Public opinion dissemination on mobile internet- a case of Ebola

摘要

PurposenSocial media, particularly microblog, has become a new platform for public opinion dissemination. However, few studies have been done to explore the structure of public opinions, the approaches for facilitating the spread of public opinions, and the results of public opinion dissemination in the context of mobile internet for the purpose of improving disaster management.nDesign/methodology/approachnThis paper chooses Ebola as the research topic and extracts 14,735 Ebola-related data items from Sina Microblogs to examine the information nodes of public opinion and the characteristics of propagation paths on mobile internet. Particularly, nodes of public opinion between mobile terminals and non-mobile terminals are compared. nFindingsnThe results reveal the characteristics of public opinion propagation on mobile internet, and verify the effectiveness of public opinion propagation on mobile internet. Our study shows that public opinions propagate quickly, widely, and efficiently and further generate great impacts on mobile internet. nResearch limitations/implicationsnThe methods used in this study can be useful for the government agencies and other relevant organizations to monitor public opinions, identify issues and problems proactively, and develop strategies in a more efficient manner to improve disaster management. nPractical implicationsnThe results of this study are helpful for related departments to monitor public opinions and to further improve disaster management.nOriginality/valuenThis paper explores the mechanism of public opinion dissemination on mobile internet and further investigates how to improve disaster management through a case study related to Ebola.