Breaking news dissemination in the media via propagation behavior based on complex network theory

Nairong Liu, Haizhong An, Xiangyun Gao, Huajiao Li and Xiaoqing Hao

Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, 2016, vol. 453, issue C, 44-54

Abstract: The diffusion of breaking news largely relies on propagation behaviors in the media. The tremendous and intricate propagation relationships in the media form a complex network. An improved understanding of breaking news diffusion characteristics can be obtained through the complex network research. Drawing on the news data of Bohai Gulf oil spill event from June 2011 to May 2014, we constructed a weighted and directed complex network in which media are set as nodes, the propagation relationships as edges and the propagation times as the weight of the edges. The primary results show (1) the propagation network presents small world feature, which means relations among media are close and breaking news originating from any node can spread rapidly; (2) traditional media and official websites are the typical sources for news propagation, while business portals are news collectors and spreaders; (3) the propagation network is assortative and the group of core media facilities the spread of breaking news faster; (4) for online media, news originality factor become less important to propagation behaviors. This study offers a new insight to explore information dissemination from the perspective of statistical physics and is beneficial for utilizing the public opinion in a positive way.

Keywords: Complex network; Information dissemination; Propagation behavior (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378437116002120
Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only. Journal offers the option of making the article available online on Science direct for a fee of $3,000

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:phsmap:v:453:y:2016:i:c:p:44-54

DOI: 10.1016/j.physa.2016.02.046

Access Statistics for this article

Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications is currently edited by K. A. Dawson, J. O. Indekeu, H.E. Stanley and C. Tsallis

More articles in Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().