| Abstract [eng] |
The object of this master’s thesis is journalistic content published by the Lithuanian national broadcaster LRT and the commercial broadcaster TV3 on social media platforms (YouTube and TikTok), as well as the audience engagement it generates. The aim of the study is to determine how the specificity of social media platforms and content characteristics influence audience engagement metrics, and how these metrics differ between media organizations. The objectives of the study are: 1) to discuss the concept of audience engagement and its significance in a platformized media environment; 2) to examine the logic of social media platforms and its impact on content distribution and visibility; 3) to apply a quantitative content analysis method to evaluate the characteristics of content published by LRT and TV3 on social media platforms; 4) to analyze audience engagement metrics across different platforms, content categories, and broadcasters; 5) to compare LRT and TV3 content strategies and their relationship with audience engagement. The problem addressed in this study is analyzed within the context of platformized journalism, with a particular focus on audience engagement as one of the key factors determining content visibility. The study aims to assess how different platform logics (YouTube as a more traditional platform and TikTok as algorithm-driven) and content characteristics (genre, topic, format, duration, and calls to action/CTA) shape audience reactions and activity. The study employs a quantitative content analysis method, which enables a systematic and objective evaluation of large-scale social media content and its characteristics. The analysis includes all posts published by LRT and TV3 on selected days in 2025, totaling 522 posts (344 on YouTube and 178 on TikTok). Descriptive statistical analysis is applied, calculating both absolute metrics (views, likes, comments, shares) and relative metrics, with the primary indicator being the engagement rate (AĮR), defined as the ratio of total interactions to views. This method is chosen for its ability to compare results across platforms, content types, and broadcasters regardless of reach. The results of the study revealed that audience engagement is significantly influenced by platform logic, with higher engagement rates identified on TikTok. The study showed that on TikTok, the highest levels of audience activity were generated by short, visually dynamic videos lasting up to one minute, while on YouTube, higher engagement levels were most observed in content lasting up 1–5 minutes. The findings also demonstrated that LRT and TV3 apply different social media communication strategies: LRT uses TikTok more actively and more frequently achieves higher relative engagement rates, whereas TV3 generates higher absolute audience activity metrics. The results suggest that audience engagement in platformized journalism depends not only on content topic or broadcaster type, but also on the ability to adapt content to platform algorithms, platform-specific presentation formats, and the principles of the attention economy. |
