Language Trends and Virality in Social Media Public Relations Handles of Tertiary Institutions in Bayelsa State
Abstract
In the ever-evolving landscape of communication, the symbiotic relationship between language trends and virality in social media has become a dynamic force shaping public relations strategies. Nowhere is this interplay more pronounced than in the context of tertiary institutions, where Public Relations Officers (PROs) navigate the intricacies of language use to disseminate information, engage audiences, and maintain a compelling online presence. The study examined language trends and virality in social media public relations handles of tertiary institutions in Bayelsa State. Descriptive survey design was adopted for this study. The population of the study consist of all 109 staff in the public relations offices in the seven tertiary institutions in Bayelsa State. A census survey which involves the use of all the respondents in the population. The instrument for data collection was a “Language Trends and Virality in Social Media Public Relations Handles Questionnaire (LTVSMPRHQ)” developed by the researcher. It consists of three (3) sections, namely; Section A, B and C. Section A measured the demographic variables of the respondents, Section B consist of 7-items on the linguistic trends contribute to the virality of public relations content in social media. Section C consist of 7-items on the impact of language-related factors on the reach and resonance of public relation messages in the online environment. The content and face validity of the instrument was done by communication experts. The reliability of the instrument was established using Cronbach Alpha Formula and a coefficient value of 0.72 was obtained, which was considered appropriate for the study. The research question was answered using mean and standard deviation. The study revealed that the extent to which linguistic trends contribute to the virality of public relations content on social media is high. Also,
