Disinfo Docket 14 August
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* Messages on Venezuela-Based WhatsApp Public Groups Reveal Emotional Strain of July 28 Presidential Elections
* Elderly Americans lose $28 billion a year to scams, and some are fighting back by learning to spot deepfakes, AI, and misinformation
* Instagram is failing to crack down on hate speech against women politicians as elections near, advocacy group says...
Highlights
- Protecting our elections against tech-enabled disinformation (ASPI, 14 July)
- Meta shuts down vital transparency tool (ISD, 14 August)
- Election 2024: Foreign Accounts Push Political Lies on TikTok (Graphika, 14 August)
- Georgia: The next colour revolution? (EUvsDisinfo, 13 August)
- New study's findings can help communicators correct online misinformation (Phys.org, 14 August)
V positive response to investigation from me revealing people behind disinformation linked to riots & their motives. Following more leads as I work on new podcast series investigating social media backdrop to US election, Panorama on impact of social media on kids & Americast. https://t.co/tPe8qoUGSq
— Marianna Spring (@mariannaspring) August 14, 2024
1. Academia & Research
- Media literacy tips promoting reliable news improve discernment and enhance trust in traditional media (Nature, 14 August)
- Is the alarm on deception ringing too loudly? The effects of different forms of misinformation warnings on risk perceptions of misinformation exposure (Sage Journals, 11 August)
- Playing Gali Fakta inoculates Indonesian participants against false information (Misinformation Review, 13 August)
2. Platforms & Technology
End of an era: As of this morning, @crowdtangle, the Meta platform many researchers and journalists used to study public accounts on Facebook and Instagram, is officially dead. #RIPCrowdtangle
— Jo(sephine) Lukito (@JosephineLukito) August 14, 2024
In this 🧵I'll highlight some of the spectacular #polcomm work done with CT. 1/n https://t.co/A0oG1JCqjv pic.twitter.com/weyPIJqFTr
"TikTok has said that it is impossible for it to sell for legal and practical reasons,” @AnupamChander says when discussing TikTok's unclear plans for sellinghttps://t.co/HbGUpBOtf5
— Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society (@BKCHarvard) August 14, 2024
- Meta shutters tool used to fight disinformation, despite outcry (NPR, 14 August)
- No plans to toughen up social media laws despite riot disinformation (iNews, 14 August)
- Harris AI crowd size conspiracy theory runs rampant on TikTok (Media Matters for America, 13 August)
3. Russia & Ukraine
- YouTube slows down in Russia Amid News of Ukrainian Offensive (Coda Story, 8 August)
- Rivers of Phish: Sophisticated Phishing Targets Russia’s Perceived Enemies Around the Globe (The Citizen Lab, 14 August)