A Model for Assessing the Online Reputation of Public Actors

The aim of the paper is to identify a set of indicators for describing the online reputation of public actors. The method used was content analysis. Five indicators and a sixth constructed indicator (the online reputation score) were identified for a comprehensive description of the online reputation. The model was tested on a sample formed by the online reputation profiles (data obtained via Google search) of the elected Romanian members in the European Parliament. The results showed that two of the indicators, online control and online visibility, have no significant correlation (or a modest correlation, respectively) with the online reputation score. At the same time, an external variable, the level of trust of the associated group, exerts an influence to the online reputation score of the individual public actors. Thus, the present research opens new topics of discussion in studying the online reputation.