The power (and danger) of the story in social media research

Gareth Price

In this Viewpoint, the author warns against trying to prove the validity of social media research by imposing mathematical order on the work.

Viewpoint: The power (and danger) of the story in social media research

Gareth Price

Precise

The substitution of numbers for words seemed to make the stories more valid. (Adam Curtis)

Adam Curtis is a wonderful storyteller who has produced some fascinating documentaries that illustrate the tragicomic consequences of imposing narratives on events and warn us about the attractiveness of stories that help us to simplify and make sense of a chaotic world.

Researchers have always been drawn towards the comforting mathematical respectability provided by numbers. However, in the new and emerging field of social media research, there appears to be...

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