with head scarfs i cant tell whos
talking.
• Both mums have good attitude towards their
daughters and reason behind decision for
Muslim school is interesting

28. Different perspectives
• Why is it when religious commentators mention
the atheist bus campaign, they never mention
religious ads telling people they'll go to hell.
• is watching religious "thinkers" spout
meaningless bullshit on some daft programme on
C4.
• Is finding channel 4's Revelations: how do you
know God exists? so helpful and wishes everyone
could watch it.

29. Humour
• Watching Channel 4 doc about spiritualists. One
of them's reading a newspaper called Psychic
News. Obviously its for not very good psychics.
• going to watch a tele programme about talking to
the dead . Bit like when my missus talks to me.
• Watching a programe on exhumation - just put
me off my banana!
• QOTD from 'The Exhumer' on Chan4 "I didn't
know which grave she was in so I said I'd do a
little digging".

30. Personal experience
• Tonight's "Revelations" (on C4+1 in 10mins if
you aren't watching it now) is about the
Spiritualist Church. My family was involved;
bizarre.
• Watched programme about religious divorces
within the Orthodox Jewish community. Got
progressively angrier and remembered why I
walked away.

31. The ‘mundane’
• why am i watching "Divorce Jewish Style"
rofll./ gotta have a bath like, but thats effort
mannn.
• soo hungry, gonna watch jewish divorce
programme.

32. Tweeting 'Revelations'
• Quantitative and qualitative data that shows:
– Which programmes/topics were discussed most,
and how they were discussed.
– Something (not always much) about the types of
people involved in discussion
– Some level of comparison between whether
tweets are individual statements or
discussion/interaction
– How the presence of Ronson on Twitter impacted
the discussion of his programme

33. Tweeting 'Revelations'
• Quantitative and qualitative data that shows:
– Audiences ‘relating’ to texts
– Variety of readings/understandings
– Media in an ‘everyday’ / mundane context
– Use of humour or seriousness in relation to
different topics

34. Tweeting with the audience
• Twitter useful as a platform to explore issues
of:
– Fandom and fan activity (Beliebers)
– Interactivity and participatory cultures
– Convergence between media forms and texts
– The relationship between the old 'industry', 'texts'
and 'audiences'
– 'Liveness'
– Nationhood, regionality, race, gender and other
identity issues

35. Tweeting with the audience
• Twitter useful as a platform to explore issues
of:
– Advertising / promotion
– Market dominance
– Relationship between social media / new media
forms
– Linguistics

36. Tweeting with the audience
• Twitter offers a variety of ways we can explore
and understand (some types of) media
audiences.
• We need to consider our own position as
participant observers.
• Ethics - AOIR guidelines?
• Alongside other technologies and social media
outlets, poses a range of questions for our
thinking about media in the 21st century.

37. References
• Cook, B (2011), ’40 people every Doctor Who
fan should follow on Twitter’ Doctor Who
Magazine, issue 430, pp.60-63.
• Couldry, N (2003), Media Rituals: A Critical
Approach, London: Routledge.
• Longridge, C (2010), 'Big Brother preview',
heat, 19-25 June 2010, p. 146.