Major Media Research Articles

뉴스 기사 빅데이터 분석을 통한 북한이탈주민의 사회적 이슈와 언어 문제 탐색: 2019-2024

Objectives The purpose of this study is to explore social issues and language problems that appear in news articles related to North Korean defectors and to suggest their implications. Methods 561 news articles related to North Korean defectors covered by major domestic newspapers and media companies from 2019 to June 2024 were collected. For analysis tools, language network analysis and topic modeling techniques were used to analyze major keywords and topics and visualize them. In addition, based on the analysis results, social issues and language problems of North Korean defectors were explored, and Korean language education implications were presented. Results he research results are as follows. First, the amount of news coverage has been increasing significantly over the past three years, and political articles have shown an overwhelmingly high proportion. Second, the main keywords are ‘government, support, human rights, protection, and settlement’. The main topics were protection of human rights of North Korean defectors, increasing number of North Korean defectors among elites and the 2030 generation, and complaints of difficulties due to mental and economic discrimination and prejudice in the process of settling in Korea. The content of the government's integrated support policy accounted for a high proportion. Third, it was found that North Korean defectors were struggling with the language difference between North and South Korea, and Korean language education focusing on pronunciation, accent, and vocabulary in each area was necessary for them. Conclusions The main topic of the news article was the integrated support for the protection of human rights and stable settlement of North Korean defectors. However, although North Korean defectors complain of ‘difficulty’ due to economic, psychological, emotional, and linguistic differences, these related topics are hardly covered in the media. Therefore, this paper suggested implications for Korean language education research for North Korean defectors' language adaptation.

Large Language Model in Creative Work: The Role of Collaboration Modality and User Expertise

Since the launch of ChatGPT in December 2022, large language models (LLMs) have been rapidly adopted by businesses to assist users in a wide range of open-ended tasks, including creative work. Although the versatility of LLM has unlocked new ways of human-artificial intelligence collaboration, it remains uncertain how LLMs should be used to enhance business outcomes. To examine the effects of human-LLM collaboration on business outcomes, we conducted an experiment where we tasked expert and nonexpert users to write an ad copy with and without the assistance of LLMs. Here, we investigate and compare two ways of working with LLMs: (1) using LLMs as “ghostwriters,” which assume the main role of the content generation task, and (2) using LLMs as “sounding boards” to provide feedback on human-created content. We measure the quality of the ads using the number of clicks generated by the created ads on major social media platforms. Our results show that different collaboration modalities can result in very different outcomes for different user types. Using LLMs as sounding boards enhances the quality of the resultant ad copies for nonexperts. However, using LLMs as ghostwriters did not provide significant benefits and is, in fact, detrimental to expert users. We rely on textual analyses to understand the mechanisms, and we learned that using LLMs as ghostwriters produces an anchoring effect, which leads to lower-quality ads. On the other hand, using LLMs as sounding boards helped nonexperts achieve ad content with low semantic divergence to content produced by experts, thereby closing the gap between the two types of users. This paper was accepted by D. J. Wu, information systems. Supplemental Material: The online appendix and data files are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2023.03014 .

Citizen Science for Invertebrate Biodiversity: Mobilizing Spider Occurrence Data through Facebook in India

India accommodates a huge diversity of plant and animal life across a variety of biomes. However, the degree of research, funding, and attention is asymmetric, largely focused on its charismatic vertebrates. Invertebrates, despite their megadiversity, are generally overlooked with some exceptions (for example, lepidoterans). One species-rich group, spiders, exemplifies this knowledge gap. More than 1,800 species from 63 families have been reported in the country (Mondal et al. 2020), even though the true number may be much higher, in part, owing to the need for taxonomic revisions. Several spider systematics and biogeographic studies have pointed out that spatial distribution, seasonality, and natural history data are lacking from India. The lack of foundational biodiversity information has led to poor opportunities to share knowledge between researchers and community scientists. Mining occurrences through scientific publications or databases (in some cases behind paywalls) may require specialized training. This restricted access inhibits more people from using the abundance of information. The prevalence of social media posts showcasing photographs of species in biodiversity contexts has experienced a significant increase, with a multitude of users sharing wildlife photographs on social media sites such as Instagram®, Facebook®, and Flickr®. These observations on social media are a potential source of primary biodiversity data when curated and validated (Barman and Barve 2022, Barman et al. 2022a). Such data can enhance biodiversity monitoring by expanding spatial and temporal coverage and involving a global network of citizen scientists in conservation research (Barve et al. 2023, Roy 2022, Kulkarni 2023). The India Biodiversity Portal (IBP, Vattakaven et al. 2016) has been cataloguing species diversity and spider data through citizen science. Meanwhile, major social media sites report many more species sightings than citizen science platforms. SpiderIndia, a popular Facebook group, has collected over 20,000 observations from 8,500 spider enthusiasts. However, these data remain unorganised and inaccessible to academic researchers and the public. In order to tackle these problems, we implemented a methodical process to enhance the occurrence data on spiders from well-known social media platforms, such as the SpiderIndia project. The procedure involved retrieving the relevant data, and ingesting it through a custom pipeline to parse and extract, scientific names, spatial and temporal data to generate occurrence records on the IBP. The data was then presented on a curation interface, enabling taxonomic experts to verify the records, and finally publishing the verified records on the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) (Global Biodiversity Information Facility 2022, Barman et al. 2022b) to improve the records of spider species occurrence in India. This project showcases the capacity of citizen science via social media to involve citizen scientists in generating extensive datasets that make a significant contribution to scientific knowledge and improve our comprehension of invertebrate biodiversity. The final dataset encompasses over 15,000 observations, providing valuable insights into spider diversity and distribution across India (Fig. 1). This data is publicly available on GBIF, facilitating further research on Indian spider populations.

A comparative study on the perception of integrated resort in Korea before and after COVID-19 using social big data

The study was conducted to compare and analyze perceptions of integrated resorts before and after the outbreak of COVID-19 and to explore ways to revitalize the operation of integrated resorts that can be utilized in the post-Corona era. Keywords highly related to integrated resorts were collected from major social media and SNS channels in Korea, such as Naver, Daum, and Google. Unstructured big data analysis research was conducted using social network analysis and semantic network analysis, which are major methodologies for social big data. The keyword data collection period was divided into the time before and after the outbreak of COVID-19. A total of 7,933 keywords were collected before the outbreak, and 7,395 were collected during the period after the outbreak. The study included a total of 100 keywords, with 50 from each period. The research results showed that, first, before the outbreak of COVID-19, the keywords ‘Casino’, ‘Yeongjong-do’, ‘Hotel’, ‘Dream Tower’, ‘Incheon’, ‘Development’, ‘Domestic’, and ‘Business’ appeared with high frequency. After the outbreak, the keywords ‘Jeju’, ‘Resort’, ‘Dream Tower’, ‘Hotel’, ‘Inspire’, and ‘Business’ showed high frequencies of appearance. Second, CONCOR analysis confirmed the presence of seven keyword clusters before and after the outbreak of COVID-19. Based on the results of this study, various implications for integrated resorts that can be utilized in the post-Corona era suggested, along with future directions for integrated resort research.

Indonesian Migrant Women Workers in Türkiye and Media Representation at Home: Precarity Works and Mediating the State Protection

This qualitative study examines the portrayal of Indonesian migrant women workers in Türkiye by major Indonesian online media outlets from 2019 to 2023. Using content analysis, the research explores dominant media representations surrounding workers in Türkiye's care service and tourism sectors. Findings reveal patterns of precarious work, exploitation, and vulnerability to undocumented employment, particularly involving Syrian employers. The study highlights a significant shift in media coverage from sensationalist reporting to echoing government narratives on combating undocumented migration. This shift aligns with Indonesia's labour-export policy reforms under President Jokowi, which aim to promote labour migration to formal sectors and distance the country's image from domestic worker exports. The research demonstrates how media reflects and reinforces state migrant protection policies through "domesticated protection." However, this approach inadvertently perpetuates victimization and potentially exacerbates vulnerabilities by stigmatizing unofficial migration channels. While intended to safeguard workers, stringent regulations may if not already contribute to increased undocumented migration. By analyzing the nexus between media representation, state policies, and migrant precarities, this study contributes to understanding the complex dynamics of labour migration in an emerging corridor, calling for a more nuanced approach to media coverage, policy-making, and future studies that acknowledges both migrant agency and structural challenges.

Battle to Survive: The Association Between Accountability and Chinese Local Government Response to COVID-19

ABSTRACT China’s ability to sustain the zero-COVID strategy over three years has garnered global attention, but little is known about the factors contributing to its long-term adherence. Based on the political promotion tournament model, this article theorizes that China’s strict administrative accountability system, which tied local officials’ career prospects to their performance in crucial policy goals, incentivized local governments to sustain COVID-19 policies. Using data from the Oxford COVID-19 Government Response Tracker and major official Chinese media outlets, we performed interrupted time series analysis (ITSA) to examine whether the accountability events affected the local government’s COVID-19 responses. Noticeably, our analyses found that from May 4, 2020, to September 30, 2022, when an accountability event happened, officials in the affected (local effects) and unaffected (spillover effects) provinces all increased their containment responses and decreased their economic support responses. This is true even for provinces without new localized outbreaks. The effects of accountability events increased with decreasing geographical distance. These findings remain consistent after several robustness checks. The administrative accountability system is a key institutional factor in implementing China’s zero-COVID strategy, which contributed to the global literature about the pandemic policy process in centralized countries.

The virus and an enemy within: Construction of an invidious news discourse by the mainstream press in India

Human rights organizations and media watchdogs have expressed concerns about COVID-19 news coverage in the Global South, particularly by the Indian mainstream media, due to the Islamophobic discourse it generated. This study critically examines the first wave of COVID-19 coverage by four major Indian media outlets and argues that the press perpetuates an ideologically driven discriminatory discourse developed over a century. Drawing on past scholarship in Discourse Historical Analysis (DHA), the study finds that the media employs various discursive strategies – nomination, predication, argumentation, perspectivization, mitigation, and intensification – to construct a malevolent identity for Indian Muslims. This represents them as the ‘enemy within the nation’, attributing blame for the virus’s spread in the country. Conforming to Hindutva, a dominant ideology that has been shaping Indian national politics for decades, these strategies collectively contribute to an invidious news discourse, contradicting the press’s purported fairness and neutrality.

The dramaturgical infrastructure of counter-summitry – ethnographic insights from the Glasgow climate conference

ABSTRACT The annual UN climate conferences synchronize major social worlds, including politics, media, business, science, and law. They therefore attract anyone interested in high-profile performances such as protest action. With the post-Paris turn in global environmental governance, scholarly interest in theatrical aspects of climate governance is increasing. Activism at climate conferences, however, has not yet been studied through a dramaturgical lens. We propose the concept of ‘dramaturgical infrastructure’ to complement Goffman’s focus on self-presentation with the material and immaterial context beyond the micro-level of situated interactional practices. Based on fieldwork at the 2021 climate conference in Glasgow, we describe how activists draw on and mobilize a dramaturgical infrastructure of scripts, spaces, rituals, and requisites for their performances, and how this results in role-taking on the Glasgow stage. We identify the roles of the watchdog, the participant, the disrupter, and the connector, each with distinctive patterns of compliance with or distancing from post-Paris climate governance and the news media. The dramaturgical perspective suggests that climate conferences provide encounters that educate activists to be aware of the component of self-presentation in their activism and to design performances for high public, policy, and media attention.

The interconnection between social media addiction, alexithymia and empathy in medical students.

This study explores whether high alexithymia values correlate with low levels of empathy, while also trying to identify potential connections with social media addiction. We hypothesized that alexithymia mediates the relationship between social media addiction and empathy levels in a sample of undergraduate students. The study population consisted of 649 medical students in the 4th/5th/6th University year, recruited between March and May 2021. For this assessment, we employed three psychometric instruments: the Toronto Empathy Questionnaire (TEQ), the Social Media Addiction Scale-Student Form (SMAS-SF), and the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20). A pathway analysis investigated alexithymia as a mediator between social media addiction and the degree of empathy in medical undergraduates. Sobel's test and the Baron and Kenny approach were used for testing mediation. The TEQ total mean score was 48.76 ± 5.65, while the TAS-20 total mean score was 47.71 ± 11.49. Further analysis of the TAS-20 scale scores showed that 21.42% of students had possible alexithymia, while 14.02% had clear alexithymia. The SMAS-SF total mean score was 73.20 ± 14.59. None of the students reported levels consistent with major social media addiction. The mediated effect of the TAS-20 is about 1.3 times larger than the direct effect of the SMAS-SF on TEQ. We found a significant negative correlation between empathy and alexithymia in medical students. Alexithymia was a mediator between social media addiction and empathy. Therefore, we recommend further efforts to identify potential levels of alexithymia in medical students, in order to successfully develop tailored interventions aimed at increasing their emotional awareness.

Unleashing the Central Bank Digital Currency Revolution and its Impact on Exchange Rate: A Monetary Approach Synthesis

Research Originality: The introduction of CBDC by the Central Bank of Indonesia has increased the intensity of news about CBDC. Besides aiming to introduce the future direction of the payment system, the news potentially causes uncertainty and speculation in the market, which may impact the rupiah exchange rate.Research Objectives: This research analyzes the impact of CBDC news on the rupiah exchange rate, synthesizing a sticky price version of the monetary approach to the exchange rate. Research Methods: A CBDC News Index is constructed based on a compilation of news data from major online media between 2018 and 2023. The structural VAR (SVAR) method is thenemployed to investigate the impact of CBDC news on the exchange rate dynamic.Empirical Results: The results suggest a trend consistent with the hypothesis, indicating that news about CBDC may lead to pressure on the domestic currency, resulting in depreciation. However, the impact is not statistically convincing as the coefficient is not statistically different from zero. The monetary approach synthesis findings suggest that raising the policy rate is likely efficacious in counteracting the pressure of domestic currency depreciation. Meanwhile, other monetary approach variables exhibit anomalies related to exchange rate dynamics.Implications: As the central bank plans to implement a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), it must carefully control the dissemination of information about what the CBDC will entail and how it will be rolled out. CBDC blueprint and official disclosure help reduce uncertainty and speculation about implementing CBDC.JEL Classification: D80, E58, F31How to Cite:Kurnia, A. S. & Assidiq, M. A. (2024). Unleashing the Central Bank Digital Currency Revolution and Its Impact on Exchange Rate: A Monetary Approach Synthesis. Etikonomi, 23(2), 271-286. https://doi.org/10.15408/etk.v23i2.37788

Gender Inequality and Media Representation: A Critical Discourse Analysis of Femicide Coverage in Indonesia

Femicide, recognized by the UN as the killing of women based on honor, sexual orientation, or gender identity, is a severe manifestation of gender inequality and sex-based violence. Often linked to domestic violence, sexual harassment, and ongoing trauma, femicide represents one of the most extreme forms of violence against women. In 2023, 159 cases of femicide in Indonesia were reported, with most committed by intimate partners (Komnas Perempuan). This study examines how femicide cases were reported by three major Indonesian online media outlets—Kompas.com, Republika.co.id, and Tirto.id—analyzing nine news articles focused on harassment, domestic violence, and murder. Using Sara Mills' critical discourse analysis (CDA), the research explores how these media portray gender injustice against women. The findings reveal that women are consistently depicted as weak and powerless, trapped in a patriarchal culture that normalizes violence against them. This portrayal reinforces gender stereotypes, weakening legal responses and perpetuating male dominance. The study underscores the need for more balanced and empowering media representations of women to challenge the deep-rooted gender inequalities in society.

Impact of Social Media Usage on Sleep and Eye Health: A Survey Study Among University Students

Social media has become essential for university students, particularly during the pandemic, however, excessive late-night use can disrupt sleep due to screen light and impacting overall well-being and academic performance. Therefore, it is important to examine the purposes for which social networking sites are used and the effect of social media on sleep health among students. For the present study exploratory research design was adopted and the data was collected through google forms. The results indicated that, majority of the students were female, highest per cent belonged to 20-24 years age group, nearly seventy per cent were under graduates, students were using all major social media platforms daily to know the latest news and to chat with friends. The high social media usage of social media had high impact on their vison and led to late bedtimes.

Visualizing Mental Health Insights: A Pipeline from Social Media to Chernoff Faces.

This study proposes an approach for analyzing mental health through publicly available social media data, employing Large Language Models (LLMs) and visualization techniques to transform textual data into Chernoff Faces. The analysis began with a dataset comprising 15,744 posts sourced from major social media platforms, which was refined down to 2,621 posts through meticulous data cleaning, feature extraction, and visualization processes. Our methodology includes stages of Data Preparation, Feature Extraction, Chernoff Face Visualization, and Clinical Validation. Dimensionality reduction techniques such as PCA, t-SNE, and UMAP were employed to transform complex mental health data into comprehensible visual representations. Validation involved a survey among 60 volunteer psychiatrists, underscoring the visualizations' potential for enhancing clinical assessments. This work sets the stage for future evaluations, specifically focusing on a combined features method to further refine the visual representation of mental health conditions and to augment the diagnostic tools available to mental health professionals.

How Does the Chinese Government Use Social Media to Control and Direct the Collective Actions of Overseas Chinese Communities

Through the analysis of social media platforms, this study hopes to understand how the Chinese government exerts specific influence on the behavior of overseas Chinese through these media, and further explore how the country indirectly supports the practice of national strategic policy through the control of social media platforms. This study will mainly analyze the data of the three major mainstream media (wechat, Weibo and Facebook) to study and discuss how the Chinese government uses the platform of social media to achieve its national strategic goals. In addition, the study assesses the role of such controls in supporting China's soft power building and national strategies such as the Belt and Road Initiative, and explores their potential long-term impacts and risks. By comparing implementation effects in different regions, this study provides an in-depth understanding of how the Chinese government uses social media to exert influence overseas in the context of globalization.

Brash weeklies, silent broadsheets, and alarmed YouTubers

In Japan, major newspapers often report transgressions of powerful figures in understated ways or ignore them entirely. Outside media such as weeklies have limited access to interview sources about the country’s elites. However, precisely because of their marginal status, outside media have little restraint to expose transgressions of the powerful by turning leaks from those with access to sources into scoops. In summer of 2023, in a series of scoops, Shukan Bunshun, Japan’s popular weekly, targeted Kihara Seiji, a member of the House of Representatives and close aide to Prime Minister Kishida Fumio. At the core of the weekly magazine’s exposé was Kihara and his associates’ suspected interference in the reinvestigation in 2018 where his wife was questioned as a person of interest for the death of her ex-husband in 2006. The scoops were virtually ignored for months by the major media but spread by pundits on social media platforms such as YouTube and captivated their audience. By focusing on the gap in media coverage of Kihara jiken (incident) and the roles of social media pundits, I contemplate news journalism and co-production of high-profile scandals in Japan.

“Get Woke, Go Broke”: sport media’s monetization of white male grievance in the age of Trump

ABSTRACT Following the emergence of the Black Lives Matter movement, a new wave of progressive athlete activism emerged. While a section of sport media members supported these athletes and their causes, a subset of anti-progressive pundits and critics emerged resisting the new wave of politically active Black athletes. I argue that sport media pundits like Clay Travis at Fox Sports represent sport media monetizing white male backlash to “woke” Black athletes. By promoting these voices, these outlets committed to amplifying white male grievance politics and emboldened anti-Black racism in sport media, all while increasing polarization and partisanship, paralleling conservative political news pundits during the Trump era. This essay critically and closely reads and contextualizes the increasingly rightward rhetoric of Travis, explaining how he connects Trumpian rhetoric to sports punditry more broadly and allows major sport media an opportunity to advance overtly conservative, racist, and sexist dialogues.

Possibilities and Limitations of Biodegradable Plastics

This study examined societal interest in biodegradable plastics as portrayed in South Korean media, analyzing trends, topics, and related keywords to understand public perceptions and discourse. Big data analysis was conducted on news articles from 104 major South Korean media outlets between 2014 and 2023 using the BIGKinds platform. The frequency of articles mentioning biodegradable plastics and related keywords were analyzed. A total of 4,403 articles were identified, with a peak in coverage in 2021 followed by a slight decline. Keyword analysis revealed a focus on "eco-friendly" materials like PHA and PLA, and concepts like recycling and commercialization. Media attention toward biodegradable plastics significantly increased, reflecting growing public awareness of sustainable alternatives to conventional plastics. However, challenges such as degradation conditions, waste management integration, and economic feasibility require further attention.

Understanding news-related user comments and their effects: a systematic review

There has been growing interest in research on news-related user comments. Here we conduct the first systematic review of this literature—quantitatively and qualitatively (248 studies)—that covers the entire communication process (content analyses, surveys, experiments). Results indicate a focus on online news articles (vs videos) and little consideration for major social media platforms (Instagram, TikTok). Research often assesses incivility in comments but offers conflicting conclusions on the actual level of incivility in comment threads—and seldom considers how to effectively combat any incivility. We propose four priorities for future work: more comparative and longitudinal approaches; exploring social media and video content; examining platform design, content moderation and artificial intelligence; and implementing measures to reduce incivility and protect the integrity of journalism.

To Be or Not to Be: Will Virtual Worlds and the Metaverse Gain Lasting Traction?

Since their beginnings, virtual worlds have experienced two major media hypes in their short lifetime—the first in 2003 after the launch of Second Life and the second in 2021, with Mark Zuckerberg announcing his strategy for the Metaverse. Most academic research on virtual worlds emerged between these two peaks of interest. This article delves into the enduring relevance of such research, contrasting the two hype cycles. It analyzes the reasons behind current caution expressed by companies and offers insights into the future trajectory of the Metaverse and which crucial developments are needed for sustained traction in virtual worlds.

Breaking through the "Tower of Babel": Exploratory Research on the International Communication Practice of Artificial Intelligence Generating News

With the deepening influence of artificial intelligence on the production mode of news and the increasing application of technological innovation in cross-border communication, this study found that artificial intelligence can solve the communication dilemma of language in cross-cultural communication revealed in the myth of the Tower of Babel through language translation and empathetic communication strategies. The literature review section introduces the basic concepts of cross-cultural empathy communication and the practical application of artificial intelligence-generated news in international communication. Multiple case studies were used in the research method, based on the specific practices of major media outlets including Xinhua News Agency, People's Daily, China Central Television, Associated Press, New York Times, and CBS in the application of intelligent technology. The research results indicate that the application of intelligent technology in the news production process has significantly improved work efficiency and promoted innovation in news production models at three levels: technical logic, media logic, and capital logic. The conclusion drawn from this article is that the deep involvement of generative artificial intelligence technology in the news production process can help build a new production mechanism that balances efficiency and responsibility and promotes the comprehensive improvement of efficiency and quality in cross-cultural communication. Future research will continue to focus on the empirical application of intelligent technology in news production, further optimizing news production models, and providing new perspectives and methods for developing the media industry.