Abstract (EN)

We evaluate the controversial aspect of a new vaccination policy announcement in France on Twitter. The objective is to approach the degree of controversy generated by the announcement of a mandatory vaccination policy for children by analyzing the reactions on social networks. Indeed, social networks allow individuals to express themselves publicly on a subject. They provide a platform that reflects public debates, opinions and feelings on a given topic. Thus, we collect tweets around the date of announcement on other similar announcement in Europe and also on other policies with daily binding characteristics in France. We compare the pattern of reactions in order to distinguish if France is particularly sensitive to this type of statements and also to understand if the controversy is due to the topic or to the constraining aspect. We find that online reactions to the vaccination policy announcement last longer over time than other announcements. We use the trend momentum (TM) concept to analyse the magnitude of the reactions after announcements. We first conclude to a higher level of sensitivity on this topic in France compared to identical announcements that have been done in Italy and Germany. The results also indicate a higher intensity of reactions for policies reducing individual freedom in order to protect the population.