Corey H Basch1, Charles E Basch2, Kelly V Ruggles3, Rodney Hammond4. 1. 1Department of Public Health,William Paterson University,Wayne,New Jersey. 2. 2Department of Health and Behavior Studies,Teachers College,Columbia University,New York,New York. 3. 3Department of Population Health,New York University School of Medicine,New York,New York. 4. 4Montclair State University,Montclair,New Jersey.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: The recent Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak in 2014-2015 has been the largest and longest lasting to date. Media coverage about the outbreak has been extensive, but there are large gaps in our understanding of the ways in which widely accessed social media sites are used during times of public health crisis. The purpose of this study was to analyze widely viewed videos about EVD on the YouTube video-sharing site. METHODS: We coded the source, content, and characteristics of the 100 most widely viewed videos about EVD on YouTube. RESULTS: The videos included in the sample were viewed more than 73 million times. The death toll in West Africa was mentioned in nearly one-third of the videos. Over one-third of the videos mentioned how EVD was generally transmitted. There was little mention of treatment and no mention of the need for US funding of disaster preparedness; coordination between local, state, and federal governments; or beds ready for containment. No significant differences in the number of views were identified between video sources with the exception of a significantly higher number of views for "consumer videos" compared with "commercial television videos." CONCLUSIONS: With 1 billion unique users a month, YouTube has potential for both enhancing education and spreading misinformation.
OBJECTIVE: The recent Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak in 2014-2015 has been the largest and longest lasting to date. Media coverage about the outbreak has been extensive, but there are large gaps in our understanding of the ways in which widely accessed social media sites are used during times of public health crisis. The purpose of this study was to analyze widely viewed videos about EVD on the YouTube video-sharing site. METHODS: We coded the source, content, and characteristics of the 100 most widely viewed videos about EVD on YouTube. RESULTS: The videos included in the sample were viewed more than 73 million times. The death toll in West Africa was mentioned in nearly one-third of the videos. Over one-third of the videos mentioned how EVD was generally transmitted. There was little mention of treatment and no mention of the need for US funding of disaster preparedness; coordination between local, state, and federal governments; or beds ready for containment. No significant differences in the number of views were identified between video sources with the exception of a significantly higher number of views for "consumer videos" compared with "commercial television videos." CONCLUSIONS: With 1 billion unique users a month, YouTube has potential for both enhancing education and spreading misinformation.
Entities:
Keywords:
Ebola; YouTube; communication; social media
Authors: Isaac Chun-Hai Fung; King-Wa Fu; Chung-Hong Chan; Benedict Shing Bun Chan; Chi-Ngai Cheung; Thomas Abraham; Zion Tsz Ho Tse Journal: Public Health Rep Date: 2016 May-Jun Impact factor: 2.792
Authors: Corey H Basch; Isaac Chun-Hai Fung; Rodney N Hammond; Elizabeth B Blankenship; Zion Tsz Ho Tse; King-Wa Fu; Patrick Ip; Charles E Basch Journal: J Prev Med Public Health Date: 2017-01-26
Authors: Daryl L Superio; Kristen L Anderson; Ryan Michael F Oducado; Myrna T Luceño; Vince Ervin V Palcullo; Maria Vanessa T Bendalian Journal: Int J Disaster Risk Reduct Date: 2021-06-24 Impact factor: 4.320