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Lexicon of Lies: Terms for Problematic Information Report & Teaching Resources
A useful guide that defines key terms relating to “fake news” and disinformation.
Disinformation Toolkit
Toolkit on the types of risks associated with disinformation and the strategic preparation organisations might wish to undertake, originally developed for humanitarian and aid organisations.
Journalism, Fake News and Disinformation
Handbook on journalism and disinformation developed by global experts, including chapters on media literacy, fact-checking, verification, and dealing with abuse.
Defusing Hate: A Strategic Guide to Counteract Dangerous Speech
A guide on the dynamics of dangerous speech and designing communications that work to prevent violence, accompanied by workbooks.
Germany’s NetzDG: A Key Test for Combatting Online Hate
A look into one country’s legislation for combatting online hate speech and the effects over the course of its implementation.
Polarisation and the Use of Technology in Political Campaigns and Communication
Detailed discussion of the relationship between the contemporary online space and political polarisation.
Information Manipulation: A Challenge for Our Democracies
Detailed overview of various “information manipulation” phenomena around the world along with responses from government, civil society, and platforms.
Poisoning Democracy: How Canada Can Address Harmful Speech Online
Clear discussion on the limitations of existing policy frameworks for tackling harmful speech and recommendations for improved responses, including capacity-building in civil society.
Facts Over Fakes
Discussion of the origin, dissemination, and effects of fake news, focusing on the 2017 German elections as case study.
Information Disorder: Toward an Interdisciplinary Framework
Comprehensive overview of issues relating to disinformation and misinformation online; includes recommendations for media and civil society.
Field Guide to “Fake News” and Other Information Disorders
Examination of how junk news operates and spreads across a range of platforms and the research methods that can be adopted for understanding the phenomenon.
Countering Disinformation: Some Lessons Learnt by Ukraine Crisis Media Center
First-hand account and reflections from a civil society group dealing with targeted disinformation, including policy recommendations.
Socially Conscious but Alone
In-depth survey of young Germans aged 14-24 on their engagement with social media and junk news.
Free Speech is Not the Same as Free Reach
Discussion of how search and recommendation algorithms impact disinformation on online platforms in the US context.
The Bots That Are Changing Politics
Quick overview on types of political bots and their varying strategies.
Fake News: What it is and How to Deal With it
Academic paper about the dissemination of hyper-partisan political news in Brazil.
The Politics of Social Media Manipulation
Academic report on the politics of social media manipulation, analysing disinformation in Dutch Elections on different platforms. Summary available in Dutch.
Dutch government website on disinformation and junk news
Website linking to multiple resources on disinformation and junk news, including checklists, information on action undertaken by the Dutch government, and others.
Strapline Video Series
A video series promoting a deeper understanding of news literacy where issues are not simply black and white. Content here explores how to identify quality information and approach media critically. The project has a primary focus of Asia.
Supporting information and political speech integrity
A report on the disinformation problem around the world, with a breakdown of relevant terms and country case studies available.
Guide for Civil Society on Monitoring Social Media During Elections
A guide aimed at helping civil society better understand the issue of disinformation and its effects on democracy. Available here is a framework to establish monitoring activities, how to produce evidence to counter disinformation, and strategies to help shape better regulation.
Disinformation Annotated Bibliography
An annotated bibliography assembled by Gabrielle Lim and published by the Citizen Lab. This resource serves as a reading list and primer on digital disinformation where it curates work on this topic over the past few years and discusses where the future of research may be heading.
Evidence for Democracy Training Resources
A series of webinars and toolkits that help researchers engage with the policy-making process and advocate for evidence-based decision making in government.
Weaponizing the Digital Influence Machine
An exploration of how online advertising tactics, such as consumer monitoring and targeting, have been weaponised to spread disinformation in an American context
EduCheck Map
Interactive site linking to a variety of educational resources, activities, and lesson plans for addressing information literacy. Note that links to Ted Ed resources appear in many languages but are only available in English.
Tainted Leaks: Disinformation and Phishing with a Russian Nexus
Helpful for understanding politically-motivated phishing attacks on civil society groups, through an in-depth examination of one case
Open Letter on Fake News and Elections
Civil society critique of “fake news” discourse in the context of Latin America and the Caribbean, with proposed responses.
Junk News Aggregator
Interactive tool for discovering the most popular junk news stories currently in circulation on Facebook.
News and Political Information Consumption in Brazil: 2018 Presidential Elections (Twitter)
Analysis of Twitter activity in the lead-up to the 2018 Brazilian election, with a focus on the sharing of junk news.
Computational Propaganda in Brazil: Social Bots during Elections
Examination of the role of bots in recent Brazilian elections.
Why Does Junk News Spread So Quickly Across Social Media?
A clear explanation of why social media platforms serve as ripe ground for the spread of junk news.
Challenging Truth and Trust: A Global Inventory of Organized Social Media Manipulation, 2018
Report on how governments and political parties around the world seek to manipulate public opinion using social media.
The Digital Public – How Algorithmic Processes Influence Social Discourse
Big picture working paper on algorithmic processes and their impact on public opinion formation.
Algorithmic Accountability: A Primer
A concise briefing on how algorithms operate, potential harms to society, and how to think about algorithmic accountability
Media Manipulation and Disinformation Online
Useful resource for understanding how a variety of hateful, radical, and conspiratorial internet sub-cultures seek to manipulate media, particularly in the US context
Disinfo Library
Curated list of academic resources about disinformation, AI, and the tech economy in the European context.
Why Do People Share Fake News? A Sociotechnical Model of Media Effects
Academic study on individual motivations for sharing “fake news.” Includes a discussion of the potential limitations of the media literacy approach.
Cutting the Funding of Disinformation: The Ad-Tech Solution
Clear explanation of how the ad-tech industry sustains the spread of disinformation.
Computational Power: Automated Use of WhatsApp in the Elections
Exploration of automation on WhatsApp ahead of 2018 Brazilian elections. Portuguese version available here: https://feed.itsrio.org/poder-computacional-automa%C3%A7%C3%A3o-no-uso-do-whatsapp-nas-elei%C3%A7%C3%B5es-e969746d231f
Contending with ‘Fake News’: Reports from the Field
An exploration of five efforts led by civil society organisations and journalists to counter disinformation in EU countries.
Invasion of the Social Bots
Concise overview of how social bots and botnets operate, with examples from the US and Europe.