Browsing by Author "O'Donnell, Katie"

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    Shark Week and Public Perceptions of Sharks
    (2019-04-12) O'Donnell, Katie
    Perceptions of predators, and the type of language used when describing them, can influence a person’s decision whether or not to support wildlife conservation. Many shark species are important apex predators that are found in oceans worldwide, giving sharks a unique role in our society. This study investigated social conversations about sharks by using sentiment analysis of the social media platform, Twitter. We wanted to see if popular annual programming, such as Discovery Channel’s Shark Week, influences the language used in public social conversations and how that affects attitudes toward sharks. Sentiment and statistical analyses show that Shark Week affects the sentiment of language used in Twitter conversations about sharks from 2012-2017. This study builds on the growing literature that increases understanding of public sentiment of sharks, which can contribute to more informative and effective policies to better protect sharks.