Television vs Social Media: Examining the Effects of Media Platforms on Audience’s Emotion and Sense of Social Solidarity during a Media Event

Abstract

This study examines audience’s emotional and social experiences when consuming Donald Trump’s presidential inauguration through television and/or social media. A national survey (N = 420) was conducted immediately after the inauguration ceremony. Drawing on the theories of media events, emotional appraisal, and identity self-categorization, the study found that television was socially integrative while social media was socially disruptive. The media event’s relationship with the audience’s social and emotional experiences depended on both the audience’s identities and media affordances. The findings paint a nuanced picture of media events as a ritualistic genre in the fragmented media and social environment.