Analyzing large scale political discussions on Twitter: the use case of the Greek wiretapping scandal (#ypoklopes)
Ilias Dimitriadis, Dimitrios P. Giakatos, Stelios Karamanidis, Pavlos Sermpezis, Kelly Kiki, Athena Vakali
TL;DR
The paper addresses how large-scale political discussions unfold on Twitter around the Greek wiretapping scandal by proposing a generic, end-to-end methodology for data collection, political inference, polarization assessment, and influencer identification. It collects a year-long Greek-language Twitter dataset (#ypoklopes) and complementary datasets, applies daily graph-based analyses, and uses the Friedkin-Johnsen metric and NetShield to quantify polarization and identify influencers. Key findings show media as major drivers of discourse, a majority of tweet activity from Left-leaning accounts, and persistent polarization with bridging roles played by journalists, media, and influencers. The work provides an open dataset, online portal, and replicable steps, offering a practical framework for studying online political discussions on other topics.
Abstract
In this paper, we study the Greek wiretappings scandal, which has been revealed in 2022 and attracted a lot of attention by press and citizens. Specifically, we propose a methodology for collecting data and analyzing patterns of online public discussions on Twitter. We apply our methodology to the Greek wiretappings use case, and present findings related to the evolution of the discussion over time, its polarization, and the role of the media. The methodology can be of wider use and replicated to other topics. Finally, we provide publicly an open dataset, and online resources with the results.