Georgia State University, Gerontology Institute, One Park Place South, Suite 605, United States of America.
Assistant Professor of Sociology, Winston-Salem State University, Department of Behavioral Sciences, 601 S. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr., Winston-Salem, NC 27110, United States of America.
J Aging Stud. 2021 Jun;57:100929. doi: 10.1016/j.jaging.2021.100929. Epub 2021 Mar 30.
Early reports of COVID-19 often inaccurately presented the virus as a serious concern only among older adults. On the social media platform of Twitter, #BoomerRemover originated as a hashtag intended to express the age-related disparities of COVID-19. This study used a content analysis to examine tweets over a two-week period in March 2020 that used #BoomerRemover to discuss COVID-19 among older adults. A total of 1875 tweets were analyzed. Salient themes include: (1) There's a Real Intergenerational Divide, (2) Young People are Affected Too, (3) It's Being Used for Political Gain, and (4) #BoomerRemover is Simply Disrespectful. Findings suggest that many of the tweets employing #BoomerRemover were grounded in either personal or political ageism. In addition, a significant portion of tweeters used #BoomerRemover to defend older adults and speak out against ageism. This study highlights the importance of recognizing and addressing the growing intergenerational divide on social media, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic.
早期有关 COVID-19 的报告常常不准确地将该病毒描述为仅在老年人中严重关切的问题。在社交媒体平台 Twitter 上，#BoomerRemover 最初是一个标签，旨在表达与年龄相关的 COVID-19 差异。本研究使用内容分析法，在 2020 年 3 月的两周内分析了使用#BoomerRemover 讨论老年人 COVID-19 的推文。共分析了 1875 条推文。突出的主题包括：（1）存在真正的代际鸿沟，（2）年轻人也受到影响，（3）它被用于政治利益，（4）#BoomerRemover 只是不尊重。研究结果表明，许多使用#BoomerRemover 的推文要么基于个人或政治年龄歧视，要么基于个人或政治年龄歧视。此外，相当一部分发推者使用#BoomerRemover 来为老年人辩护，并反对年龄歧视。本研究强调了在社交媒体上，特别是在 COVID-19 大流行期间，认识和解决不断扩大的代际鸿沟的重要性。
