This thesis aimed to fill a gap in the literature regarding the consumption of YouTube science videos as a form of science communication and engagement. This was done by conducting an automated sentiment analysis of comments posted to YouTube videos published by popular science communication channel, Kurzgesagt. The two videos used for analysis covered the production and consumption of meat and the production and consumption of dairy and were published in English, Spanish, and German, which provided an opportunity to compare expressed sentiment for identical content across three different target audiences. Results showed that for English and German audiences, expressed sentiment was higher for the video covering the production and consumption of meat. There were no statistically significant differences in expressed sentiment for the two videos published in Spanish. For the video covering the production and consumption of meat, the most negative expressed sentiment was found in the English-speaking audience. For the video covering the production and consumption of milk, the most positive expressed sentiment was found in the Spanish-speaking audience. Findings suggest that there are some differences in engagement across publication languages, but further research needs to be done to account for the effect of exogenous variables. Results align with previous research that suggests YouTube is a useful platform to facilitate audience engagement.
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