Measuring nationwide US online media mentions of fish found in the North Central Region.

Abstract

This paper focuses on quantifying online media discussions of fish species that are associated with recreational fishing cultures in the United States. Specifically, we observe online and social media discussions of Bluegill, Largemouth Bass, Walleye, Rainbow Trout, and Yellow Perch, which are major fishes in the North Central Region. Observations were drawn from social and news media posted online in the US between July 1st, 2020, and July 1st, 2024. A total of 611,052 social media mentions of the fish species were found. We also investigate the relationship between national online media mentions and net sentiment to the surface temperatures recorded in the Great Lakes using pairwise correlations. We find consistent levels of mentions of these species. We sub-search within these results, looking for discussions specific to the origin of the fish -- wild caught or farmed. We find only 1% to 5% of mentions of each species specifically mentioned wild or farmed origins. We evaluate the net sentiment of the mentions of the fish, finding generally positive sentiment. Mentions of these fish are generally more significantly correlated (than net sentiment) to surface temperatures in the Great Lakes region. These findings suggest that these fish were referred to in general terms, and seldom in terms of whether they were caught or farmed. The results between surface temperatures and mentions highlight the importance of careful consideration of catchability and temperature levels in fisheries management.