Replication Data for Time to Politicization: The Emergence and Effects of Politics on Science YouTube Videos

Increasingly, political tensions are seeping into everyday topics. This is particularly evident in science and education, where examples include fervent anti-science movements in the wake of Covid-19 and the banning of books that discuss the topic of race. Your choice of hobby and even the brand of coffee you drink have now become proxies for political affiliation. The imposition of politics fundamentally changes the flow of and dynamics within conversation, and typically not for the better. In this mixed-methods study, we address the act of politicizing science on YouTube. Using data from informational and educational science YouTube videos, we identify the moment of politicization and how it fundamentally changes dialogue within conversation threads. Our results show that politicization becomes more likely as the thread goes on and once a thread has been politicized, it remains that way. Importantly, when the topical shift has occurred, the toxicity of the comments increases. The instances of politicization tend to act as “tipping points” where conversation about science and politics become personal accusations and attacks, which are ideal sites of intervention. Qualitative insights reveal common “pathways” to politicization, which can be used to design mitigation strategies.