Extracting Reddit Data With R and the package RedditExtractoR (2023 Update)

This paragraph introduces James Cook from the University of Maine at Augusta, who explains the process of using the Reddit Extractor package within R for data analysis. He emphasizes the simplicity of the process and the recent update to the Reddit Extractor package. The first step involves starting the R program and using RStudio for its user-friendly features. He suggests downloading R from the official website and installing RStudio for free. The next step is to install and activate the Reddit Extractor package using the library command in R. The paragraph concludes with a brief mention of the two rounds of data collection that will be performed.

In this paragraph, James Cook details the process of collecting data from a subreddit, specifically the 'Tar Heels' subreddit dedicated to the North Carolina Tar Heels sports team. He explains the use of the 'find thread URLs' command to extract the URLs of recent posts from the subreddit, sorted from new to old. The paragraph also discusses the option to define the period of data collection, which can range from hours to all available data. Cook demonstrates the execution of the command and explains the importance of having an internet connection for the data collection process. He notes the appearance of the 'Tar Heels threads' object in the R environment, signifying the start of data collection.

This paragraph delves into the analysis of thread and comment data collected from the subreddit. Cook describes the structure of the data set, which includes variables such as date, timestamp, title, subreddit, number of comments, and URL. He highlights the importance of the URL variable for accessing comments on individual posts. The paragraph then explains how to use the 'get thread content' command to extract information about comments from the URLs collected in the previous step. Cook provides a step-by-step guide on executing the command and what to expect during the data collection process, including the appearance of a stop sign indicating that R is processing the data.

In the final paragraph, Cook discusses the interpretation of the collected data, which now includes both threads and comments. He explains the structure of the 'Tar Heels comments' object, which contains two elements: 'threads' and 'comments'. The 'threads' element offers additional information about the posts, such as upvotes and downvotes, while the 'comments' element provides detailed information about individual comments, including the text, upvotes, downvotes, and comment ID. Cook also touches on the potential for analyzing the relationships between commenters and the dynamics of the discussion. He concludes by encouraging users to explore the possibilities of data extraction and analysis using the Reddit Extractor package in R.