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Journals / Erciyes İletişim Dergisi / 2026 / Cilt: 13 Sayı: 2

YouTube as a Source of Information on COVID-19 Vaccines: Sentiment Analysis of User Comments

COVID-19 Aşıları Hakkında Bilgi Kaynağı Olarak YouTube: Kullanıcı Yorumlarına İlişkin Duygu Analizi

Aslıhan Zinderen(ATATURK UNIVERSITY)0000-0001-6761-4160
İbrahim Etem Zinderen(Atatürk Üniversitesi İletişim Fakültesi)0000-0003-2921-4857
Pages
593–612
Publication Date
2026-07-30
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AI Summary & Key Takeaways

AI Insight
⚡ TL;DR(Too Long; Didn't Read)

The sentiment analysis results further indicate that user comments expressing negative emotions were predominant across all message tones.

📌 3 Key Takeaways

🎯
Objective & Hypothesis:This study aims to examine Turkish-language YouTube videos on COVID-19 vaccines as sources of information and to reveal the emotional tones reflected in user comments posted on these videos.
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Key Findings & Data:For this purpose, a search was conducted on YouTube using the keyword “COVID-19 Aşısı”, and the videos were sorted from the most viewed to the least viewed by using the platform’s filtering feature.
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Conclusion & Impact:The sentiment analysis results further indicate that user comments expressing negative emotions were predominant across all message tones.
🔬Design:Araştırma Makalesi
📍Scope:Comprehensive Sample
⚙️Variables:Sağlık Iletişimi · COVID-19 Aşıları · Youtube

Abstract

This study aims to examine Turkish-language YouTube videos on COVID-19 vaccines as sources of information and to reveal the emotional tones reflected in user comments posted on these videos. For this purpose, a search was conducted on YouTube using the keyword “COVID-19 Aşısı”, and the videos were sorted from the most viewed to the least viewed by using the platform’s filtering feature. Repeated videos, non-Turkish content, posts lacking audio and visual material, videos longer than one hour, content unrelated to COVID-19 vaccines, and short videos (YouTube Shorts) were excluded from the analysis. Following this screening process, a total of 150 videos and 73,246 user comments related to these videos were included in this study. The videos were evaluated using content analysis, whereas the user comments were examined utilizing sentiment analysis. User comments were classified by considering the tone of the messages presented in the videos as positive, negative, neutral, or ambiguous. The findings achieved in this study revealed that YouTube is a platform on which content related to COVID-19 vaccines is widely shared. However, it was also determined that the level of involvement of health professionals in the content produced on YouTube and the references made to scientific sources were limited. The sentiment analysis results further indicate that user comments expressing negative emotions were predominant across all message tones.

Özet

Bu çalışma, YouTube’daki Türkçe COVID-19 aşısı videolarını birer bilgi kaynağı olarak ele alarak içeriklerini incelemeyi ve bu videolara yapılan kullanıcı yorumlarının duygu tonlarını ortaya koymayı amaçlamaktadır. Bu amaç doğrultusunda, YouTube’da “COVID-19 Aşısı” anahtar kelimesi kullanılarak bir arama gerçekleştirilmiş ve videolar platformun filtreleme özelliği aracılığıyla en çok izlenenlerden en az izlenenlere doğru sıralanmıştır. Çalışmada tekrarlanan, Türkçe olmayan, işitsel ve görsel içeriğe sahip olmayan paylaşımlar, bir saatten uzun olan videolar, COVID-19 aşısı ile ilişkili olmayan içerikler ile kısa videolar (YouTube Shorts) analize dahil edilmemiştir. Bu eleme sürecinin ardından toplam 150 video ve bu videolara ait 73.246 kullanıcı yorumu inceleme kapsamına alınmıştır. Videolar, içerik analizi yöntemi kullanılarak değerlendirilmiş, kullanıcı yorumları ise duygu analizi yöntemiyle incelenmiştir. Kullanıcı yorumları, videolarda sunulan mesajların tonuna göre (olumlu, olumsuz, nötr veya belirsiz) bir sınıflandırmaya tabi tutulmuştur. Çalışmadan elde edilen bulgular, YouTube’un COVID-19 aşısına ilişkin içeriklerin yaygın olarak paylaşıldığı bir platform olduğunu göstermektedir. Bununla birlikte YouTube platformunda üretilen içeriklerde sağlık profesyonellerinin yer alma düzeyinin ve bilimsel kaynaklara yapılan atıfların sınırlı olduğu tespit edilmiştir. Duygu analizi sonuçları ise tüm mesaj tonlarında olumsuz duygular içeren kullanıcı yorumlarının baskın olduğunu göstermektedir.

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Cite This Article

Zinderen, A., Zinderen, İ. E. (2026). YouTube as a Source of Information on COVID-19 Vaccines: Sentiment Analysis of User Comments. Erciyes İletişim Dergisi, Cilt: 13 Sayı: 2, 593–612. https://doi.org/10.17680/erciyesiletisim.1880877

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