The purpose of this study was to evaluate characteristics of the @CDCgov Twitter followers for an overview of the tool's audience impact. Selection of the sample size was conducted with a purposive sampling method without limitations of any criterion. Data were collected in a 3-month period and a total of 400 accounts were evaluated. The 200 most recent followers' accounts, the 100 first followers, and 100 accounts in the middle of the followers list were analyzed.
The majority of the sample size following the Twitter feed of @CDCgov have low frequency of activity on their own accounts. Based on the sample size, the majority, 42%, has a history of posting 1-100 tweets since their account's creation. Of the followers assessed, 79% have privacy settings set on public mode. Seventy-two percent of the followers are identified as personal accounts and 28% are utilized as an organizational social media tool. Among the sample size, 37% indicated a career in health-related professions. The highest geographic representation of followers was located in the Eastern United States, with 17.5% of followers residing in New York.
This analysis provides support that the Center of Disease Control and Prevention's main Twitter account, @CDCgov, reaches a diverse audience within the United States and internationally (15.3%). The data collected demonstrate the demand for hassle-free distribution of information via social media platforms. The demand is supported by the consistent increasing rate of Twitter users following the @CDCgov account. Based on the findings, micro-blogging of health information is a powerful tool that displays great potential to reach a wide audience.
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