According to the Snapchat newsroom, the popular social media platform is trying to be more inclusive and diverse by showing a wider range of content on its Stories page. As the platform wants to make sure that everyone, no matter who they are, feels represented on the platform.
To do this, Snapchat is making sure that the content they fund is diverse and inclusive which means that they will support content creators from different backgrounds and with different experiences.
Snapchat wants all of its users to feel like they belong and are welcome on its platform at all times that’s why they are committed to creating a more inclusive experience for everyone who uses this app.
As per Snap: “We believe the content on our platform should be representative of the Snapchat community and their interests. Snap conducted an audience assessment and its first content audit to take a deeper look at partnered content on the Stories page and better understand the quantity and quality of on-screen representation of different identity groups.”
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Snapchat has done two research studies in collaboration with KRI, the University of California, and the University of Southern California to see if they are doing a good job of showing a diverse range of people in the content they create.
Snapchat thinks that it can do better to make sure that its content is diverse and inclusive and the studies show that they are doing a good job so far. The content they create is similar to what other companies in the industry are doing.
Among the key findings:
- 17.7% of characters in Snap-partnered content were Black/African-American, which is higher than the general population (13.4%). However, Hispanic/Latinx characters represented only 5.2% of characters compared to 18.5% in the general population.
- Female characters made up 37% of on-screen representation vs ~50% in the general population. In addition, women characters were more likely to appear in specific genre categories such as Beauty, Fashion & Style, Animals, DIY & Crafts, Animation, and Parenting.
- Characters from underrepresented racial/ethnic groups were also more likely to appear in video content published from channels associated with the genres of Sports, Beauty, Parenting, Travel, and General Satisfying.
Even though they are doing well, Snapchat wants to do even better. They want to make sure that the people they show in their content are diverse and that they are shown in a positive way.
They are committed to making improvements in this area. This is a good approach that should enable Snap to better serve all audience segments.
