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Preprint . 2026
License: CC BY
Data sources: Datacite
ZENODO
Preprint . 2026
License: CC BY
Data sources: Datacite
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Europe Day and the Fall of the Berlin Wall on Twitter/X: Conflict, Tone, and Deliberative Quality Across France, Germany, Italy, and Slovenia

Authors: Horvat, Marjan; Koražija, Jure;

Europe Day and the Fall of the Berlin Wall on Twitter/X: Conflict, Tone, and Deliberative Quality Across France, Germany, Italy, and Slovenia

Abstract

This article compares how two major European commemorations—Europe Day (9 May) and the fall of the Berlin Wall (9 November)—are discussed on Twitter/X in Slovenia, Italy, Germany, and France. We conceptualise commemorations as activation frames: recurring cues that invite users to interpret contemporary political conflicts through the lens of salient European historical events. However, rather than focusing only on what people discuss, we examine whether disagreement is present and how it is expressed. Using an LLM-assisted coding scheme, we apply a three-step design: (A) we identify whether posts are conflictual; (B) within conflict, we distinguish non-antagonistic from antagonistic tone, using incivility as a proxy; and (C) we assess deliberative quality using DQI-style indicators, comparing the share of high-quality discussion across antagonistic and non-antagonistic modes. This design enables direct cross-country comparisons of whether commemorative talk is mostly ceremonial and low-conflict, confrontational in tone, or conflictual yet characterised by reason-giving and constructive engagement. Finally, we use topic modelling as an additional diagnostic layer to identify thematic hotspots in where conflict, antagonistic tone, and lower deliberative quality concentrate, as well as clusters where deliberative signals persist even under antagonistic tone. The approach enables cross-national comparison of conflict, tone, and deliberative quality in commemorative Twitter/X debates, and can help identify changes in discourse quality in digital public spheres. 

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selected citations
These citations are derived from selected sources.
This is an alternative to the "Influence" indicator, which also reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Citations provided by BIP!
popularity
This indicator reflects the "current" impact/attention (the "hype") of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Popularity provided by BIP!
influence
This indicator reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Influence provided by BIP!
impulse
This indicator reflects the initial momentum of an article directly after its publication, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Impulse provided by BIP!
0
Average
Average
Average
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