Scientific and Educational Communications of Libraries in Social Media in the Context of Intercultural Interaction

The aim of the article is to describe the objective situation in the sphere of scientific and educational communications of libraries through social media on the example of the activities of a particular library from the perspective of intercultural interaction. Based on the fact that the communicating parties in these processes are scientists — carriers of scientific culture — and the general public, representing the culture of everyday life, the approach is implemented, in which scientific and educational communications of libraries are considered as an intermediary participation in intercultural interaction. An analytical cross-section of the work of the State Public Scientific and Technical Library of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences (SPSTL SB RAS) in the field of science popularization through the publication of relevant content in social media is shown. Data collection was conducted using the Brand Analytics monitoring and analysis system in the period from July 28 to August 10, 2023. There were 28 mentions of SPSTL SB RAS in posts related to science popularization from 12 authors, with an audience engagement index of 211. The issues of audience engagement, content quality and its uniqueness due to the territorial aspect — Siberian science — are highlighted. It is noted that compared to large youth entertainment projects, the library has difficulties in attracting a wide audience to its content, the classical-academic style of which is less appealing to users, as indicated by the relevant metrics, in particular, the number of views. The focus on Siberian science may also be a limiting factor in the mass demand for popular science media content of the SPSTL SB RAS, but at the same time it makes its chosen niche in science popularization unique and creates additional opportunities for the development of this area of activity. The insignificant number of positive messages (7.1%) and their low potential reach (no more than 1,000 users), as well as the lack of active participation and dialogue on the part of users (no response messages and comments to posts) require libraries to intensify the attraction and retention of the target audience. As a result of the analysis, the author concludes that it is important for the library to work as a cultural institution focused on the development of a knowledge society. In addition to preservation and dissemination of information, the sphere of libraries’ activities should be complemented by the work on popularization of scientific knowledge, especially in the context of increased communication capabilities of libraries and diversity of content.

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