Social TV and audience engagement: investigating the relationship between Facebook engagement and TV performance of The Voice (USA)

PurposeThis study aims to examine entertainment TV shows' social media accounts to theoretically and practically explore the relationship between social media engagement and the performance (represented by ratings) of such shows.Design/methodology/approachBy using the data of a popular TV show in the USA, The Voice, the present study examined the messages on the Facebook fan page of the show and how these messages correlated with the ratings of the show. Social media usage data in the course of three seasons (Seasons 10–12, 82 episodes in total) were collected from Facebook (N = 1,192,722 messages). Both regression and sentiment analysis were performed.FindingsOverall, the findings revealed positive relationships of TV show ratings with both passive social media engagement (Facebook likes) and the number of official posts. However, active social media engagement was not positively related to show ratings.Originality/valueBy enhancing understanding of audience engagement with social media, our research extends knowledge related to the nature and development of viewer involvement with entertainment across different media platforms. Our results also help clarify how interpersonal communication (social media comments) and mass communication (TV programs) intersect. Practically, the findings could be applied to improve the interaction of TV audiences with show content, provide insights into the future of social TV development and inform decision-making amongst TV industry professionals.