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The advent of social networks has facilitated the integration and social connection of older people, yet it has also contributed to the perpetuation of ageist discrimination against this demographic. The objective of this study is to analyze the communication about older people on Twitter between 2019 and 2023 in Spain. To this end, a sample of 27,971 tweets was employed to conduct a semantic content analysis based on public data mining, a sentiment analysis with Tweet Binder, and a qualitative category analysis. The data provides insight into the activity and interactions within the specified period, the topics related to this demographic, the emotional content of the tweets, and the characterization of older individuals on the social network. The findings indicate that social network activity increases when the subject is the primary focus of media attention. However, the sentiments expressed toward older individuals on social networks tend to intensify and polarize, as evidenced by the heightened levels of negativity observed during the pandemic. The portrayal of older individuals on Twitter/X in Spain is characterized by a stereotypical and discriminatory view. Older individuals are often depicted as idle and privileged, enjoying a lifestyle that is perceived as separate from the norms of younger age groups. The sexuality of older individuals is frequently mocked, particularly in the case of women, who are subjected to double discrimination based on age and gender. Older individuals’ citizenship is also denied, and their rights to demonstrate, associate, and express themselves freely are questioned.
Fernández et al. (Tue,) studied this question.