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Do not shut up and do dribble: social media and TV consumption

Author

Listed:
  • Matteo Pazzona

    (Brunel University London)

  • Nicola Spagnolo

    (Brunel University London
    Australian National University
    Universitá degli studi della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”)

Abstract

This paper investigates the impact of social media interest and sentiment surrounding the 2020 National Basketball Association’s involvement with the Black Lives Matter movement on the television audience in the United States. Twitter (now known as X) serves as the chosen social media platform, and we determine the sentiment expressed in tweets (messages posted on Twitter) using the XLM-RoBERTa deep language model. Our primary findings indicate that the quantity of users’ posts does not significantly influence TV viewership; instead, the tone of the messages plays a crucial role. Positive messages supporting the NBA’s engagement correlate with an increase in the number of viewers, while those expressing opposition do not. We argue that this asymmetry may stem from a positive elasticity among casual (non-habitual) NBA viewers concerning positive sentiments toward NBA involvement. These viewers are likely to align with the NBA’s stances on civil rights and BLM. In contrast, the core NBA fan base exhibits inelastic demand and is unlikely to cease watching NBA games. A comprehensive set of robustness checks reinforces the validity of our key conclusions.

Suggested Citation

  • Matteo Pazzona & Nicola Spagnolo, 2024. "Do not shut up and do dribble: social media and TV consumption," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 37(2), pages 1-25, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:jopoec:v:37:y:2024:i:2:d:10.1007_s00148-024-01034-7
    DOI: 10.1007/s00148-024-01034-7
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Black lives matter; Sentiment; Social media; TV consumption;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D12 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Consumer Economics: Empirical Analysis
    • D80 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - General
    • L82 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Entertainment; Media

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