Between March and April 2022, 72% of the over 323 sampled social media users expressed negative sentiments in response to reports that the Turkish Red Crescent had sold tents to a charity organisation in the aftermath of the earthquake. To better understand the role of social media in the dissemination of information related to the humanitarian sector, this report presents data on how the tent sale story emerged and spread online, finding the following:
• Social media platforms, mainly Facebook and Twitter, played a key role in the diffusion of the story, with data suggesting that thousands of social media posts were published online immediately following the revelations. Standard Steel Grating
• As a result of the story’s high visibility on social media, tens of millions of people were exposed to the story on various social media platforms, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok.
• At the same time, hundreds of thousands of social media users, mainly on Instagram, interacted with the story by commenting on, liking and sharing posts on the issue.
• Part of the reason for the story’s virality is that it took on a political dimension, with key political figures and pages – often with large numbers of followers – sharing the story or commenting on it on social media.
• Data suggests that the tent sale story adversely impacted the Red Crescent’s popularity, with average net sentiment towards the organisation declining significantly following the revelations.
Steel Grating Panels The report highlights how social media plays an increasingly important role in the dissemination of stories or reports related to agencies working in the humanitarian sector, and how, unlike information disseminated on edited media, social media discussions often include expressions of sentiments that reveal perceptions about aid operations. Social media monitoring offers opportunities to capture such feelings. However, social media discussions make it much harder for communication professionals to control any narratives.