{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,30]],"date-time":"2026-06-30T17:49:12Z","timestamp":1782841752653,"version":"3.54.5"},"reference-count":21,"publisher":"JMIR Publications Inc.","issue":"1","content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["JMIR Public Health Surveill"],"abstract":"\n Background<\/jats:title>\n Electric scooters (e-scooters) have become a popular mode of transportation in both the United States and Europe. In the wake of this popularity, e-scooters have changed the commuting experience in many metropolitan areas. Although e-scooters offer an efficient and economical way to travel short distances in traffic-congested areas, recent studies have raised concerns over their safety. Bird and Tier Mobility are 2 popular e-scooter companies in the United States and Europe, respectively. Both companies maintain active social media accounts with hundreds of posts and tens of thousands of followers. Recent studies have shown that consumer behavior may be influenced by the content posted to popular social media platforms, such as Instagram and Twitter.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Objective<\/jats:title>\n This study aimed to examine the official Instagram and Twitter accounts of Bird and Tier Mobility to determine whether these companies promote and demonstrate the use of safety gear in their posts to their consumers.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Methods<\/jats:title>\n Posts to Bird\u2019s (n=287) and Tier Mobility\u2019s (n=190) official Instagram accounts, as well as Bird\u2019s (n=313) and Tier Mobility\u2019s (n=67) official Twitter accounts, were collected from November 9, 2018, to October 7, 2019. Rules for coding content of posts were informed by previous research.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Results<\/jats:title>\n Among posts to Bird\u2019s Instagram account, 69.3% (199\/287) had a person visible with an e-scooter, 9.1% (26\/287) contained persons wearing protective gear, and there were no mentions of protective gear in captions corresponding to the post. Among posts to Tier Mobility\u2019s Instagram account, 84.7% (161\/190) contained a person visible with an e-scooter, 36.3% (69\/190) contained persons wearing protective gear, and 4.2% (8\/190) of captions corresponding to posts mentioned protective gear. Among posts to Bird\u2019s Twitter account, 71.9% (225\/313) had an image, of which 44.0% (99\/225) contained a person visible with an e-scooter and 15.1% (34\/225) contained persons wearing protective gear. Among posts to Tier Mobility\u2019s Twitter account, 78% (52\/67) had an image, of which 52% (27\/52) contained a person with an e-scooter and 21% (11\/52) contained persons wearing protective gear.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Conclusions<\/jats:title>\n Findings show that modeling and promoting safety is rare on Bird\u2019s and Tier Mobility\u2019s official social media accounts, which may contribute to the normalization of unsafe riding practices. Social media platforms may offer a potential avenue for public health officials to intervene with rider safety campaigns for public education.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.2196\/16833","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2020,1,31]],"date-time":"2020-01-31T12:54:17Z","timestamp":1580475257000},"page":"e16833","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":22,"title":["Follow-Up Investigation on the Promotional Practices of Electric Scooter Companies: Content Analysis of Posts on Instagram and Twitter"],"prefix":"10.2196","volume":"6","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9060-7356","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Allison","family":"Dormanesh","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7785-3357","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Anuja","family":"Majmundar","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9135-8689","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jon-Patrick","family":"Allem","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1010","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2020,1,23]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.trpro.2018.12.178"},{"key":"ref2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.2105\/AJPH.2019.304955"},{"key":"ref3","unstructured":"Austin Public HealthCenter for Disease Prevention and ControlGovernment of Austin Texas20192020-01-01Dockless Electric Scooter-Related Injuries Study http:\/\/www.austintexas.gov\/sites\/default\/files\/files\/Health\/Web_Dockless_Electric_Scooter-Related_Injury_Study_final_version_EDSU_5.14.19.pdf"},{"key":"ref4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1001\/jamanetworkopen.2018.7381"},{"key":"ref5","unstructured":"GiordanoCPublished September 27201909172020-01-01Electric Scooters Cause 74 Accidents and Hundreds of Traffic Offences in Three Months Since Legalisation in Berlin https:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/news\/world\/europe\/electric-scooter-accidents-berlin-germany-legalisation-police-a9108916.html"},{"key":"ref6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.pmedr.2018.11.013"},{"key":"ref7","unstructured":"GriffithEThe New York Times201906222020-01-01Bird Is Said to Raise New Funding at $2.5 Billion Valuation https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/07\/22\/technology\/bird-scooters-valuation.html"},{"key":"ref8","unstructured":"Bird - Enjoy the Ride20191032020-01-01Bird Announces $275 Million Series D Funding https:\/\/www.bird.co\/press\/bird-announces-275-million-series-d-funding\/"},{"key":"ref9","unstructured":"Bloomberg2019-10-16Scooter Startup Tier Eyes European Market as it Raises $60 Million https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/videos\/2019-10-07\/scooter-startup-tier-eyes-european-market-as-it-raises-60-million-video"},{"key":"ref10","unstructured":"TIER \u2013 change mobility for good2019-10-28How We Utilise Partnerships to Drive Sustainable Access to Mobility https:\/\/www.tier.app\/2019\/09\/26\/how-we-use-technology-to-drive-sustainable-and-inclusive-mobility-2\/"},{"key":"ref11","unstructured":"LundenITechCrunch20191072019-10-16Berlin\u2019s Tier Mobility Scoops Up $60M as Its Scooter-based Transportation Service Passes 10M Rides https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/2019\/10\/07\/berlins-tier-mobility-scoops-up-60m-for-its-scooter-based-transportation-service\/"},{"key":"ref12","unstructured":"DickeyMRTechCrunch201809202019-10-23Bird Hits 10 Million Scooter Rides http:\/\/social.techcrunch.com\/2018\/09\/20\/bird-hits-10-million-scooter-rides\/"},{"key":"ref13","unstructured":"HolleyPThe Washington Post201812212019-10-23Bird Says Safety is Its \u2018Top Priority.\u2019 So Why is the E-scooter Company\u2019s Instagram Page Nearly Devoid of Helmets? https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/technology\/2018\/12\/21\/bird-says-safety-is-their-top-priority-so-why-is-e-scooter-companys-instagram-page-nearly-devoid-helmets\/"},{"key":"ref14","unstructured":"ConnollyKThe Guardian201905162019-10-25Eco Wonder or Safety Nightmare? Germany to Vote on E-scooters https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/cities\/2019\/may\/16\/germany-to-vote-on-law-allowing-e-scooters-on-roads"},{"key":"ref15","unstructured":"Bird - Enjoy the Ride201910162020-01-01Safety https:\/\/www.bird.co\/safety\/"},{"key":"ref16","unstructured":"TIER \u2013 change mobility for good201910232020-01-01How TIER works https:\/\/www.tier.app\/how-tier-works\/"},{"key":"ref17","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.copsyc.2019.08.004"},{"key":"ref18","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0206076"},{"key":"ref19","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0145387"},{"key":"ref20","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1002\/14651858.CD001855"},{"key":"ref21","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1509\/jm.14.0249"}],"container-title":["JMIR Public Health and Surveillance"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/publichealth.jmir.org\/2020\/1\/e16833","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,30]],"date-time":"2026-06-30T17:19:09Z","timestamp":1782839949000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"http:\/\/publichealth.jmir.org\/2020\/1\/e16833\/"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2020,1,23]]},"references-count":21,"journal-issue":{"issue":"1","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2020]]}},"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.2196\/16833","relation":{},"ISSN":["2369-2960"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2369-2960","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2020,1,23]]}}}