TRSM Research Seminar by Dr. Matthew Philp

Title: The Digital Obesogenic Environment: What Types of Food Media Content do we Engage with Online and Why

Description: Food media content is some of the most popular content on social media. There are over 400 million posts on “#food” and 250 million on “#foodporn”.  Food centric pages are some of the most popular. For example, Buzzfeed’s Tasty Facebook page has over 100 million followers with over 2 billion views. Overall, given the ubiquity of food media online, understanding the specific characteristics that shape engagement with this content is of critical importance to content producers looking to tailor media toward viewer preferences, advertisers seeking to increase impact, and health advocates interested in helping consumers make better food choices. This presentation summarizes a recent and ongoing program of research on understanding food media content on social media. Using a combination of machine learning and controlled experiments, this research identifies what types of food media content receives more engagement and why.

Presenter Bio: Matthew Philp joined the Ted Rogers School of Management as an Assistant Professor of Marketing in July 2020. One of his primary research interests is understanding the factors that influence consumer behaviours with technology, including online and social media interactions. His research has appeared in numerous marketing and consumer behaviour relevant outlets, including the Journal of Consumer Psychology, the Journal of Business Research, Marketing Letters, and Psychology & Marketing. He has a dog named Peregrin Took and he once saw John Cena at a restaurant.