Abstract The present chapter aspires to clarify the critical role of different distribution processes in conceptual organisation for Social Media CDS (SM-CDS), an emerging theory and method wherein the specific nature and context of digitally mediated meaning-making is structurally integrated into CDS research ( KhosraviNik 2020 ; KhosraviNik and Esposito 2018 ). In order to map key distribution processes and critical caveats around them in the digital sphere, we discuss some specific theoretical views around the notion of the distribution process in CDS, introduce analytical tools and techniques for the visualisation and analysis of social media data, and show how they can work as complementary techniques for SM-CDS studies. While rooted in core critical discursive principles, in fact, SM-CDS aspires to selectively and systematically incorporate digital theory approaches such as data science and analytics, visualization methods and videography, among others. In particular, we present three different methods, namely Social Network Analysis, Sentiment Analysis, and Digital Ethnography, as useful approaches to explore complex aspects of discursive distribution, affectivity, social and power relations in the cybersphere.
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