Cincinnati Edition: UC professor discusses Twitter's role in CovCath story
Journalism professor Jeffrey Blevins addresses how social media fanned the flames of the controversy
Speaking on WVXU’s “Cincinnati Edition” on Wednesday, University of Cincinnati journalism professor Jeffrey Blevins discussed the role social media played in shaping people’s perceptions about the face-to-face confrontation on Jan. 18 between Covington Catholic High School students and Native American protestors at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.
Blevins, head of the Journalism Department in UC’s McMicken College of Arts and Sciences, said the identity behind the Twitter account that initially spread the first controversial video is in question.
“That’s where the story first broke. It was primarily being spread by a single account, which has since been deactivated,” Blevins told host Dan Hurley. “It hit some typical red flags. You have a single individual with 40,000 followers. This account was pushing out 130 tweets per day, which is not normal for your average Twitter user.”
UC journalism professor Jeffrey Blevins. Photo/Dottie Stover/UC Creative Services
Blevins said coverage in both the news media and social media seemed to frame two competing perspectives.
“What I find really interesting about this is we have two very different versions of reality playing out on Twitter and the media in general,” Blevins said. “One is this was fake news blown out of proportion with a single short video that is trying to besmirch these kids. And another version of reality is that the media are trying to whitewash this, trying to walk this back, taking the side of the kids and excusing their behavior.
“Even though these two versions of reality don’t comport, they agree with one thing – that it’s the media’s fault,” he said. “And that’s the part that I think needs some unpacking. We need to distinguish what are news outlets and what are social media and individuals posting opinions.”
Blevins also spoke to WCPO’s Channel 9 about how the controversy demonstrated the compulsion to respond on social media before all facts are known.
"I think it really becomes problematic when you have people who want to quickly respond and comment," he told WCPO. "There's a temptation to do that before there is to slow down and get more information."
Blevins told WVXU that one lesson for everyone is to be measured in responding to posts on social media.
“Social media encourages us to act immediately: tweet or retweet,” Blevins said. “I think the lesson should be to slow down a little bit. Take a breath, especially if you’re going to deliver sharp criticism or, worse yet, vitriol or judgment.”
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