Key Voices Heard During India's Monsoon: An Analysis Of Information On Twitter in 2015

Abstract

The performance of the southwest monsoon is crucial for India's economy and food security. Every year, monsoon-related reportage in mainstream newspapers focuses on predictions or actual impact with the help of data provided by the Indian Meteorological Department. The monsoon however, has an impact on everyday lives and on the country, beyond data and predictions making discussions on the monsoon relevant for different communities, especially those involved in agriculture. A modern media option for discussion and information sharing across communities and regions is social media. With two-way communication online becoming a reality, social media sites are engaging with a number of users, at a personal level and also for systematic corporate, development and issue-based campaigns. The hazards of misleading information as well as domination of a few voices on social media are becoming a subject of research and concern. With over 500 million users worldwide, social media platform Twitter's brevity, immediacy and ability to connect opinion leaders and people directly has made the influential and common people equally patronize this micro-blogging site. Twitter conversations relate to issues and events that affect users or make an impression on them, providing a platform for discussions, with people from all walks of life who access social media. This paper analyzes qualitative and quantitative information on Twitter related to the southwest monsoon in India during 2015, with specific reference to the profile of people who are able to articulate their point of view on the subject. It studies how representative and equitable these messages are, in the context of agriculture, food security and those who are affected most by the monsoon and its impact. It finds that just over 7% of information in connection with the topic of the monsoon in India, is associated with agriculture-related concerns on the social networking site Twitter.