Abstract

In light of the hate crimes directed at the AAPI community during the coronavirus pandemic, a shooting in Atlanta, Georgia, in 2021 resulted in the deaths of six women of Asian descent. Following the shooting, a surge of tweets emerged with the hashtag #StopAsianHate, expressing a wide range of emotions and sentiments in response to both the shooting and the hate crimes that have occurred since the outbreak of COVID-19. The findings of the analysis reveal that negative sentiment consistently drives retweets on Twitter, underscoring the pivotal role of negative emotions in shaping tweet virality. However, positive emotions, particularly joy and fear, also demonstrate positive associations with retweets in specific instances, highlighting a nuanced relationship between emotional expressions and shareability. In summary, while negative emotions exert a significant impact, positive emotions—particularly joy and fear—also show positive correlations with retweet counts in certain contexts. This indicates that both negative and positive emotional expressions contribute to tweet shareability, although their effects vary depending on the specific emotion and situational context. Our findings provide significant insights into the literature on social media engagement, emphasizing the need for a nuanced understanding of user behavior and the intricate mechanisms governing online interactions. Future studies should investigate whether these findings are unique to AAPI members or applicable to the broader topic of racial hate crimes.