Political polarization can be related to extreme positions on social issues (“ideological”) or to showing affection for one’s group of belonging and hatred towards the opposing group (“affective”). This research on US populations shows how polarization can have significant harms on the health and well-being of individuals and collectives.
Category: Misinformation 101
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“You started working out to get a flat stomach and a fat a$$”: A content analysis of fitspiration videos on TikTok
The majority of fitspiration videos on Tiktok contain misleading/harmful diet and exercise information and are posted by fitness influencers. Male bodies are commonly presented with a muscular ideal and female bodies with a thin and fit ideal.
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Designing misinformation interventions for all: Perspectives from AAPI, Black, Latino, and Native American community leaders on misinformation educational effort
This research uses focus groups from non-profit organizations to examine misinformation types, impacts, and intervention strategies in Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI), Black, Latino, and Indigenous communities. It illustrates how educational strategies can be more effective by incorporating diverse media environments and by understanding and acknowledging the roots of mistrust in institutions and organizations.
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Politically biased moderation drives echo chamber formation: An analysis of user-driven content removals on Reddit
Discussion moderators on Reddit show political bias in content removal. This finding shows that in addition to platform creators and algorithms, content moderators can play a role in the creation and maintenance of social media echo chambers.
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Softly empowering a prosocial expert in the family: lasting effects of a counter-misinformation intervention in an informational autocracy
Prosocial-focused interventions – which highlight the social implications of individual actions on families and communities – showed greater discernment in misinformation detection.
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Quantifying the impact of misinformation and vaccine-skeptical content on Facebook
Mainstream media a more significant driver of vaccine hesitancy than blatantly false sources due to considerably higher viewership of mainstream media articles that raise doubts of vaccine safety and efficacy.
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Social media networks, fake news, and polarization
Bots impact information networks, increasing inaccurate news and driving polarization.
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Supersharers of fake news on Twitter
Misinformation on X is spread by a small and easily-discernable number of accounts with large followings, thus adding to the body of evidence on misinformation “supersharers.”
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The generality of belief in unsubstantiated claims
Those believing in conspiracy theories had greater inclination towards supporting superstitions, pseudoscience, and paranormal beliefs.