La influencia de las redes sociales en la toma de decisiones en los programas de televisión de infoentretenimiento en directo en España

This study analyzes the influence of social media on decision-making by executives of info-entertainment television shows in Spain. Using a qualitative methodology, we conducted, for the first time, semi-structured interviews with all executives and managers of live info-entertainment shows on Spain’s national television channels (N=12). The goal was to understand how they use social media and how much it influences content production, from topic selection and segment weight in schedules to real-time decision-making. After five months of interviews, we conclude that most management teams acknowledge that social media impacts their topic choices, with X (formerly Twitter) being used by all. Furthermore, all interviewees report having multiple social media platforms open during live broadcasts, with 58.3% admitting that social media-derived content makes up at least 25% of their shows. Additionally, all executives confirm that they regularly change the course of the live broadcast based on breaking news from social networks, although this influence is limited when deciding if a segment should be extended based on online engagement. In conclusion, social media exerts greater influence in pre-production than during live broadcasts.