Anti-social media: executive Twitter “engagement” and attitudes about media credibility

Michael C. Porter · Betsy Anderson · Mary Nhotsavang

52 citations0/0 files storedJournal of Communication Management

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Public Relations and Crisis Communication Digital Marketing and Social Media Media and Digital Communication

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to take the results of two studies to hypothesize about practice and recommend research/debate on business leaders’ use and perceptions of social media. Data were considered under the umbrella of current senior management practice, with the purpose to make suggestions for better practice, but primarily to theorize about the probable evolution of social media value and credibility for executives. Design/methodology/approach – The first study presents results from a qualitative content analysis of Fortune and Inc. 500 CEOs’ use of Twitter in terms of: activity and engagement; tweet subject matter; frequency of opinions expressed; and level of formality. The second considers the credibility of social media against traditional media and personal information sources within one quantitative survey. Findings – Senior executives using social media (Twitter) tend to engage in one-sided conversations in a two-way medium. Further, most CEOs appear to be using more formal language than general Twitter users. These factors, combined with the low credibility and value of social media by senior managers, may indicate the best future hope for social media credibility with executives will be neutral. Practical implications – In examining a combination of current literature and the data from these separate studies, the authors posit a number of underlying challenges in realizing the potential of the evolving social media environment that may deserve specific research. Originality/value – Discussion touches on implications for future adoption of social media tools by business leaders, as well as one-way vs two-way communication tendencies. This paper proposes a starting-point for theory development regarding this significant emerging area of communication.

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References

2000The Network Structure Of Social Capital 2004The Strength of Weak Ties You Can Trust: The Mediating Role of Trust in Effective Knowledge Transfer 2000A Meta-Analysis of Response Rates in Web- or Internet-Based Surveys 2010Who are the social media influencers? A study of public perceptions of personality 2001Public Trust or Mistrust? Perceptions of Media Credibility in the Information Age 2013Social Media as Information Source: Recency of Updates and Credibility of Information 2012Engaging stakeholders through Twitter: How nonprofit organizations are getting more out of 140 characters or less 2010Dialogic communication in 140 characters or less: How Fortune 500 companies engage stakeholders using Twitter

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