#BREAKING local news: Twitter use in a large media market

Abstract

This study concerns Twitter use in a large local news market. Nonprofit newsrooms and a regional newspaper used replies to engage in reciprocal exchanges with audiences, but broadcasters used retweets, hashtags, and mentions for branding. News media differed in attention to news topics valued by audiences, with resource-constrained local newspapers overemphasizing sports. Attention to weather and crime were predictors of audience sharing of tweets, but sports posts were less likely to be liked or retweeted.