Oxford has the second highest share of online mentions per capita, according to a new report published today. The UK’s Most Talked about Cities ranks 20 cities by their share of online news and social media conversations.
Produced by communications consultancy ING Media, the research takes global city indices and reorders them by factoring in digital mentions.
Overall, Oxford has the fourth most mentions on digital forums and is eighth for news. The city of dreaming spires is also praised as one of three cities ‘punching above their weight’ for digital mentions and having the most potential to grow their digital profile – the other two being Liverpool and Sheffield.
Oxford ranks as the number-one centre for academic debate, with rival Cambridge weighing in at second place.
Reading has the highest concentration of conversations around technology and livability, highlighting the area’s enduring appeal as an innovation hub. And Cambridge scores highest for online conversations around talent recruitment, closely followed by Oxford.
Peter Griffiths, city strategist at ING Media, says: “Global surveys benchmark cities and major towns against almost every aspect of urban life. These rankings influence investment, where talent concentrates and our travel choices. However, there is little comparative research into the impact digital messaging is having on cities as brands.
“Our ranking takes the top 20 cities according to global city indices and reorders them by their share of the online conversation. It shows which cities punch above their weight and which show the most potential for increasing their digital profiles – as well as which cities are talking the most about culture, technology, business, livability and talent.”