"Can residents of Ukraine discern between pro-Kremlin disinformation and true statements? Moreover, which pro-Kremlin disinformation claims are more likely to be believed, and by which audiences? We present the results from two surveys carried out in 2019—one online and the other face-to-face—th
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at address these questions in Ukraine, where the Russian government and its supporters have heavily targeted disinformation campaigns. We find that, on average, respondents can distinguish between true stories and disinformation. However, many Ukrainians remain uncertain about a variety of disinformation claims’ truthfulness. We show that the topic of the disinformation claim matters. Disinformation about the economy is more likely to be believed than disinformation about politics, historical experience, or the military. Additionally, Ukrainians with partisan and ethnolinguistic ties to Russia are more likely to believe pro-Kremlin disinformation across topics. Our findings underscore the importance of evaluating multiple types of disinformation claims present in a country and examining these claims’ target audiences." (Abstract)
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"Experts have ranked Taiwan as the number one country regarding the exposure to disinformation. This assessment is not surprising as many exposed disinformation cases can be linked to Chinese statealigned actors but also domestic political actors. Academic researchers, journalists, and the civic tec
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h community have played an essential role in the fight against disinformation in Taiwan and the emergence of misinformation studies as a new research field. While disinformation in Taiwan is a major recurring issue, the “Western” debate within academia and journalism has taken a critical turn regarding the assumed effects of disinformation. Our study focuses on this potential disconnect between the international and the Taiwanese debate about disinformation. With automatic and manual content analysis, we evaluate what role academics and journalism play in the public discourse and what part of this debate reaches the largest audience. We show how Taiwan’s public misinformation discourse has evolved vis-a-vis the international discourse, what role misinformation studies play in this discourse, what part of the discourse reaches the widest audience, and what parts of the discourse could be problematic." (Abstract)
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"Medien – digitale wie traditionelle – spielen eine zentrale Rolle im Leben der Menschen. Sie informieren über das Geschehen weltweit und bieten zudem diverse Kommunikationsmöglichkeiten, beruflich wie privat. Einen großen Teil ihres Alltags bewältigen Menschen digital. So haben sich durch d
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ie fortschreitende Digitalisierung beispielsweise der Schulalltag, die Lehr- sowie Studienjahre und das Berufsleben auf tiefgreifende Weise gewandelt. Um die Flut von Nachrichten und Informationen verarbeiten und nach Relevantem filtern zu können, wird eine fundierte Medienkompetenz benötigt. Durch diese lernen Menschen zu erkennen, welche Informationen wichtig, welche richtig und welche falsch sind und welche Interessen sich hinter ihnen verbergen. Auch für die gesellschaftliche Teilhabe und den Zusammenhalt in der Demokratie ist Medienkompetenz daher ein wichtiger Faktor. Diese Darstellung gibt einen konsistenten Überblick zum Thema Medienkompetenz, beleuchtet dabei die historische Entwicklung und die theoretische Perspektive und blickt auch auf aktuelle Herausforderungen." (www.bpb.de)
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"This open access book is the product of three years of academic research that has been carried out in the EU-funded Jean Monnet Network on "Post-Truth Politics, Nationalism and the Delegitimation of European Integration" since 2019. Drawing on the multidisciplinary expertise of the network's member
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s, the book explores the impact of the phenomenon of post-truth politics on European integration and the European Union. It places particular emphasis on how post-truth politics has played out in the public sphere and asks what impact the phenomenon has had on public deliberation, but reflects also on its implications for democracy in a wider sense." (Publisher description)
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"Analysis of over 850 advertisers between 1 September and 23 November 2022 showed a small cohort drove the majority of false or greenwashed advertising on Facebook, with activity peaking in the weeks preceding and during COP27. Common techniques included ‘nature-rinsing’, to distract and mislead
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audiences on net zero targets, as well as denial of climate science and emotional messaging around livelihoods, national security and sovereignty in relation to fossil fuels. Given the advertising spend identified, it is probable these messages were viewed by a wide audience at a key juncture in the climate agenda". (page 10) [...] "At COP26, outright denialism was seemingly outpaced by subtler ‘discourses of delay’ and attacks on climate action. In 2022, denialist content made a stark comeback on Twitter in particular, with the hashtag #ClimateScam spiking out of nowhere in July 2022. Since then, CAAD analysis has recorded over 362k mentions (including retweets) originating from over 91k unique users, with daily mentions never dropping below 1000 posts. The term often appears to be trending despite data that shows more activity and engagement on other hashtags such as #ClimateCrisis and #ClimateEmergency. The source of its virality, including explicit promotion via Twitter’s recommendation algorithm, is therefore unclear, and again highlights the need for transparency on how and why platforms surface content to users." (Page 17)
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"[...] la présente note d’orientation expose les principes potentiels d’un code de conduite qui aidera à guider les États Membres, les plateformes numériques et les autres parties prenantes dans les efforts qu’ils déploient pour rendre l’espace numérique plus inclusif et plus sûr pour
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tous et toutes, tout en défendant vigoureusement le droit à la liberté d’opinion et d’expression ainsi que le droit d’accès à l’information. Le code de conduite portant sur l’intégrité de l’information diffusée sur les plateformes numériques est en cours d’élaboration dans le cadre des préparatifs du Sommet de l’avenir. J’espère qu’il servira de guide dans la formulation de mesures de renforcement de l’intégrité de l’information. Les plateformes numériques sont des outils essentiels qui ont transformé les interactions sociales, culturelles et politiques partout dans le monde, en mettant en relation des citoyens préoccupés par des questions importantes. Grâce à elles, les Nations Unies informent le public et dialoguent directement avec les personnes qui oeuvrent en faveur de la paix, de la dignité et de l’égalité sur une planète saine. Ces plateformes ont donné de l’espoir aux peuples pendant les périodes de crise et de lutte, elles ont amplifié des voix qui n’étaient pas entendues auparavant et fait naître des mouvements mondiaux." (Objet de la présente note, page 2)
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"During the six months of the gender-based disinformation study (January 1 – June 30, 2023), the following trends were revealed: A total of 42 cases of gendered disinformation were identified, of which 24 were homophobic and 18 were sexist or attacked women based on moral criteria. In most cases,
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the target of homophobic or gendered disinformation was the West, while false content related to Ukraine was predominantly homophobic. In connection with internal socio-political processes in Georgia, disinformation was directed against politicians, persons associated with them, journalists, and civic activists, who, in addition to disinformation, were targeted in discrediting campaigns." (Key findings, page 8)
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"Uma campanha anti-imprensa permanente força e acelera a perda de credibilidade da mídia profissional. Os ataques são orquestrados e contam com um ecossistema de desinformação bem estruturado e auto-sustentável. A campanha é financiada por políticos de pequena expressão e veículos de junk.
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news. Sistemas de recomendação favorecem veículos que reforçam o modelo de negócios da plataforma, independente da qualidade do conteúdo." (Diagnóstico geral, 56)
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"This work aims to provide a comprehensive and systematic review of fake news research as well as a fundamental review of existing approaches used to detect and prevent fake news from spreading via OSNs. We present the research problem and the existing challenges, discuss the state of the art in exi
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sting approaches for fake news detection, and point out the future research directions in tackling the challenges." (Abstract)
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"This study, commissioned by the European Parliament’s Policy Department for Citizens’ Rights and Constitutional Affairs at the request of the LIBE Committee, examines risks that contemporary social media - focusing in particular on the most widely-used platforms - present for democracy, the rul
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e of law and fundamental rights. The study focuses on the governance of online content, provides an assessment of existing EU law and industry practices which address these risks, and evaluates potential opportunities and risks to fundamental rights and other democratic values." (Abstract)
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"In a cross-platform analysis of Google Web Search, Facebook, YouTube, Reddit, Twitter, Instagram, 4chan and TikTok, we found that hyperpartisan web operators, alternative influencers and ambivalent commentators are in ascendency. The book can be read as a form of platform criticism. It puts on disp
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lay the current state of information online, noting how social media platforms have taken on the mantle of accidental authorities, privileging their own on-platform performers and at the same time adjudicating between claims of what is considered acceptable discourse." (Publisher description)
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"This report presents the results of deep dive experiments into the risks associated to the design, deployment and use of generative AI to facilitate gender-based violence. It assesses the possible impact posed by generative AI that enables the creation of more realistic ‘synthetic’ media, ‘ha
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llucinations’ or biases in the outputs, automated harassment campaigns, and the ability to build ‘synthetic histories’ and compositional deepfakes. Lessons learned from the prompt-injection experiments conducted on how gender-based cyber-harassment templates are and can be generated are presented. It concludes with measures to be put in place by generative AI companies and the technology companies that platform them, by regulators and policy makers, by civil society organisations and independent researchers, as well as users." (Back cover)
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"The release of ChatGPT at the end of 2022 met with fears and optimism. One particularly important avenue of research that is emerging revolves around ChatGPT's ability to provide accurate and unbiased information on a variety of topics. Given the interest that Google and Microsoft have shown in sim
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ilar technologies, it is likely that Large Language Models such as ChatGPT could become new gateways to information, and if this is the case, what kind of information this technology provides needs to be investigated. The current study examines the usefulness of ChatGPT as a source of information in a South African context by first investigating ChatGPT's responses to ten South African conspiracy theories in terms of truthfulness, before employing bias classification as well as sentiment analysis to evaluate whether ChatGPT exhibits bias when presenting eight South African political topics. We found that, overall, ChatGPT did not spread conspiracy theories. However, the tool generated falsehoods around one conspiracy theory and generally presented a left bias, albeit not to the extreme. Sentiment analysis showed that ChatGPT's responses were mostly neutral and, when more emotive, were more often positive than negative. The implications of the findings for academics and students are discussed, as are a number of recommendations for future research." (Abstract)
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"This report presents a rapid media consumption assessment in Central Asia. It tells the reader what information - and disinformation - Central Asians consume, as well as the reasons why they consume it. How do recent international and regional geo-political events impact their media choices and wha
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t sources do they come from? From the ongoing Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine to controversial domestic events in the region, including violent state response to protests and the unresolved border issues between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, this report examines the critical role of information and disinformation in shaping public awareness and response to such processes." (Abstract)
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"In this book, authors engage in an interdisciplinary discourse of theory and practice on the concept of personal conviction, addressing the variety of grey zones that mark the concept. Bias, Belief, and Conviction in an Age of Fake Facts discusses where our convictions come from and whether we are
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aware of them, why they compel us to certain actions, and whether we can change our convictions when presented with opposing evidence, which prove our personal convictions "wrong". Scholars from philosophy, psychology, comparative literature, media studies, applied linguistics, intercultural communication, and education shed light on the topic of personal conviction, crossing disciplinary boundaries and asking questions not only of importance to scholars but also related to the role and possible impact of conviction in the public sphere, education, and in political and cultural discourse. By taking a critical look at personal conviction as an element of inquiry within the humanities and social sciences, this book will contribute substantially to the study of conviction as an aspect of the self we all carry within us and are called upon to examine." (Publisher description)
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"This article aims to shed light on the infodemic of disinformation, misinformation, and malinformation in the digital era of a new normal where deepfake and fake news are omnipresent. To do so, this article establishes a general theory of information and engages in big data analytics involving a sc
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ientometrics (bibliometrics) analysis with topic modeling of the major trends in the field. In doing so, this article reveals three noteworthy findings. First, infodemic is multifaceted in terms of its content, platform, manifestation, and solution. Second, infodemic research delivers the richest insights on misinformation, followed by fake news, disinformation, infodemic solutions, and malinformation. Third, interest in the dissemination of false information is greater than its creation, with the task of ascertaining the intrinsic elements (e.g. maliciousness in disinformation and malinformation) being more challenging than that of extrinsic elements (e.g. truth of misinformation). The article concludes with implications for theory and practice as well as directions for future research." (Abstract)
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"Many fear that social media enable more potent influence operations than traditional mass media. This belief is widely shared yet rarely tested. We challenge this emerging wisdom by comparing social media and television as vectors for influence operations targeting Ukraine. This article develops a
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theoretical framework based on media structure, showing how and why decentralized and centralized media offer distinct opportunities and challenges for conducting influence operations. This framework indicates a relative advantage for television in both dissemination and persuasiveness. We test this framework against the Russo-Ukrainian conflict (before the 2022 escalation), contributing new data from a national survey and a new dataset of Telegram activity. We identify fifteen disinformation narratives, and, using statistical analysis, examine correlations between media consumption, audience exposure to, and agreement with, narratives, and foreign policy preferences. To explore causal mechanisms, we follow up with content analysis. Findings strongly support our theoretical framework. While consuming some partisan social media channels is correlated with narrative exposure, there is no correlation with narrative agreement. Meanwhile, consumption of partisan television channels shows clear and consistent correlation. Finally, agreement with narratives also correlates with foreign policy preferences. However, and importantly, findings indicate the overall limitations of influence operations." (Abstract)
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"This article analyses the Brazilian PL 2630, so-called “fake news bill,” according to platform regulation approaches focused on speech, data, and market power. This law project was introduced in 2020 with the objective to fight disinformation campaigns in digital platforms such as social media
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and messaging services. After a multistakeholder debate, the latest version of the bill before the 2022 general elections was presented in the Chamber of Deputies. This article argues that the bill takes different stances with regard to those three basic elements. The bill strongly draws on the dimension of speech, establishing requirements for transparency in content moderation following the highest international standards. On data and market power, however, the bill makes no significant progress, with little contribution, for example, to tackling the surveillance-based business model. This way, it does not touch on structural conditions that shape disinformation campaigns, such as the profit motive of digital platforms. It follows a general pattern of platform regulation, leaving structural features untouched and, this way, eventually undermining stronger efforts against online disinformation." (Abstract)
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"How does academia understand the disinformation problem, and are we equipped to offer solutions? In response to this question, our study provides an overview of the general definitions, trends, patterns, and developments that represent the research on disinformation and misinformation. We conducted
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a systematic review of N = 756 publications covering eight years, 2014–2022. This period captures phenomena such as Trump’s emergence as a candidate for the US presidency, his term in office, as well as the leadership of figures such as Erdogan in Turkey, Bolsonaro in Brazil, Modi in India, and various similar populist and nationalist leaders across a range of democratic and semi-democratic societies. This period is also one that witnessed the first global pandemic, when misinformation and disinformation not only threatened societal cohesion but the lives of people. This systematic review explores the critical terminology used, the areas of social life where disinformation is identified as problematic, the sources identified as creating or circulating this material, as well as the channels studied, the targets, and the persuasiveness of the discourse. What this article offers, then, is an overview of what we know about disinformation and what gaps in research should be pursued. We conclude that given the problems that misinformation and disinformation are seen to cause for democratic societies, we need to assess the contribution of social science in providing a foundation for scientific knowledge." (Abstract)
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"The purpose of this study is twofold: to understand how the Lebanese public consumes news published on traditional and alternative media, with a focus on how they perceive and deal with disinformation campaigns and fake news, and to build a comprehensive view of the organizations and initiatives th
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at are working on mis/disinformation in Lebanon since 2019. Understanding the media landscape and media consumption in Lebanon will inform future interventions on disinformation. The first part of the report examines the media landscape vis-à-vis the legal framework that governs broadcast and print media. It also offers a glimpse of news consumption behaviors in Lebanese society and discusses disinformation narratives that emerged around major events that have occurred in the last three years. The report will showcase how disinformation thrives in critical moments and provide analysis on the different factors that contribute to the surge in disinformation. The second part of the report presents the findings from the mapping that the Samir Kassir Foundation (SKF) conducted on initiatives and organizations that target mis/disinformation in Lebanon. This section also provides an assessment of some projects that were implemented in the last three years." (Executive summary)
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