The online diffusion of information related to Europe and migration has been little investigated from an external point of view. However, this is a very relevant topic, especially if users have had no direct contact with Europe and its perception depends solely on information retrieved online. In this work we analyse the information circulating online about Europe and migration after retrieving a large amount of data from social media (Twitter), to gain new insights into topics, magnitude, and dynamics of their diffusion. We combine retweets and hashtags network analysis with geolocation of users, linking thus data to geography and allowing analysis from an "outside Europe" perspective, with a special focus on Africa. We also introduce a novel approach based on cross-lingual quotes, i.e. when content in a language is commented and retweeted in another language, assuming these interactions are a proxy for connections between very distant communities. Results show how the majority of online discussions occurs at a national level, especially when discussing migration. Language (English) is pivotal for information to become transnational and reach far. Transnational information flow is strongly unbalanced, with content mainly produced in Europe and amplified outside. Conversely Europe-based accounts tend to be self-referential when they discuss migration-related topics. Football is the most exported topic from Europe worldwide. Moreover, important nodes in the communities discussing migration-related topics include accounts of official institutions and international agencies, together with journalists, news, commentators and activists.

欧洲和移民的在线信息传播很少从外部视角进行研究。本文通过从社交媒体（Twitter）中获取大量数据来分析关于欧洲和移民的在线信息的传播话题、规模和动态，结合转发和主题标签网络分析、用户地理位置定位等，从“欧洲外部”视角，特别关注非洲，揭示了各语言之间跨语言引用的全新方式，结果表明大部分在线讨论发生在国家层面，尤其是讨论移民时，而英语是信息跨国传播和扩散的关键，欧洲为主要内容生成地并在外部放大。值得注意的是，在讨论移民相关话题的社群中，重要的节点包括官方机构和国际组织的账号，以及记者、新闻评论员和活动家。

欧洲和移民在线讨论中的信息传播地理