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People on TikTok tend to follow accounts that align with their own political beliefs, meaning the platform is creating political echo chambers among its users. These findings, from a study my collaborators, Yanlin Li and Homero Gil de Zúiga, and I published in the academic journal New Media & Society, show that people mostly hear from voices they already agree with. We analyzed the structure of different political networks on TikTok and found that right-leaning communities are more isolated from other political groups and from mainstream news outlets. Looking at their internal structures, the right-leaning communities are more tightly connected than their left-leaning counterparts. In other words, conservative TikTok users tend to stick together. They rarely follow accounts with opposing views or mainstream media accounts. Liberal users, on the other hand, are more likely to follow a mix of accounts, including those they might disagree with. Our study is based on a massive dataset of over 16 million TikTok videos from more than 160,000 public accounts between 2019 and 2023. We saw a spike of political TikTok videos during the 2020 U.S. presidential election. More importantly, people arent just passively watching political content; theyre actively creating political content themselves. Some people are more outspoken about politics than others. We found that users with stronger political leanings and those who get more likes and comments on their videos are more motivated to keep posting. This shows the power of partisanship, but also the power of TikToks social rewards system. Engagement signalslikes, shares, commentsare like a fuel, encouraging users to create even more. Why it matters People are turning to TikTok not just for a good laugh. A recent Pew Research Center survey shows that almost 40% of U.S. adults under 30 regularly get news on TikTok. The question becomes what kind of news are they watching, and what does that mean for how they engage with politics. The content on TikTok often comes from creators and influencers or digital-native media sources. The quality of this news content remains uncertain. Without access to balanced, fact-based information, people may struggle to make informed political decisions. Amid the debates over banning TikTok, our study highlights how TikTok can be a double-edged sword in political communication. Its encouraging to see people participate in politics through TikTok when thats their medium of choice. However, if a users network is closed and homogeneous and their expression serves as in-group validation, it may further solidify the political echo chamber. When people are exposed to one-sided messages, it can increase hostility toward outgroups. In the long run, relying on TikTok as a source for political information might deepen peoples political views and contribute to greater polarization. What other research is being done Echo chambers have been widely studied on platforms like Twitter and Facebook, but similar research on TikTok is in its infancy. TikTok is drawing scrutiny, particularly its role in news production, political messaging, and social movements. TikTok has its unique format, algorithmic curation and entertainment-driven design. I believe that its function as a tool for political communication calls for closer examination. Whats next In 2024, the Biden/Harris and Trump campaigns joined TikTok to reach young voters. My research team is now analyzing how these political communication dynamics may have shifted during the 2024 election. Future research could use experiments to explore whether these campaign videos significantly influence voters perceptions and behaviors. The Research Brief is a short take on interesting academic work. Zicheng Cheng is an assistant professor of mass communications at the University of Arizona. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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Barcelona recorded its hottest month of June since records started over a century ago, Spain’s national weather service said on Tuesday as Europe remained in the grip of the first major heat wave this summer.The Fabra Observatory, located on a hill overlooking Barcelona, reported an average temperature of 26 degrees Celsius (78 degrees Fahrenheit), breaking records since 1914. The previous hottest average for June was 25.6 C in 2003.The same weather station said that a single-day high of 37.9 C (100 F) for June was recorded Monday, June 30.Barcelona is usually spared the worst heat in Spain, thanks to its location between hills and the Mediterranean in Spain’s northeastern corner. But most of the country has been gripped by the first heat wave of the year.Health warnings were in effect Tuesday in several European Union countries even as conditions began to improve in some parts of the region.Punishing temperatures were forecast to reach 40 C (104 F) in Paris and to stay unusually high in Belgium and the Netherlands. In contrast, temperatures were falling in Portugal, where no red heat warnings were issued.Spain saw a new high mark for June established on Saturday when 46 C (114F) was recorded in the southern province of Huelva, while Sunday’s national average of 28 C (82F) set a record for a high temperature for June 29 since records were started in 1950.“We are seeing these temperatures because we are experiencing a very intense heat wave that has come early in the summer and that is clearly linked to global warming,” Ramón Pascual, the regional delegate for Spain’s weather service in Barcelona, told The Associated Press on Tuesday. France suffocates In France, the national weather agency Météo-France placed several departments under the highest red alert, with the Paris region particularly hard hit.The heat wave, defined as consecutive days of very high temperature, is expected to intensify Tuesday with more than 1,300 schools set to be partially or fully closed, the Education Ministry said.Visitors to the Eiffel Tower without tickets were told to postpone their visits as the summit of the city’s landmark was closed until Thursday.Météo-France also warned of the heightened risk of wildfires due to the drought-stricken soil, compounded by a lack of rain in June and the recent surge in temperature.Climate experts warn that future summers are likely to be hotter than any recorded to date. By 2100, France could be up to 4 C (39 F) warmer, with temperatures exceeding 40 C expected every year and extreme heat spikes potentially reaching 50 C (122 F). According to Météo-France, the country may face a tenfold increase in the number of heat wave days by 2100. Man dies in Italy Farther south, 17 of Italy’s 27 major cities were experiencing a heat wave, according to the Health Ministry.There were torrential rains in Italy’s north on Monday and parts of Bardonecchia near Turin were covered in sludge after the Frejus river burst its banks. Near Bologna, one of the cities under a heat alert Tuesday, the 46-year-old owner of a construction company collapsed and died while repaving a school parking lot, state-run RAI reported.An autopsy was being conducted to determine the cause, but heat was suspected. The CGIL labor union said the death of the man, whom it identified as Ait El Hajjam Brahim, owner of Veneto Pavimenti SAS, showed the need for improved measures to protect construction workers from heat exposure. The Netherlands sweating An annual event in Amsterdam to commemorate the end of slavery in former Dutch colonies was moved forward to avoid the hottest part of the day and in the northern city of Groningen, organizers of an outdoor concert featuring veteran rocker Neil Young also took measures, including adding extra drinking water taps and providing free sunblock.The national weather institute issued an alert for extreme temperatures and smog in parts of the country and warned the eastern Netherlands that severe thunderstorms could break out on Wednesday as the hot weather ends. Portugal improving In Portugal, Lisbon was forecast to reach 33 C (91 F), typical for this time of the year, though some inland areas could still see peaks of 43 C (109 F), according to the national weather agency. June temperature records were broken in two locations in Portugal on June 29.The Portuguese weather service issued a statement Monday night confirming the highest single temperature ever recorded in mainland Portugal for the month of June at 46.6 C on June 29 in the town of Mora, west of Lisbon. The prior record was 44.9 C in 2017. Wilson reported from Barcelona. Jill Lawless in London, Barry Hatton in Lisbon, Portugal, Mike Corder in The Netherlands and David Biller in Rome contributed to this report. Samuel Petrequin and Joseph Wilson, Associated Press
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Were used to seeing skateboarding legend Tony Hawk on wheels, but a new campaign has him discussing his time behind the wheel rather than on a board. Hawk, along with professional snowboarder Zeb Powell, are front in center in a new three-part campaign from CarGurus, an automotive research and shopping website. The campaign, called The Big Deal Show, comprises three parts, with Hawk and Powell starring in the first, discussing lifes biggest moments behind the wheel. The campaign was released on July 1 and directed by Paul Scheer. Subsequent parts, and their respective celebrity guests, will be released in the coming months. Additionally, CarGurus will be giving away three new Nissan vehicles through a sweepstakes on its website. The company says that in tandem with the release of each episode, a winner will be selected to receive a brand-new car (approximately $50,000 in value), along with funds to cover related expenses. As for what drew Hawk to the project? The answer, he tells Fast Company, is simple: He spends a lot of time in the car. A moment of zen I drive a lot, he says. I live in San Diego, and most of the work I do is in Los Angeles, and Im well-versed and run the gamut in terms of the cars I drive, Hawk says. He makes the roughly 120-mile trip between the two Southern Californian cities several times per week, and the time behind the wheel is something that he cherishes, as its often the only time he gets to find some zen, with a busy professional and personal life. Thats my zen time, my time to zone out and listen to music. Its really the only alone time I get in recent years, he says. So, when it comes to driving, the time on the road is something that he values. That may not be the case for every driver, of course, and almost all Americans do drive. The most recent data available from AAA, for instance, finds that more than 95% of U.S. residents age 16 or older are behind the wheel at least occasionally, and on average, spend more than an hour in the car each day. Given that, it makes sense that CarGurus would lean into the experiences of a well-known celebrity and athlete to showcase that the average American isnt alonewhich may make it a fairly effective campaign. Hawk, growing up, also says that he spent a lot of time on the road going on family trips, but also getting around for skateboard competitions. Driving, in that sense, has been something of a fundamental building block to who he is today, and he says that the act of being on the road itself can teach people a thing or two. You learn the value of patience and perseverance, much in the same way you learn to skateboard, Hawk says. He adds that theres also something important to get on the road, see whats between the cities, and open your eyes to new sights and cultures. So, while most people might think of their commute or a trip to the grocery store as a slog through traffic, Hawk takes a much more philosophical, high-minded approach, and urges others to try and do the same. And if he has a piece of advice for drivers, besides using CarGurus to find their next vehicle? Watch for distracted drivers, because they make it easier to merge. Theres always someone not paying attention, theyre on their phone, he says. So, seize the gap, use the space, and stay safe, and respectful behind the wheel.
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