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News on Defining "Disinformation"
From yellow journalism at the turn of the 20th century to conspiracy theories about COVID-19, disinformation is, and has always been, a risk of media consumption. Researchers at Arizona State University study disinformation to understand how it shapes the social and political landscapes that influence daily life, and to help us recognize and avoid it. […]
By Madison ArnoldWe invite submissions of both technical papers and talk proposals (see below for details) on technical solutions for addressing current challenges facing social media platforms on the following indicative list of topics: Misinformation Disinformation Trustworthiness of COVID-19 news and guidance Hate speech Online harassment and cyberbullying Credibility Hyper-partisanship and bias Image/video verification Fake amplification Fake […]
By Conference for Truth and Trust OnlineThe conflict narrative is a natural way to describe responses to disinformation. But is it the best way? Tim Hwang argues that the common battle narrative we use to frame our understanding of media manipulation threatens to thwart our response.
The Clemson University Disinformation Lab seeks a visiting research professor. This visitor will work on independent research related to the production, dissemination, and impact of disinformation and/or misinformation, with support and collaboration from senior faculty members and students. They will participate in the academic life of the college (including attending workshops and seminars), work with […]
By Clemson UniversityAs I wrote this, a slickly edited conspiracy theory video called “Plandemic” circulated on Facebook and YouTube, racking up millions of views before it was banned by both platforms. Made to look like a documentary, the 26-minute video peddled falsehoods about COVID-19, the safety of vaccines, and Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National […]
By Venuri SiriwardaneThe latest edition of the Verification Handbook arrives at a critical moment. Today’s information environment is more chaotic and easier to manipulate than ever before. This book equips journalists with the knowledge to investigate social media accounts, bots, private messaging apps, information operations, deep fakes, as well as other forms of disinformation and media manipulation. […]
By Craig SilvermanSince December 2019, COVID-19 has been spreading rapidly across the world. Not surprisingly, conversation about COVID-19 is also increasing. This article is a first look at the amount of conversation taking place on social media, specifically Twitter, with respect to COVID-19, the themes of discussion, where the discussion is emerging from, myths shared about the […]
By Singh et al.HONG KONG — For months the Chinese government’s propaganda machine had been fending off criticism of Beijing’s handling of the coronavirus outbreak, and finally, it seemed to be finding an audience. Voices from the World Health Organization to the Serbian government to the rapper Cardi B hailed China’s approach as decisive and responsible. But China […]
By Vivian WangFake news poses a serious threat to knowledge and democracy. In order to address this threat, it is important to understand exactly what fake news is. After surveying the various definitions that have been proposed in the philosophical literature, we argue that fake news is best understood as counterfeit news. A story is genuine news […]
When you think of visual misinformation, maybe you think of deepfakes — videos that appear real but have actually been created using powerful video editing algorithms. The creators edit celebrities into pornographic movies, and they can put words into the mouths of people who never said them. But the majority of visual misinformation that people […]
By Lisa FazioThe widespread adoption of digital media and information technologies made it exponentially easier and faster to produce, disseminate, and be exposed to false, manipulated, and sometimes hateful content. Still, misinformation is a complex, largely misunderstood phenomenon. The public, the media, and policy makers are in need of reliable, unbiased research on the prevalence, diffusion, and […]
By Shorenstein Center