Social Exposure and the Formation of Public Opinion in Online Incidents: An Empirical Study Using Weibo Data

In the current social media environment, online events are often accompanied by cyber violence, infringing on individual rights and threatening social order. Social exposure, as the key factor in bringing events into public view, directly shapes public opinion through mechanisms such as trending topics, media reports, and opinion leaders. This study combines literature analysis with empirical data, using web crawlers to collect public data from Weibo regarding the Liu Xuezhou incident. By tracking the evolution of remarks across different exposure stages, it examines the impact of social exposure on the direction of public opinion. The findings indicate that increased social exposure leads to a significant reduction in emotionally charged violent remarks and a rise in rational, supportive commentary. Public attention shifts from personal conflicts to discussions of public issues, such as the protection of minors. Key factors influencing opinion direction include the popularity of information and the credibility of the publisher. The study concludes that social exposure positively guides public opinion toward rationality and public-mindedness, reducing emotional expression and encouraging focus on societal concerns. It offers theoretical insights for online public opinion governance and suggests future research should explore the threshold effects of exposure, the varied impacts of different exposers, and the moderating role of platform algorithms.