Talks about the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte dominated Facebook conversations in August, generating the highest engagement among five major news topics monitored by Capstone-Intel Research and Publications. Impeachment-related discussions generated 23,984 posts…
Talks about the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte dominated Facebook conversations in August, generating the highest engagement among five major news topics monitored by Capstone-Intel Research and Publications.
Impeachment-related discussions generated 23,984 posts and an Engagement Score of 2,643,755, accounting for 46% of the combined engagement across the five topics.
The Southwest Monsoon ranked second with 16,889 posts and an Engagement Score of 1,658,842.1. The Nepal flash flood generated 2,161 posts and 723,027 in engagement, followed by the Zamboanga shooting with 2,409 posts and 527,343.6 in engagement. Leptospirosis generated 2,744 posts and 200,143.1 in engagement.
The data also showed how differently Facebook users responded to the issues.
Political discussions around the impeachment drew strong and often humorous reactions. One of the most engaging posts came from NewsWatch Plus Philippines, which reported on Palace Press Officer Claire Castro’s response to Duterte’s remarks on flooding.
The post drew 405,760 reactions, 87,359 comments and 19,300 shares, with 96.2% of the reactions classified as “Haha.”
Disaster-related posts, meanwhile, prompted stronger expressions of grief.
The Nepal flash flood drew 45.1% Sad reactions overall. A GMA News post about deaths and missing persons in the disaster drew 78.7% Sad reactions, while a Manila Bulletin post showing a man clearing a flooded drainage canal recorded 39.3% Sad reactions.
The Zamboanga shooting generated discussion beyond the incident itself. About 1,050 posts focused on the investigation, the suspect and questions surrounding firearm access.
Posting activity on the topic peaked on August 18, with 919 posts. Its reactions were mixed, with 34.7% classified as Haha, 19% as Sad and 4.5% as Angry.
Leptospirosis discussions focused largely on cases, deaths and pressure on hospitals. About 1,042 posts centered on these concerns, while others discussed floodwater exposure, rats, prevention and drainage problems.
A post by physician and health commentator Dr. Tony Leachon explaining why leptospirosis becomes a concern during the rainy season drew 86.3% Sad reactions.
Capstone-Intel director Kaye Domingo said the different reaction patterns reflected how Facebook users responded to the nature of each issue, with political stories prompting more heated and humorous exchanges while disaster and public health stories generated stronger expressions of concern and grief.
“The figures show that people engaged with these issues in very different ways, from intense political debate to expressions of concern and grief over disasters and public health,” Domingo said.
The Research Team at Capstone-Intel Corporation delivers data-driven insights on public sentiment, emerging trends, and societal issues to help organizations and communities make informed decisions.