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Category Archives: Social Media

A criminal justice expert’s guide to donating effectively

Vox: “…Chloe Cockburn has thought harder about that question than just about anyone. Until recently, Cockburn was the program officer for criminal justice reform at the Open Philanthropy Project, a foundation-like organization backed by the nearly $14 billion fortune of Cari Tuna and her husband, Facebook co-founder Dustin Moskovitz. It seeks to identify the most… Continue Reading

The Future of Digital Spaces and Their Role in Democracy

Pew Report – “Many experts say public online spaces will significantly improve by 2035 if reformers, big technology firms, governments and activists tackle the problems created by misinformation, disinformation and toxic discourse. Others expect continuing troubles as digital tools and forums are used to exploit people’s frailties, stoke their rage and drive them apart.. Those… Continue Reading

Inside the ‘Misinformation’ Wars

The New York Times: “…While some academics use the term carefully, “misinformation” in the case of the lost laptop was more or less synonymous with “material passed along by Trump aides.” And in that context, the phrase “media manipulation” refers to any attempt to shape news coverage by people whose politics you dislike. (Emily Dreyfuss,… Continue Reading

Is Peak Social Media Already Behind Us?

Statista: “The growth of social media’s influence in our daily digital lives has been astounding over the last few years. According to figures in the latest Statista Digital Economy Compass, the global average time spent using social media platforms per day is 142 minutes in 2021 – far higher than the 90 minutes recorded in… Continue Reading

COVID-19 showed that science has work to do in its fight against misinformation

Fast Company – “With information traveling digitally at the speed of light, here’s how to make sure the experts keep pace….The first task facing the scientific community was how to communicate about the virus itself—what it was, what it wasn’t, how it could be transmitted, and the true risks involved. Comparisons to other viral pathogens… Continue Reading

When You Should Use LinkedIn’s Resume Builder, and When You Shouldn’t

LifeHacker: “There’s never a bad time to apply for a new job, but updating your resume can begin to feel like a big task (especially if you’re already overworked). If you’ve got a LinkedIn profile though, you can use what you’ve already written to build and customize a strategic resume, as well as speed up… Continue Reading

The Life Cycle Method for Understanding Media Manipulation and Disinformation

The Life Cycle Method for Understanding Media Manipulation and Disinformation – The media manipulation life cycle (MMLC) forms the basis of the Casebook, giving a common framework for journalists, researchers, technologists, and members of civil society to understand the origins and impacts of disinformation and its relation to the wider information ecosystem. Situated in the emerging… Continue Reading

We’re Making the Facebook Papers Public

Gizmodo – Here’s Why and How – “Independent experts from NYU, UMass Amherst, Columbia, Marquette, and the ACLU are partnering with Gizmodo to responsibly publish this historic leak. In one of Silicon Valley’s largest leaks, a former Facebook product manager slipped financial regulators stacks of documents containing thousands of confidential memos, chat logs, and a… Continue Reading

TikTok teaching? U of T researchers study the social media platform’s use in academia

“In a bid to shine a spotlight on their research and make it more accessible, academics around the world are following in the footsteps of their students and taking to TikTok to share videos. The trend is being highlighted by a team of researchers at the Knowledge Media Design Institute (KMDI) at the University of Toronto’s Faculty of… Continue Reading

Mozilla guide to help you shop for safe, secure connected products

CNET – “Santa isn’t alone in keeping an eye on you this holiday season. Nearly a third of the 151 popular connected gifts analyzed by the Mozilla Foundation as part of its annual “Privacy Not Included” shopping guide didn’t meet basic standards for digital security and privacy, the digital rights group said Tuesday. Among the… Continue Reading

The Behaviors and Attitudes of U.S. Adults on Twitter

“Roughly one-quarter of U.S. adults now use Twitter, and the site has become a space where users get news, discuss topics like sports, engage in personal communication or hear from elected officials. Pew Research Center recently conducted an in-depth survey of U.S. adults who use Twitter, looking to better understand their behaviors and experiences on the site along with their attitudes… Continue Reading