State-level politicization of crisis communication on Twitter during COVID-19: Conceptualization, measurement, and impacts

The political dimension of crisis communication remains understudied in public administration. We defined the politicization of government crisis communication as the employment of politics-oriented communication strategies in crisis messaging. We further examined the state-level politicization occurring during COVID-19 and its influence on public engagement and policy compliance. We applied machine learning algorithms to analyze 43,642 Twitter messages posted by fifty US state governors, assessing the extent to which these governors politicized crisis communication. We compiled data from multiple sources to explore the influence of communication politicization on public engagement and compliance behaviors. While most governors showed major concerns regarding reputation and blame, their level of politicization and selection of communication strategies varied. Increased levels of communication politicization discouraged the public's online engagement and policy compliance. Excessive levels of political consideration could undermine the legitimacy and effectiveness of government crisis communication, and thus an examination of their relationship was essential.