Accession Number:

AD1031425

Title:

Assessing Anti-American Sentiment Through Social Media Analysis

Descriptive Note:

Technical Report

Corporate Author:

Naval Postgraduate School Monterey United States

Personal Author(s):

• Morales,David J.

Report Date:

2016-12-01

Pagination or Media Count:

97.0

Abstract:

This thesis examines the history of anti-Americanism as both a passing sentiment and an enduring ideology and how both can be detrimental to American security and future prosperity. It further explores the analytical methods for studying anti-Americanism, to include classic polling and social media analysis in an attempt to determine the reliability of each. This work attempts to bring to light the underlying motives for anti-American beliefs by examining relationships between explicit American actions in Pakistan and Japan and variations in anti-American sentiment. The results show that drone strikes in Pakistan and large-scale military exercises involving U.S. and Japanese forces both can cause significant fluctuations in the number of positive and negative tweets directed toward America. I argue that the mixed and negative messages represented in Twitter are due in a large part to a lack of U.S. transparency while conducting both drone strikes in Pakistan and military shows of force in and around Japan.

Descriptors:

• military operations
• military exercises
• social networking services
• department of state
• international organizations
• social networks
• mobile phones
• culture (social sciences)
• online communications
• drones
• japan
• Pakistan
• unmanned aerial vehicles

Subject Categories:

• Sociology and Law

Distribution Statement:

APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE