This article originally appeared in the July 2018 issue of Foreign Policy magazine. Concentrated in a few hands, big data is a threat to democracy. Social media companies and political data-mining firms such as Cambridge Analytica have built their businesses by manipulating public life using personal data. Their work has helped heighten […]
In Mexico, there are rising concerns over computational propaganda and the political polarization it may cause. In this data memo, we analyze data about political news and information shared over Twitter and Facebook in the period leading up to the 2018 Mexican presidential election. We find that: (1) the leading […]
Political communication is the process of putting information, technology, and media in the service of power. Increasingly, political actors are automating such processes, through algorithms that obscure motives and authors yet reach immense networks of people through personal ties among friends and family. Not all political algorithms are used for […]
The project’s work on junk news and polarization was covered in the Financial Times. Ultra-rightwing conservatives shared more false stories on Facebook than all other political groups combined in the three months to President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address last month, independent researchers have found. Academics at the […]
