2024
Journal Articles
1.
Persico, Simone
In: Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, vol. 11, 2024.
@article{Persico2024,
title = {Affective, defective, and infective narratives on social media about nuclear energy and atomic conflict during the 2022 Italian electoral campaign},
author = {Simone Persico},
url = {https://www.nature.com/articles/s41599-024-02676-4},
doi = {/10.1057/s41599-024-02676-4},
year = {2024},
date = {2024-02-09},
urldate = {2024-02-09},
journal = {Humanities and Social Sciences Communications},
volume = {11},
abstract = {In the digital age, poor public communication catalyzes the spread of disinformation within public opinion. Anyone can produce political content that can reach a global audience, and social media has become a vital tool for political leaders to convey messages to the electorate. The 2022 Italian election campaign has seen the term “nuclear” debated with two different declinations: on the one hand, regarding nuclear energy for civilian use, and on the other hand, regarding the fear of an escalation of the conflict in Ukraine and the use of atomic weapons. This research aims to analyze the social media debate by exploring multiplatform dynamics to qualitatively identify and analyze the connections between social media platforms that we have termed Bridges, a concept drawn from Transmedia Theory to describe the narrative relationship between platforms. The methodological approach will follow an explanatory sequential design that will rely on digital methods to identify connections between platforms (bridges) and then apply an exploratory qualitative approach to enrich the data and capture the nuances of the debate. As expected, we found polarized positions and fragmentation on both issues of civilian nuclear energy and the atomic conflict narrative. Primary evidence shows bridges spreading affective, defective, and infective content across platforms in a multifaceted social media ecosystem. Affective refers to rhetoric that appeals to people’s feelings. Defective means the discussion that brings attention to hyper-partisan news channels, fake news, and misinformation. Infective means bridges with below-the-radar platforms, niche channels, or pseudo-information channels. They use bridges with mainstream platforms to gain the potential to go viral. The paper highlights the importance of cross-platform and interdisciplinary approaches to addressing disinformation in a media ecosystem where social media plays an increasing role in a country’s democratic dynamics.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
In the digital age, poor public communication catalyzes the spread of disinformation within public opinion. Anyone can produce political content that can reach a global audience, and social media has become a vital tool for political leaders to convey messages to the electorate. The 2022 Italian election campaign has seen the term “nuclear” debated with two different declinations: on the one hand, regarding nuclear energy for civilian use, and on the other hand, regarding the fear of an escalation of the conflict in Ukraine and the use of atomic weapons. This research aims to analyze the social media debate by exploring multiplatform dynamics to qualitatively identify and analyze the connections between social media platforms that we have termed Bridges, a concept drawn from Transmedia Theory to describe the narrative relationship between platforms. The methodological approach will follow an explanatory sequential design that will rely on digital methods to identify connections between platforms (bridges) and then apply an exploratory qualitative approach to enrich the data and capture the nuances of the debate. As expected, we found polarized positions and fragmentation on both issues of civilian nuclear energy and the atomic conflict narrative. Primary evidence shows bridges spreading affective, defective, and infective content across platforms in a multifaceted social media ecosystem. Affective refers to rhetoric that appeals to people’s feelings. Defective means the discussion that brings attention to hyper-partisan news channels, fake news, and misinformation. Infective means bridges with below-the-radar platforms, niche channels, or pseudo-information channels. They use bridges with mainstream platforms to gain the potential to go viral. The paper highlights the importance of cross-platform and interdisciplinary approaches to addressing disinformation in a media ecosystem where social media plays an increasing role in a country’s democratic dynamics.
2.
Xing, Yunfei; Zhang, Justin Zuopeng; Storey, Veda C.; Koohang, Alex
Diving into the divide: a systematic review of cognitive bias-based polarization on social media Journal Article
In: Journal of Enterprise Information Management, 2024, ISSN: 1741-0398.
@article{Xing2024,
title = {Diving into the divide: a systematic review of cognitive bias-based polarization on social media},
author = {Yunfei Xing and Justin Zuopeng Zhang and Veda C. Storey and Alex Koohang},
url = {https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/JEIM-09-2023-0459/full/html},
doi = {/10.1108/JEIM-09-2023-0459},
issn = {1741-0398},
year = {2024},
date = {2024-01-24},
journal = {Journal of Enterprise Information Management},
abstract = {Purpose
The global prevalence of social media and its potential to cause polarization are highly debated and impactful. The previous literature often assumes that the ideological bias of any media outlet remains static and exogenous to the polarization process. By studying polarization as a whole from an ecosystem approach, the authors aim to identify policies and strategies that can help mitigate the adverse effects of polarization and promote healthier online discourse.
Design/methodology/approach
To investigate online polarization, the authors perform a systematic review and analysis of approximately 400 research articles to explore the connection between cognitive bias and polarization, examining both causal and correlational evidence. The authors extensively evaluate and integrate existing research related to the correlation between online polarization and crucial factors such as public engagement, selective exposure and political democracy. From doing so, the authors then develop a PolarSphere ecosystem that captures and illustrates the process of online polarization formation.
Findings
The authors' review uncovers a wide range of associations, including ideological cognition, bias, public participation, misinformation and miscommunication, political democracy, echo chambers and selective exposure, heterogeneity and trust. Although the impact of bias on social media polarization depends on specific environments and internal/external conditions, certain variables exhibit strong associations across multiple contexts. The authors use these observations as a basis from which to construct PolarSphere, an ecosystem of bias-based polarization on social media, to theorize the process of polarization formation.
Originality/value
Based on the PolarSphere ecosystem, the authors argue that it is crucial for governments and civil societies to maintain vigilance and invest in further research to gain a deep comprehension of how cognitive bias affects online polarization, which could lead to ways to eliminate polarization.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
Purpose
The global prevalence of social media and its potential to cause polarization are highly debated and impactful. The previous literature often assumes that the ideological bias of any media outlet remains static and exogenous to the polarization process. By studying polarization as a whole from an ecosystem approach, the authors aim to identify policies and strategies that can help mitigate the adverse effects of polarization and promote healthier online discourse.
Design/methodology/approach
To investigate online polarization, the authors perform a systematic review and analysis of approximately 400 research articles to explore the connection between cognitive bias and polarization, examining both causal and correlational evidence. The authors extensively evaluate and integrate existing research related to the correlation between online polarization and crucial factors such as public engagement, selective exposure and political democracy. From doing so, the authors then develop a PolarSphere ecosystem that captures and illustrates the process of online polarization formation.
Findings
The authors' review uncovers a wide range of associations, including ideological cognition, bias, public participation, misinformation and miscommunication, political democracy, echo chambers and selective exposure, heterogeneity and trust. Although the impact of bias on social media polarization depends on specific environments and internal/external conditions, certain variables exhibit strong associations across multiple contexts. The authors use these observations as a basis from which to construct PolarSphere, an ecosystem of bias-based polarization on social media, to theorize the process of polarization formation.
Originality/value
Based on the PolarSphere ecosystem, the authors argue that it is crucial for governments and civil societies to maintain vigilance and invest in further research to gain a deep comprehension of how cognitive bias affects online polarization, which could lead to ways to eliminate polarization.
The global prevalence of social media and its potential to cause polarization are highly debated and impactful. The previous literature often assumes that the ideological bias of any media outlet remains static and exogenous to the polarization process. By studying polarization as a whole from an ecosystem approach, the authors aim to identify policies and strategies that can help mitigate the adverse effects of polarization and promote healthier online discourse.
Design/methodology/approach
To investigate online polarization, the authors perform a systematic review and analysis of approximately 400 research articles to explore the connection between cognitive bias and polarization, examining both causal and correlational evidence. The authors extensively evaluate and integrate existing research related to the correlation between online polarization and crucial factors such as public engagement, selective exposure and political democracy. From doing so, the authors then develop a PolarSphere ecosystem that captures and illustrates the process of online polarization formation.
Findings
The authors' review uncovers a wide range of associations, including ideological cognition, bias, public participation, misinformation and miscommunication, political democracy, echo chambers and selective exposure, heterogeneity and trust. Although the impact of bias on social media polarization depends on specific environments and internal/external conditions, certain variables exhibit strong associations across multiple contexts. The authors use these observations as a basis from which to construct PolarSphere, an ecosystem of bias-based polarization on social media, to theorize the process of polarization formation.
Originality/value
Based on the PolarSphere ecosystem, the authors argue that it is crucial for governments and civil societies to maintain vigilance and invest in further research to gain a deep comprehension of how cognitive bias affects online polarization, which could lead to ways to eliminate polarization.
Workshops
3.
Buccio, Emanuele Di; Neresini, Federico
Research and Teaching Public Communication of Science and Technology on Digital Data Workshop
2024: 20th conference on Information and Research science Connecting to Digital and Library science 2024, ISSN: 1613-0073.
@workshop{nokey,
title = {Research and Teaching Public Communication of Science and Technology on Digital Data},
author = {Emanuele Di Buccio and Federico Neresini},
url = {https://ceur-ws.org/Vol-3643/paper14.pdf},
issn = {1613-0073},
year = {2024},
date = {2024-02-22},
organization = {2024: 20th conference on Information and Research science Connecting to Digital and Library science},
abstract = {In recent decades, there has been a growing interest among Social Science researchers in computational approaches; Computational Social Science and Digital Sociology are examples of these research directions. An interdisciplinary research field that can be framed within Social Science is Public Communication of Science and Technology (PCST), which examines how science and technology can affect contemporary society and how society can affect science and technology. The digitization of traditional media and the proliferation of other information channels, such as Social Media, provide new opportunities for PCST.
This paper discusses the issues that need to be addressed to support PCST scholars, possible solutions to address them, and the integration of these solutions into a single platform that is being used to support research and teaching. Concerning teaching, the paper presents an example of how the platform can be used in the context of a university course.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {workshop}
}
In recent decades, there has been a growing interest among Social Science researchers in computational approaches; Computational Social Science and Digital Sociology are examples of these research directions. An interdisciplinary research field that can be framed within Social Science is Public Communication of Science and Technology (PCST), which examines how science and technology can affect contemporary society and how society can affect science and technology. The digitization of traditional media and the proliferation of other information channels, such as Social Media, provide new opportunities for PCST.
This paper discusses the issues that need to be addressed to support PCST scholars, possible solutions to address them, and the integration of these solutions into a single platform that is being used to support research and teaching. Concerning teaching, the paper presents an example of how the platform can be used in the context of a university course.
This paper discusses the issues that need to be addressed to support PCST scholars, possible solutions to address them, and the integration of these solutions into a single platform that is being used to support research and teaching. Concerning teaching, the paper presents an example of how the platform can be used in the context of a university course.
2023
Journal Articles
4.
Monaci, Sara; Mazali, Tatiana; Persico, Simone
Smart working during the Covid19 pandemic in Italy: Twitter narratives in female-centered communities Journal Article
In: Mediascapes Journal, vol. 21, iss. 1, pp. 323–343, 2023, ISSN: 2282-2542.
@article{Monaci2023,
title = {Smart working during the Covid19 pandemic in Italy: Twitter narratives in female-centered communities},
author = {Sara Monaci and Tatiana Mazali and Simone Persico},
url = {https://rosa.uniroma1.it/rosa03/mediascapes/article/view/18290
https://rosa.uniroma1.it/rosa03/mediascapes/article/view/18290/17516},
issn = {2282-2542},
year = {2023},
date = {2023-07-18},
urldate = {2023-07-18},
journal = {Mediascapes Journal},
volume = {21},
issue = {1},
pages = {323–343},
abstract = {While the recent pandemic has accelerated the spread of smart working dynamics in Italy, social media increased their importance as platforms to vehiculate information and points of view and shape public opinion. In the face of extended confinement and a looming health crisis, society has had to fundamentally rethink its daily work practices, social relations, family relationship management, and work-life balance. As a result, the radical and abrupt migration to networked platforms has been a disruptive and unprecedented phenomenon. We aimed to investigate the Twitter debate on smart working during the pandemic by focusing mainly on social concerns and thematics related to work-life balance by addressing the following research questions:
- RQ1: How was the topic of smart working debated on Twitter during the Covid19 pandemic (2020-2021) in Italy, and which narratives and issues fuelled the debate the most?
- RQ2: How the public debate has received the Italian government's work-life balance measures?
- RQ3: Which topics were most discussed by women on smart working?
We used Digital Methods to cope with re-proposing data to depict collective phenomena, social transformations, and cultural expressions by analyzing natively digital data on social media platforms. We gathered more than 750.000 tweets between 28 February 2020 and 30 November 2021, and we mapped narratives and communities by using social network analysis. This allowed for the selection of the more intriguing ones to define various sub-datasets on which to conduct a topic modeling study, which aided in understanding more nuanced aspects of the highly fragmented topic. By studying the italian debate, we identified specific communities which debated government measures to help families during the pandemic and discussed digitalization and smart working as a new paradigm for work. We found DAD (Didactic at Distance, aka homeschooling) as a transversal topic that highly affected how people experienced smart working.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
While the recent pandemic has accelerated the spread of smart working dynamics in Italy, social media increased their importance as platforms to vehiculate information and points of view and shape public opinion. In the face of extended confinement and a looming health crisis, society has had to fundamentally rethink its daily work practices, social relations, family relationship management, and work-life balance. As a result, the radical and abrupt migration to networked platforms has been a disruptive and unprecedented phenomenon. We aimed to investigate the Twitter debate on smart working during the pandemic by focusing mainly on social concerns and thematics related to work-life balance by addressing the following research questions:
- RQ1: How was the topic of smart working debated on Twitter during the Covid19 pandemic (2020-2021) in Italy, and which narratives and issues fuelled the debate the most?
- RQ2: How the public debate has received the Italian government's work-life balance measures?
- RQ3: Which topics were most discussed by women on smart working?
We used Digital Methods to cope with re-proposing data to depict collective phenomena, social transformations, and cultural expressions by analyzing natively digital data on social media platforms. We gathered more than 750.000 tweets between 28 February 2020 and 30 November 2021, and we mapped narratives and communities by using social network analysis. This allowed for the selection of the more intriguing ones to define various sub-datasets on which to conduct a topic modeling study, which aided in understanding more nuanced aspects of the highly fragmented topic. By studying the italian debate, we identified specific communities which debated government measures to help families during the pandemic and discussed digitalization and smart working as a new paradigm for work. We found DAD (Didactic at Distance, aka homeschooling) as a transversal topic that highly affected how people experienced smart working.
- RQ1: How was the topic of smart working debated on Twitter during the Covid19 pandemic (2020-2021) in Italy, and which narratives and issues fuelled the debate the most?
- RQ2: How the public debate has received the Italian government's work-life balance measures?
- RQ3: Which topics were most discussed by women on smart working?
We used Digital Methods to cope with re-proposing data to depict collective phenomena, social transformations, and cultural expressions by analyzing natively digital data on social media platforms. We gathered more than 750.000 tweets between 28 February 2020 and 30 November 2021, and we mapped narratives and communities by using social network analysis. This allowed for the selection of the more intriguing ones to define various sub-datasets on which to conduct a topic modeling study, which aided in understanding more nuanced aspects of the highly fragmented topic. By studying the italian debate, we identified specific communities which debated government measures to help families during the pandemic and discussed digitalization and smart working as a new paradigm for work. We found DAD (Didactic at Distance, aka homeschooling) as a transversal topic that highly affected how people experienced smart working.
5.
Lerner, Celina
A construção do gênero no discurso conservador: uma análise de comentários em rede social Journal Article
In: Perspectivas em Diálogo: Revista de Educação e Sociedade, vol. 10, iss. 23, pp. 145-160, 2023, ISSN: 2358-1840.
@article{Lerner2023,
title = {A construção do gênero no discurso conservador: uma análise de comentários em rede social},
author = {Lerner, Celina},
url = {https://periodicos.ufms.br/index.php/persdia/article/download/16895/12673
},
issn = {2358-1840},
year = {2023},
date = {2023-06-01},
urldate = {2023-06-01},
journal = {Perspectivas em Diálogo: Revista de Educação e Sociedade},
volume = {10},
issue = {23},
pages = {145-160},
abstract = {In this article, I investigate the construction of gender roles in Brazilian conservative discourse on social media on the internet. I analyze more than one hundred thousand comments made to the Facebook page of the right-wing activist Olavo de Carvalho between 2014 and 2018. Using computational linguistics methods, I create a network of words that reveals the main contexts present in collective discourse. I seek to understand the uses of the terms woman and man. First, I map the discourse topics and locate the context in which the terms woman and man occur. Then, I deepen the analysis going back to the original utterance. The detailed reading revealed the persistence of ideas of universality and centrality of man in the conservative discourse. As Simone de Beauvoir pointed out in 1949, man represents both the positive and the neutral; an absolute human type. Woman, in turn, is constructed in the discourse as the other, the different. The negative feeling that often accompanies the term woman reveals the aversion to the different and the misogyny underlying the conservative mentality.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
In this article, I investigate the construction of gender roles in Brazilian conservative discourse on social media on the internet. I analyze more than one hundred thousand comments made to the Facebook page of the right-wing activist Olavo de Carvalho between 2014 and 2018. Using computational linguistics methods, I create a network of words that reveals the main contexts present in collective discourse. I seek to understand the uses of the terms woman and man. First, I map the discourse topics and locate the context in which the terms woman and man occur. Then, I deepen the analysis going back to the original utterance. The detailed reading revealed the persistence of ideas of universality and centrality of man in the conservative discourse. As Simone de Beauvoir pointed out in 1949, man represents both the positive and the neutral; an absolute human type. Woman, in turn, is constructed in the discourse as the other, the different. The negative feeling that often accompanies the term woman reveals the aversion to the different and the misogyny underlying the conservative mentality.
6.
Skovgaard, Lea; Grundtvig, Anders
Who tweets what about personalised medicine? Promises and concerns from Twitter discussions in Denmark Journal Article
In: Digital Health, vol. 9, pp. 1-12, 2023.
@article{Skovgaard2023,
title = {Who tweets what about personalised medicine? Promises and concerns from Twitter discussions in Denmark},
author = {Lea Skovgaard and Anders Grundtvig},
url = {https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/20552076231169832},
doi = {10.1177/20552076231169832},
year = {2023},
date = {2023-03-29},
urldate = {2023-03-29},
journal = {Digital Health},
volume = {9},
pages = {1-12},
abstract = {Digital health data are seen as valuable resources for the development of better and more efficient treatments, for instance through personalised medicine. However, health data are information about individuals who hold opinions and can challenge how data about them are used. Therefore it is important to understand public discussions around reuse of digital health data. Social media have been heralded as enabling new forms of public engagement and as a place to study social issues. In this paper, we study a public debate on Twitter about personalised medicine. We explore who participates in discussions about personalised medicine on Twitter and what they tweet about. Based on user-generated biographies we categorise users as having a ‘Professional interest in personalised medicine’ or as ‘Private’ users. We describe how users within the field tweet about the promises of personalised medicine, while users unaffiliated with the field tweet about the concrete realisation of these ambitions in the form of a new infrastructure and express concerns about the conditions for the implementation. Our study serves to remind people interested in public opinion that Twitter is a platform used for multiple purposes by different actors and not simply a bottom-up democratic forum. This study contributes with insights relevant to policymakers wishing to expand infrastructures for reuse of health data. First, by providing insights into what is discussed about health data reuse. Second, by exploring how Twitter can be used as a platform to study public discussions about reuse
of health data.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
Digital health data are seen as valuable resources for the development of better and more efficient treatments, for instance through personalised medicine. However, health data are information about individuals who hold opinions and can challenge how data about them are used. Therefore it is important to understand public discussions around reuse of digital health data. Social media have been heralded as enabling new forms of public engagement and as a place to study social issues. In this paper, we study a public debate on Twitter about personalised medicine. We explore who participates in discussions about personalised medicine on Twitter and what they tweet about. Based on user-generated biographies we categorise users as having a ‘Professional interest in personalised medicine’ or as ‘Private’ users. We describe how users within the field tweet about the promises of personalised medicine, while users unaffiliated with the field tweet about the concrete realisation of these ambitions in the form of a new infrastructure and express concerns about the conditions for the implementation. Our study serves to remind people interested in public opinion that Twitter is a platform used for multiple purposes by different actors and not simply a bottom-up democratic forum. This study contributes with insights relevant to policymakers wishing to expand infrastructures for reuse of health data. First, by providing insights into what is discussed about health data reuse. Second, by exploring how Twitter can be used as a platform to study public discussions about reuse
of health data.
of health data.
Conferences
7.
Abdo, Alexandre Hannud; Benbouzid, Bilel; Turnheim, Bruno; Raimbault, Benjamin; Barbier, Marc
SASHIMI and new frontiers in the study of socio-semantic networks with mixed-methods on the Cortext Platform Conference
Sunbelt 2023 Portland, OR, United States, 2023, (INSNA).
@conference{Abdo2023,
title = {SASHIMI and new frontiers in the study of socio-semantic networks with mixed-methods on the Cortext Platform},
author = { Alexandre Hannud Abdo and Bilel Benbouzid and Bruno Turnheim and Benjamin Raimbault and Marc Barbier},
url = {https://hal.science/hal-04488978/
https://solstag.gitlab.io/presentations/sunbelt2023/
},
year = {2023},
date = {2023-06-28},
address = {Portland, OR, United States},
organization = {Sunbelt 2023 },
abstract = {Since 2008, the Cortext Platform contributes expertise, infrastructure and computing power for the analysis of "socio-semantic networks", benefiting a global community engaged primarily in original research in the social sciences and humanities, but also assisting literature reviews in a host of others fields, as well as policy and business applications. In 2022, at least 60 peer-reviewed academic publications made direct use of our services, adding to a total of over 300. This presentation will focus on SASHIMI (Hannud Abdo, 2021), a network based, mixed-methods approach recently developed in addition to our earlier Network Mapping methods (Cointet 2012, Cointet 2017), available as both a suite of no-code methods in the free-to-use Cortext Manager cloud service, and a free-and-open-source software library. We will present SASHIMI through some examples of socio-semantic analyses: (a) from the field of Transition Studies, an inquiry into the variety of disciplinary manifestations throughout the social sciences of the "research problem of destabilisation of socio-technical systems", that seeks to inform current destabilisation/discontinuation/phase-out studies with a wider understanding of the problem. (b) from the field of Science and Technology Studies, an analysis of policy documents pertaining to the regulation of artificial intelligence, identifying the interplay between major actors associated with different themes, sectors and perspectives (solutionism, contestation, regulation) on the issue; (c) still in STS, an analysis of social media interactions concerning environmental controversies, focusing on the debate around pesticides in France. SASHIMI is based on domain-topic models, an application of network clustering that synthesizes document clustering (or clustering of any kind of hypernode) and topic modeling. It is also based on a suite of human interfaces — block maps, network maps, and hyperlinked tables — that afford interactive exploration and visualization of the different types of clusters, and their relationships, at discrete levels of granularity ranging from the entire corpus to the individual document, from the entire vocabulary to the individual word. The clustering aspect is based on modern community detection methods, namely the Nested Stochastic Block Model (Peixoto, 2015), while introducing a twist to allow further clustering of dimensions attributed to hypernodes (documents), such as people, time, venue or other categorical metadata, that did not participate in the initial clustering — excluded, for example, in order to produce "semantic" document clusters based exclusively on textual contents. To this particular procedure we give the name "chaining". In the context of the three aforementioned examples, we'll explain a set of concepts and practices, emerging from our usage, to productively co-construct meaning between the representations afforded by the models and interfaces, and the goals, inputs and choices of a researcher with field and experiential knowledge. Particularly, how to interpret the clusters and the specificity and commonality scores of inter-cluster relationships employed in the maps, how to build sequences of corpus delimitation and dimension chaining operations and interpret them, and finally how to construct coherent domain groups we call "constellations", and identify attribute flows in their cores and frontiers. },
note = {INSNA},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {conference}
}
Since 2008, the Cortext Platform contributes expertise, infrastructure and computing power for the analysis of "socio-semantic networks", benefiting a global community engaged primarily in original research in the social sciences and humanities, but also assisting literature reviews in a host of others fields, as well as policy and business applications. In 2022, at least 60 peer-reviewed academic publications made direct use of our services, adding to a total of over 300. This presentation will focus on SASHIMI (Hannud Abdo, 2021), a network based, mixed-methods approach recently developed in addition to our earlier Network Mapping methods (Cointet 2012, Cointet 2017), available as both a suite of no-code methods in the free-to-use Cortext Manager cloud service, and a free-and-open-source software library. We will present SASHIMI through some examples of socio-semantic analyses: (a) from the field of Transition Studies, an inquiry into the variety of disciplinary manifestations throughout the social sciences of the "research problem of destabilisation of socio-technical systems", that seeks to inform current destabilisation/discontinuation/phase-out studies with a wider understanding of the problem. (b) from the field of Science and Technology Studies, an analysis of policy documents pertaining to the regulation of artificial intelligence, identifying the interplay between major actors associated with different themes, sectors and perspectives (solutionism, contestation, regulation) on the issue; (c) still in STS, an analysis of social media interactions concerning environmental controversies, focusing on the debate around pesticides in France. SASHIMI is based on domain-topic models, an application of network clustering that synthesizes document clustering (or clustering of any kind of hypernode) and topic modeling. It is also based on a suite of human interfaces — block maps, network maps, and hyperlinked tables — that afford interactive exploration and visualization of the different types of clusters, and their relationships, at discrete levels of granularity ranging from the entire corpus to the individual document, from the entire vocabulary to the individual word. The clustering aspect is based on modern community detection methods, namely the Nested Stochastic Block Model (Peixoto, 2015), while introducing a twist to allow further clustering of dimensions attributed to hypernodes (documents), such as people, time, venue or other categorical metadata, that did not participate in the initial clustering — excluded, for example, in order to produce "semantic" document clusters based exclusively on textual contents. To this particular procedure we give the name "chaining". In the context of the three aforementioned examples, we'll explain a set of concepts and practices, emerging from our usage, to productively co-construct meaning between the representations afforded by the models and interfaces, and the goals, inputs and choices of a researcher with field and experiential knowledge. Particularly, how to interpret the clusters and the specificity and commonality scores of inter-cluster relationships employed in the maps, how to build sequences of corpus delimitation and dimension chaining operations and interpret them, and finally how to construct coherent domain groups we call "constellations", and identify attribute flows in their cores and frontiers.
Masters Theses
8.
de Souza Mancoso, Kaique
Cancelar ou não cancelar, eis a questão: uma análise das características da cultura do cancelamento através do julgamento de celebridades no Twitter Masters Thesis
Universidade Federal do Ceará, Fortaleza, Brasil, 2023.
@mastersthesis{deMancoso2023,
title = {Cancelar ou não cancelar, eis a questão: uma análise das características da cultura do cancelamento através do julgamento de celebridades no Twitter},
author = {Kaique de Souza Mancoso},
url = {https://repositorio.ufc.br/bitstream/riufc/76373/5/2023_dis_ksmancoso.pdf
https://repositorio.ufc.br/handle/riufc/76373},
year = {2023},
date = {2023-11-23},
address = {Fortaleza, Brasil},
school = {Universidade Federal do Ceará},
abstract = {Este estudo se propôs a desvendar as principais características da cultura do cancelamento. Dada a contemporaneidade do tema e o arsenal literário limitado, esta pesquisa revela as configurações e implicações desse fenômeno, contribuindo, assim, para ampliarmos a compreensão das dinâmicas de conversação em redes sociais. Para isso, foram analisados cinco casos de cancelamentos de figuras públicas brasileiras em 2022: Monark, Deolane Bezerra, Gkay, Jade Picon e Luísa Sonza. A escolha dessas celebridades teve origem na análise de matérias digitais sobre “famosos cancelados em 2022” , sendo os procedimentos de pesquisa documental online uma das técnicas fundamentais para essa etapa. A metodologia combinou, principalmente, técnicas de análise de conteúdo e análise de redes sociais para investigar as conversações de cada caso no Twitter. Dada as particularidades de cada fato, foram levantadas e extraídas publicações que mencionavam a figura pública em questão, especificamente nas semanas dos fatos. Os dados revelaram a forte presença de discurso de ódio, através de publicações com ataques e insultos às celebridades, advindos de uma grande maioria de usuários canceladores. Além disso, a investigação mostra que a suposta relação entre o fenômeno do cancelamento e o agendamento de pautas identitárias e morais nem sempre mostrou-se significativa, o que indica a ausência de um debate substancial e a tendência de desvio de tópicos durante as interações. Os esforços dos usuários se concentraram, na verdade, em demandar penalidades e consequências às pessoas canceladas. No entanto, há indícios de que os prejuízos de cancelamentos são mais momentâneos do que duradouros, demonstrando o aspecto volátil de episódios de cancelamentos, com pouco impacto transformador na sociedade.
Os resultados também reforçam que a multidimensionalidade do tema eleva a complexidade de sua plena compreensão. Essa jornada investigativa colabora para futuras reflexões sobre ética digital, responsabilidade online e comportamento nas redes sociais.
This study aimed to unravel the primary characteristics of cancel culture. Given the contemporaneity of the subject and the limited literary resources, this research reveals the configurations and implications of this phenomenon, thereby contributing to an enhanced understanding of conversational dynamics on social networks. To achieve this, five cases of cancellations of Brazilian public figures in 2022 were analyzed: Monark, Deolane Bezerra, Gkay, Jade Picon, and Luísa Sonza. The selection of these celebrities originated from the analysis of digital articles regarding "celebrities canceled in 2022", with online documentary research procedures being one of the fundamental techniques for this stage. The methodology primarily combined content analysis and social network analysis techniques to investigate the conversations of each case on Twitter. Given the peculiarities of each event, posts mentioning the relevant public figure were identified and extracted, specifically during the weeks of these events. The data revealed a substantial presence of hate speech through posts containing attacks and insults directed at the celebrities, originating from a significant majority of canceling users. Furthermore, the investigation indicates that the supposed relationship between the phenomenon of cancel culture and the scheduling of identity and moral agendas did not always prove significant, suggesting the absence of substantial debate and a tendency to divert from topics during interactions. In reality, the users' efforts were concentrated on demanding penalties and consequences for the canceled individuals. Nonetheless, there are indications that the consequences of cancellations are more ephemeral than enduring, highlighting the volatile nature of cancellation episodes with limited transformative impact on society. The results also underscore that the multidimensionality of the subject enhances the complexity of its comprehensive understanding. This investigative journey contributes to future reflections on digital ethics, online responsibility, and behavior on social media.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {mastersthesis}
}
Este estudo se propôs a desvendar as principais características da cultura do cancelamento. Dada a contemporaneidade do tema e o arsenal literário limitado, esta pesquisa revela as configurações e implicações desse fenômeno, contribuindo, assim, para ampliarmos a compreensão das dinâmicas de conversação em redes sociais. Para isso, foram analisados cinco casos de cancelamentos de figuras públicas brasileiras em 2022: Monark, Deolane Bezerra, Gkay, Jade Picon e Luísa Sonza. A escolha dessas celebridades teve origem na análise de matérias digitais sobre “famosos cancelados em 2022” , sendo os procedimentos de pesquisa documental online uma das técnicas fundamentais para essa etapa. A metodologia combinou, principalmente, técnicas de análise de conteúdo e análise de redes sociais para investigar as conversações de cada caso no Twitter. Dada as particularidades de cada fato, foram levantadas e extraídas publicações que mencionavam a figura pública em questão, especificamente nas semanas dos fatos. Os dados revelaram a forte presença de discurso de ódio, através de publicações com ataques e insultos às celebridades, advindos de uma grande maioria de usuários canceladores. Além disso, a investigação mostra que a suposta relação entre o fenômeno do cancelamento e o agendamento de pautas identitárias e morais nem sempre mostrou-se significativa, o que indica a ausência de um debate substancial e a tendência de desvio de tópicos durante as interações. Os esforços dos usuários se concentraram, na verdade, em demandar penalidades e consequências às pessoas canceladas. No entanto, há indícios de que os prejuízos de cancelamentos são mais momentâneos do que duradouros, demonstrando o aspecto volátil de episódios de cancelamentos, com pouco impacto transformador na sociedade.
Os resultados também reforçam que a multidimensionalidade do tema eleva a complexidade de sua plena compreensão. Essa jornada investigativa colabora para futuras reflexões sobre ética digital, responsabilidade online e comportamento nas redes sociais.
This study aimed to unravel the primary characteristics of cancel culture. Given the contemporaneity of the subject and the limited literary resources, this research reveals the configurations and implications of this phenomenon, thereby contributing to an enhanced understanding of conversational dynamics on social networks. To achieve this, five cases of cancellations of Brazilian public figures in 2022 were analyzed: Monark, Deolane Bezerra, Gkay, Jade Picon, and Luísa Sonza. The selection of these celebrities originated from the analysis of digital articles regarding "celebrities canceled in 2022", with online documentary research procedures being one of the fundamental techniques for this stage. The methodology primarily combined content analysis and social network analysis techniques to investigate the conversations of each case on Twitter. Given the peculiarities of each event, posts mentioning the relevant public figure were identified and extracted, specifically during the weeks of these events. The data revealed a substantial presence of hate speech through posts containing attacks and insults directed at the celebrities, originating from a significant majority of canceling users. Furthermore, the investigation indicates that the supposed relationship between the phenomenon of cancel culture and the scheduling of identity and moral agendas did not always prove significant, suggesting the absence of substantial debate and a tendency to divert from topics during interactions. In reality, the users' efforts were concentrated on demanding penalties and consequences for the canceled individuals. Nonetheless, there are indications that the consequences of cancellations are more ephemeral than enduring, highlighting the volatile nature of cancellation episodes with limited transformative impact on society. The results also underscore that the multidimensionality of the subject enhances the complexity of its comprehensive understanding. This investigative journey contributes to future reflections on digital ethics, online responsibility, and behavior on social media.
Os resultados também reforçam que a multidimensionalidade do tema eleva a complexidade de sua plena compreensão. Essa jornada investigativa colabora para futuras reflexões sobre ética digital, responsabilidade online e comportamento nas redes sociais.
This study aimed to unravel the primary characteristics of cancel culture. Given the contemporaneity of the subject and the limited literary resources, this research reveals the configurations and implications of this phenomenon, thereby contributing to an enhanced understanding of conversational dynamics on social networks. To achieve this, five cases of cancellations of Brazilian public figures in 2022 were analyzed: Monark, Deolane Bezerra, Gkay, Jade Picon, and Luísa Sonza. The selection of these celebrities originated from the analysis of digital articles regarding "celebrities canceled in 2022", with online documentary research procedures being one of the fundamental techniques for this stage. The methodology primarily combined content analysis and social network analysis techniques to investigate the conversations of each case on Twitter. Given the peculiarities of each event, posts mentioning the relevant public figure were identified and extracted, specifically during the weeks of these events. The data revealed a substantial presence of hate speech through posts containing attacks and insults directed at the celebrities, originating from a significant majority of canceling users. Furthermore, the investigation indicates that the supposed relationship between the phenomenon of cancel culture and the scheduling of identity and moral agendas did not always prove significant, suggesting the absence of substantial debate and a tendency to divert from topics during interactions. In reality, the users' efforts were concentrated on demanding penalties and consequences for the canceled individuals. Nonetheless, there are indications that the consequences of cancellations are more ephemeral than enduring, highlighting the volatile nature of cancellation episodes with limited transformative impact on society. The results also underscore that the multidimensionality of the subject enhances the complexity of its comprehensive understanding. This investigative journey contributes to future reflections on digital ethics, online responsibility, and behavior on social media.
2022
Online
9.
Koronska, Kamila; Lompe, Maria; Rogers, Richard
Mapping controversial narratives related to the 2022 Russian Invasion of Ukraine in Polish-language social media Facilitators Online
(DMI), The Digital Methods Initiative (Ed.): 2022, visited: 28.09.2022.
@online{Koronska2022,
title = {Mapping controversial narratives related to the 2022 Russian Invasion of Ukraine in Polish-language social media Facilitators},
author = {Kamila Koronska and Maria Lompe and Richard Rogers},
editor = {The Digital Methods Initiative (DMI)},
url = {https://digitalmethods.net/Dmi/RussoUkrainianWarPolishSocialMedia2022},
year = {2022},
date = {2022-09-28},
urldate = {2022-09-28},
abstract = {According to tallies by the UNHCR at the end of June 2022, since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine more than 5.2 million refugees have fled Ukraine and relocated across Europe, with over a million residing in neighbouring Poland (2022). Poland has played an important role in facilitating rescue corridors for Ukrainians, at one point welcoming almost half of the total number of refugees. At the onset of the war, Polish media started to report an alarming rise in controversial narratives shared on social media platforms concerning Ukranians (Wirtualne Media, Onet.pl, RMF24, Konkret24).
Among these are calls for reducing aid to the Ukrainian refugees, evoking historical, economic or other arguments that seek to undermine public sentiment and eagerness to help. The stakes can be high. There have been extreme situations that threaten the most vulnerable such as when there was an orchestrated buy out of necessities and queues at gas stations.
Since the war in Ukraine started, over 2 million Ukrainian refugees have fled to Poland seeking shelter. Journalists have reported a rise in controversial narratives found online concerning the motives of Ukrainian refugees as well as reactions to them. Our objective is to map these narratives and attempt to find out actors who spread them in the Polish social media sphere.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {online}
}
According to tallies by the UNHCR at the end of June 2022, since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine more than 5.2 million refugees have fled Ukraine and relocated across Europe, with over a million residing in neighbouring Poland (2022). Poland has played an important role in facilitating rescue corridors for Ukrainians, at one point welcoming almost half of the total number of refugees. At the onset of the war, Polish media started to report an alarming rise in controversial narratives shared on social media platforms concerning Ukranians (Wirtualne Media, Onet.pl, RMF24, Konkret24).
Among these are calls for reducing aid to the Ukrainian refugees, evoking historical, economic or other arguments that seek to undermine public sentiment and eagerness to help. The stakes can be high. There have been extreme situations that threaten the most vulnerable such as when there was an orchestrated buy out of necessities and queues at gas stations.
Since the war in Ukraine started, over 2 million Ukrainian refugees have fled to Poland seeking shelter. Journalists have reported a rise in controversial narratives found online concerning the motives of Ukrainian refugees as well as reactions to them. Our objective is to map these narratives and attempt to find out actors who spread them in the Polish social media sphere.
Among these are calls for reducing aid to the Ukrainian refugees, evoking historical, economic or other arguments that seek to undermine public sentiment and eagerness to help. The stakes can be high. There have been extreme situations that threaten the most vulnerable such as when there was an orchestrated buy out of necessities and queues at gas stations.
Since the war in Ukraine started, over 2 million Ukrainian refugees have fled to Poland seeking shelter. Journalists have reported a rise in controversial narratives found online concerning the motives of Ukrainian refugees as well as reactions to them. Our objective is to map these narratives and attempt to find out actors who spread them in the Polish social media sphere.
2021
Online
10.
Bernard, Alexander; Bartelds, Michiel; Rojas, Cristobal Marin; Moss, Christin; Ucar, Ece
Conspiracy theories in the age of Covid-19. A comparative analysis of France and the UK. Online
Science Po 2021.
@online{Bernard2021,
title = {Conspiracy theories in the age of Covid-19. A comparative analysis of France and the UK.},
author = {Alexander Bernard and Michiel Bartelds and Cristobal Marin Rojas and Christin Moss and Ece Ucar},
url = {https://fonio.medialab.sciences-po.fr/alaris/read/99fd5a0c-42e3-483a-991c-15de519db3db?lang=en},
year = {2021},
date = {2021-05-01},
organization = {Science Po},
abstract = {Since its beginning, the Covid-19 crisis has disrupted the world order. Other than showing the flaws in health care systems worldwide, the crisis also unveiled a number of deeply rooted conspiracy theories that either linked the Covid-19 pandemic to existing conspiratory frames or designed new theories around the pandemic.
Although online conspiracy-spreading communities are certainly not a new phenomenon, they proliferated on social media more than ever before during the Covid-19 pandemic . This happened as social media, as a source of knowledge and information about current affairs, became even more important due to the unknown nature of the virus .
Different types of Covid-19 conspiracy theories can be distinguished. Some adherents believe in conspiracy theories related to vaccine safety whereas others believe that reported Covid-19 death rates are deliberately greatly exaggerated. Moreover, even 5G technology has been accused for activating the virus inside the human body. Similarly, there is a tendency to believe in the powerful countries' and organisations' role in the "creation" of the virus. For example, a YouGov survey found
that 28% of Britons and 36% of French think that the pandemic's emergence is connected to a single group of people who "control the events and rule the world together." This is further supported by a study
conducted in 2021 by the Cevipof political research center indicating a high rate of government suspicion among the population.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {online}
}
Since its beginning, the Covid-19 crisis has disrupted the world order. Other than showing the flaws in health care systems worldwide, the crisis also unveiled a number of deeply rooted conspiracy theories that either linked the Covid-19 pandemic to existing conspiratory frames or designed new theories around the pandemic.
Although online conspiracy-spreading communities are certainly not a new phenomenon, they proliferated on social media more than ever before during the Covid-19 pandemic . This happened as social media, as a source of knowledge and information about current affairs, became even more important due to the unknown nature of the virus .
Different types of Covid-19 conspiracy theories can be distinguished. Some adherents believe in conspiracy theories related to vaccine safety whereas others believe that reported Covid-19 death rates are deliberately greatly exaggerated. Moreover, even 5G technology has been accused for activating the virus inside the human body. Similarly, there is a tendency to believe in the powerful countries' and organisations' role in the "creation" of the virus. For example, a YouGov survey found
that 28% of Britons and 36% of French think that the pandemic's emergence is connected to a single group of people who "control the events and rule the world together." This is further supported by a study
conducted in 2021 by the Cevipof political research center indicating a high rate of government suspicion among the population.
Although online conspiracy-spreading communities are certainly not a new phenomenon, they proliferated on social media more than ever before during the Covid-19 pandemic . This happened as social media, as a source of knowledge and information about current affairs, became even more important due to the unknown nature of the virus .
Different types of Covid-19 conspiracy theories can be distinguished. Some adherents believe in conspiracy theories related to vaccine safety whereas others believe that reported Covid-19 death rates are deliberately greatly exaggerated. Moreover, even 5G technology has been accused for activating the virus inside the human body. Similarly, there is a tendency to believe in the powerful countries' and organisations' role in the "creation" of the virus. For example, a YouGov survey found
that 28% of Britons and 36% of French think that the pandemic's emergence is connected to a single group of people who "control the events and rule the world together." This is further supported by a study
conducted in 2021 by the Cevipof political research center indicating a high rate of government suspicion among the population.
11.
ten Oever, Niels; Maxigas,; Steffen, Bryan; Maragkou, Eleni; Provendier, Emile; Breuer, Emma; Lombardi, Giovanni; Valentini, Giulio; van der Heide, Jasper; Preuß, Jörn; Boboc, Roxana Varvara; Ashaghimina, Selin; Mignot, Sylvain; Fanzio, Veronica; Moretti, Veronica
Infodemic 5G : How Interpretative Frames are Co-articulated on Social Media? An Instagram versus Parler Case Study Online
(DMI), The Digital Methods Initiative (Ed.): 2021, visited: 28.01.2021.
@online{nokey,
title = {Infodemic 5G : How Interpretative Frames are Co-articulated on Social Media? An Instagram versus Parler Case Study},
author = {Niels ten Oever and Maxigas and Bryan Steffen and Eleni Maragkou and Emile Provendier and Emma Breuer and Giovanni Lombardi and Giulio Valentini and Jasper van der Heide and Jörn Preuß and Roxana Varvara Boboc and Selin Ashaghimina and Sylvain Mignot and Veronica Fanzio and Veronica Moretti},
editor = {The Digital Methods Initiative (DMI)},
url = {https://digitalmethods.net/Dmi/WinterSchool2021Infodemic5G},
year = {2021},
date = {2021-01-28},
urldate = {2021-01-28},
abstract = {The main takeaways from this project are the differences in how 5G is discussed on mainstream and alternative platforms (Instagram vs. Parler) and the connection to the way 5G is represented by vendors and network operators. The key finding is that the vendors and network operators discuss 5G in vague terms, failing to create a concrete and meaningful imaginary that people can draw from. In this context, users from various platforms associated 5G with several issues, which vary across mainstream and alternative platforms. The main takeaway in this regard is that the discourse on Instagram is much more fragmented and lacks cohesion, leading to several clusters of themes with little to no connections between them. On the other hand, Parler hosts a much more coherent approach, where the discussion is much more concrete and related to politics and corporate figures. The project explores these various critical interpretative frames to gain a sense of how 5G is conceived by various communities versus how it is presented by manufacturers.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {online}
}
The main takeaways from this project are the differences in how 5G is discussed on mainstream and alternative platforms (Instagram vs. Parler) and the connection to the way 5G is represented by vendors and network operators. The key finding is that the vendors and network operators discuss 5G in vague terms, failing to create a concrete and meaningful imaginary that people can draw from. In this context, users from various platforms associated 5G with several issues, which vary across mainstream and alternative platforms. The main takeaway in this regard is that the discourse on Instagram is much more fragmented and lacks cohesion, leading to several clusters of themes with little to no connections between them. On the other hand, Parler hosts a much more coherent approach, where the discussion is much more concrete and related to politics and corporate figures. The project explores these various critical interpretative frames to gain a sense of how 5G is conceived by various communities versus how it is presented by manufacturers.
PhD Theses
12.
Poletti, Chiara
Global freedoms and viral harms: The controversy around governance of speech and social media. PhD Thesis
Cardiff University, 2021.
@phdthesis{Poletti2021,
title = {Global freedoms and viral harms: The controversy around governance of speech and social media.},
author = {Chiara Poletti},
url = {https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/145885},
year = {2021},
date = {2021-12-03},
school = {Cardiff University},
abstract = {In the study I address the controversy surrounding the governance of speech and social media communications. In less than 15 years, the regulation of content on social media platforms has increasingly taken over public discussions all over the globe. Social media’s charming narrative of ‘liberation technology’ and space of free speech, has progressively switched into the frightening character of ‘threat to democracy’ and space of hate speech and fake information. Whichever idea one might be leaning on, the diffusion and entanglement of social media platforms with every aspect of our society has made content regulation on social media a global public issue.
Scholars have stressed how governance of speech has been in the hand of a plurality of actors, in a plurality of settings. In the lack of a single decision-making process, governance initiatives emerge as a reaction to public shocks. In this study, I investigate how public shocks have contributed to regulation initiatives. Using theoretical concepts from Actor-Network Theory (ANT) and critical data studies and the methodological tools from controversy mapping, I have analysed narratives about free speech, technology and governance models on websites and in the UK press from 2015 until 2018. The analysis reveals public bodies have increasingly assigned public policy responsibilities to social media and their technology (algorithms and A.I.). However, they miss considerations about the social implication of this type of governance of speech, which reinforces the structure of organisation of platform economy and algorithmic management of social life. With this study, I hope to contribute to the empirical study of governance of speech as well as presenting a normative reflection on the type of governance. I also include a meta-reflection on the role of researchers, and in particular on how this methodology and theory can expose the
paradoxes hidden in the black boxes of technology.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {phdthesis}
}
In the study I address the controversy surrounding the governance of speech and social media communications. In less than 15 years, the regulation of content on social media platforms has increasingly taken over public discussions all over the globe. Social media’s charming narrative of ‘liberation technology’ and space of free speech, has progressively switched into the frightening character of ‘threat to democracy’ and space of hate speech and fake information. Whichever idea one might be leaning on, the diffusion and entanglement of social media platforms with every aspect of our society has made content regulation on social media a global public issue.
Scholars have stressed how governance of speech has been in the hand of a plurality of actors, in a plurality of settings. In the lack of a single decision-making process, governance initiatives emerge as a reaction to public shocks. In this study, I investigate how public shocks have contributed to regulation initiatives. Using theoretical concepts from Actor-Network Theory (ANT) and critical data studies and the methodological tools from controversy mapping, I have analysed narratives about free speech, technology and governance models on websites and in the UK press from 2015 until 2018. The analysis reveals public bodies have increasingly assigned public policy responsibilities to social media and their technology (algorithms and A.I.). However, they miss considerations about the social implication of this type of governance of speech, which reinforces the structure of organisation of platform economy and algorithmic management of social life. With this study, I hope to contribute to the empirical study of governance of speech as well as presenting a normative reflection on the type of governance. I also include a meta-reflection on the role of researchers, and in particular on how this methodology and theory can expose the
paradoxes hidden in the black boxes of technology.
Scholars have stressed how governance of speech has been in the hand of a plurality of actors, in a plurality of settings. In the lack of a single decision-making process, governance initiatives emerge as a reaction to public shocks. In this study, I investigate how public shocks have contributed to regulation initiatives. Using theoretical concepts from Actor-Network Theory (ANT) and critical data studies and the methodological tools from controversy mapping, I have analysed narratives about free speech, technology and governance models on websites and in the UK press from 2015 until 2018. The analysis reveals public bodies have increasingly assigned public policy responsibilities to social media and their technology (algorithms and A.I.). However, they miss considerations about the social implication of this type of governance of speech, which reinforces the structure of organisation of platform economy and algorithmic management of social life. With this study, I hope to contribute to the empirical study of governance of speech as well as presenting a normative reflection on the type of governance. I also include a meta-reflection on the role of researchers, and in particular on how this methodology and theory can expose the
paradoxes hidden in the black boxes of technology.
2020
Journal Articles
13.
Omena, Janna Joceli; Rabello, Elaine Teixeira; Mintz, André Goes
Digital Methods for Hashtag Engagement Research Journal Article
In: Social Media + Society, vol. 6, no. 3, pp. 2056305120940697, 2020.
@article{Omena2020,
title = {Digital Methods for Hashtag Engagement Research},
author = {Janna Joceli Omena and Elaine Teixeira Rabello and André Goes Mintz},
url = {https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/2056305120940697},
doi = {https://doi.org/10.1177/2056305120940697},
year = {2020},
date = {2020-09-03},
urldate = {2020-09-03},
journal = {Social Media + Society},
volume = {6},
number = {3},
pages = {2056305120940697},
abstract = {This article seeks to contribute to the field of digital research by critically accounting for the relationship between hashtags and their forms of grammatization—the platform techno-materialization process of online activity. We approach hashtags as sociotechnical formations that serve social media research not only as criteria in corpus selection but also displaying the complexity of the online engagement and its entanglement with the technicity of web platforms. Therefore, the study of hashtag engagement requires a grasping of the functioning of the platform itself (technicity) along with the platform grammatization. In this respect, we propose the three-layered (3L) perspective for addressing hashtag engagement. The first contemplates potential differences between high-visibility and ordinary hashtag usage culture, its related actors, and content. The second focuses on hashtagging activity and the repurposing of how hashtags can be differently embedded into social media databases. The last layer looks particularly into the images and texts to which hashtags are brought to relation. To operationalize the 3L framework, we draw on the case of the “impeachment-cum-coup” of Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff. When cross-read, the three layers add value to one another, providing also difference visions of the high-visibility and ordinary groups.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
This article seeks to contribute to the field of digital research by critically accounting for the relationship between hashtags and their forms of grammatization—the platform techno-materialization process of online activity. We approach hashtags as sociotechnical formations that serve social media research not only as criteria in corpus selection but also displaying the complexity of the online engagement and its entanglement with the technicity of web platforms. Therefore, the study of hashtag engagement requires a grasping of the functioning of the platform itself (technicity) along with the platform grammatization. In this respect, we propose the three-layered (3L) perspective for addressing hashtag engagement. The first contemplates potential differences between high-visibility and ordinary hashtag usage culture, its related actors, and content. The second focuses on hashtagging activity and the repurposing of how hashtags can be differently embedded into social media databases. The last layer looks particularly into the images and texts to which hashtags are brought to relation. To operationalize the 3L framework, we draw on the case of the “impeachment-cum-coup” of Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff. When cross-read, the three layers add value to one another, providing also difference visions of the high-visibility and ordinary groups.
PhD Theses
14.
Gray, Daniel
Tweeting About Women: A Critical Discourse Analysis of International Women’s Day on Twitter PhD Thesis
School of Social Sciences, 2020.
@phdthesis{Gray2020,
title = {Tweeting About Women: A Critical Discourse Analysis of International Women’s Day on Twitter},
author = {Daniel Gray},
url = {https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/137810/
https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/137810/1/Thesis%20Daniel%20Gray%20Corrected%201-11-2020%282%29.pdf},
year = {2020},
date = {2020-11-01},
urldate = {2020-11-01},
address = {Cardiff University, Cardiff, CF10 3AT},
school = {School of Social Sciences},
abstract = {This thesis is a work of critical digital sociology, investigating discourse which occurred on International Women’s Day 2017 (IWD2017) on Twitter, a widely used social media network, using innovative methodology. The principle finding presented in this thesis is methodological. I demonstrate that it is possible and productive to bring together qualitative analysis and so-called ‘big data’, specifically a large quantity of tweets, via innovative and original methodology, while preserving the unique and valuable affordances of critical, qualitative, theory-informed analysis.
Alongside demonstrating this, I also present a range of analytic findings related to the discourse I have analysed. The analytic findings include the use of popular and ‘fringe’ hashtags in linking mainstream and right-wing/reactionary topics, the prominence of anti- feminism and anti-Islam sentiment in discourse associated with supporters of US president Donald Trump, the antifeminist discursive splitting of feminism and feminists into benign and maligned categories, and the ways women are constructed by Twitter accounts representing police and armed forces.
Methodologically, this thesis provides a detailed account of the practicalities, challenges and strategies involved in approaching big social media data as a critical researcher using qualitative analysis. In doing so I argue that big social media data may be a fruitful area for qualitative work, but that in approaching it we should not discard our previous theoretical, analytical and ethical frameworks.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {phdthesis}
}
This thesis is a work of critical digital sociology, investigating discourse which occurred on International Women’s Day 2017 (IWD2017) on Twitter, a widely used social media network, using innovative methodology. The principle finding presented in this thesis is methodological. I demonstrate that it is possible and productive to bring together qualitative analysis and so-called ‘big data’, specifically a large quantity of tweets, via innovative and original methodology, while preserving the unique and valuable affordances of critical, qualitative, theory-informed analysis.
Alongside demonstrating this, I also present a range of analytic findings related to the discourse I have analysed. The analytic findings include the use of popular and ‘fringe’ hashtags in linking mainstream and right-wing/reactionary topics, the prominence of anti- feminism and anti-Islam sentiment in discourse associated with supporters of US president Donald Trump, the antifeminist discursive splitting of feminism and feminists into benign and maligned categories, and the ways women are constructed by Twitter accounts representing police and armed forces.
Methodologically, this thesis provides a detailed account of the practicalities, challenges and strategies involved in approaching big social media data as a critical researcher using qualitative analysis. In doing so I argue that big social media data may be a fruitful area for qualitative work, but that in approaching it we should not discard our previous theoretical, analytical and ethical frameworks.
Alongside demonstrating this, I also present a range of analytic findings related to the discourse I have analysed. The analytic findings include the use of popular and ‘fringe’ hashtags in linking mainstream and right-wing/reactionary topics, the prominence of anti- feminism and anti-Islam sentiment in discourse associated with supporters of US president Donald Trump, the antifeminist discursive splitting of feminism and feminists into benign and maligned categories, and the ways women are constructed by Twitter accounts representing police and armed forces.
Methodologically, this thesis provides a detailed account of the practicalities, challenges and strategies involved in approaching big social media data as a critical researcher using qualitative analysis. In doing so I argue that big social media data may be a fruitful area for qualitative work, but that in approaching it we should not discard our previous theoretical, analytical and ethical frameworks.
2019
Journal Articles
15.
Alaimo, Cristina; Kallinikos, Jannis; Valderrama, Erika
Platforms as service ecosystems: Lessons from social media Journal Article
In: Journal of Information Technology, vol. 35, 2019.
@article{Alaimo2019,
title = {Platforms as service ecosystems: Lessons from social media },
author = {Cristina Alaimo and Jannis Kallinikos and Erika Valderrama},
doi = {https://doi.org/10.1177/0268396219881462},
year = {2019},
date = {2019-10-21},
urldate = {2019-10-21},
journal = {Journal of Information Technology},
volume = {35},
abstract = {The growing business expansion of social media platforms is changing their identity and transforming the practices of networking, data and content sharing with which social media have been commonly associated. We empirically investigate these shifts in the context of TripAdvisor and its evolution since its very establishment. We trace the mutations of the platform along three stages we identify as search engine, social media platform and end-to-end service ecosystem. Our findings reveal the underlying patterns of data types, technological functionalities and actor configurations that punctuate the business expansion of TripAdvisor and lead to the formation of its service ecosystem. We contribute to the understanding of the current trajectory in which social media find themselves as well as to the literature on platforms and ecosystems. We point out the importance of services that develop as commercially viable and constantly updatable data bundles out of diverse and dynamic data types. Such services are essential to the making of the complementarities that are claimed to underlie ecosystem formation.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
The growing business expansion of social media platforms is changing their identity and transforming the practices of networking, data and content sharing with which social media have been commonly associated. We empirically investigate these shifts in the context of TripAdvisor and its evolution since its very establishment. We trace the mutations of the platform along three stages we identify as search engine, social media platform and end-to-end service ecosystem. Our findings reveal the underlying patterns of data types, technological functionalities and actor configurations that punctuate the business expansion of TripAdvisor and lead to the formation of its service ecosystem. We contribute to the understanding of the current trajectory in which social media find themselves as well as to the literature on platforms and ecosystems. We point out the importance of services that develop as commercially viable and constantly updatable data bundles out of diverse and dynamic data types. Such services are essential to the making of the complementarities that are claimed to underlie ecosystem formation.
Online
16.
Gauld, Christophe
Mining big data about representations of autism spectrum disorder : a comparison from Twitter to PubMed, a TwiMed proof-of-concept Online
2019.
@online{Gauld2019b,
title = {Mining big data about representations of autism spectrum disorder : a comparison from Twitter to PubMed, a TwiMed proof-of-concept},
author = {Christophe Gauld},
url = {https://www.researchgate.net/publication/337289960_Mining_big_data_about_representations_of_autism_spectrum_disorder_a_comparison_from_Twitter_to_PubMed_a_TwiMed_proof-of-concept},
doi = {10.13140/RG.2.2.20575.61604},
year = {2019},
date = {2019-11-15},
abstract = {Aim: Twitter is the most commonly used social media forum in public health and is considered the radio of the internet. Many health providers utilize this media to disseminate health information. Patient use of social media for mental health topics encourages providers to disseminate quality information and to develop virtual collaborative learning environments. Such social media could also be seen as a reflection of a trend towards folk psychology. This study explored trends in health information exchanged by users of Twitter, a broad social media, through analyses of tweets about Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). This proxy of trends in folk psychology could be compared semantically with the corpus derived from biomedical research. Methods: At first, we conducted a text-mining analysis with a sample of 10,000 tweets posted using #autism, by a text-mining method. We built a network of words in order to extract the main dimensions about these data (Latent Dirichlet Analysis). Second, we performed a geocoding analysis to create a Twitter maps of social media tweet and checked the regularity of tweets in the short and medium term. In parallel, we performed a text-mining analysis using the platform PubMed with the term « autis* », and we built networks of words. For each of them, we extracted the main dimensions from the terms. Results: We were able to retrieve 121,556 terms related to the term #autism. Most tweets focus on five dimensions: (1) Education, (2) Childhood, (3) Environment/Relatives, (4) Techniques/Sciences and (5) Support. Concerning the most researched topics in the biomedical research, on 49,021 publications, we found four dimensions: (I) Clinical/Neuropsychology/Psychometry, (II) Behavioral/Language aspects, (III) Neuroscience/Neurogenetics/Neuropharmacology, (IV) Comorbidities. Conclusion: Results suggest thematics about ASD disseminated between a social media and a biomedical database are really different. Health providers are encouraged to establish a presence on social media to learn about representations, share scholarly work or just exchange information with patients and relatives concerned by ASD.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {online}
}
Aim: Twitter is the most commonly used social media forum in public health and is considered the radio of the internet. Many health providers utilize this media to disseminate health information. Patient use of social media for mental health topics encourages providers to disseminate quality information and to develop virtual collaborative learning environments. Such social media could also be seen as a reflection of a trend towards folk psychology. This study explored trends in health information exchanged by users of Twitter, a broad social media, through analyses of tweets about Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). This proxy of trends in folk psychology could be compared semantically with the corpus derived from biomedical research. Methods: At first, we conducted a text-mining analysis with a sample of 10,000 tweets posted using #autism, by a text-mining method. We built a network of words in order to extract the main dimensions about these data (Latent Dirichlet Analysis). Second, we performed a geocoding analysis to create a Twitter maps of social media tweet and checked the regularity of tweets in the short and medium term. In parallel, we performed a text-mining analysis using the platform PubMed with the term « autis* », and we built networks of words. For each of them, we extracted the main dimensions from the terms. Results: We were able to retrieve 121,556 terms related to the term #autism. Most tweets focus on five dimensions: (1) Education, (2) Childhood, (3) Environment/Relatives, (4) Techniques/Sciences and (5) Support. Concerning the most researched topics in the biomedical research, on 49,021 publications, we found four dimensions: (I) Clinical/Neuropsychology/Psychometry, (II) Behavioral/Language aspects, (III) Neuroscience/Neurogenetics/Neuropharmacology, (IV) Comorbidities. Conclusion: Results suggest thematics about ASD disseminated between a social media and a biomedical database are really different. Health providers are encouraged to establish a presence on social media to learn about representations, share scholarly work or just exchange information with patients and relatives concerned by ASD.
17.
Hasselbalch, Marie; Mayntzhusen, Trine Christensen
Mapping Controversy: vaccine controversies Online
2019, visited: 05.03.2019.
@online{Hasselbalch2019,
title = {Mapping Controversy: vaccine controversies},
author = {Marie Hasselbalch and Trine Christensen Mayntzhusen},
url = {https://medium.com/mapping-controversy-vaccine-controversies/mapping-controversy-vaccine-controversies-vaccine-hesitancy-1-hand-in-39c761aefa80},
year = {2019},
date = {2019-02-15},
urldate = {2019-03-05},
journal = {Medium},
abstract = {The controversy on vaccines is a controversy because of its embedded value based, ethical and cultural arguments (Law, J. & Singleton, V., 2014). The key issues include both scientific discussions on whether or not scientific results are valid, more specifically an example of the controversy of the Mumps, Measles and Rubella vaccine (MMR) and its relation to cause autism in children. As well as dissemination of specific arguments for or against vaccines from a broad perspective. The nuances of vaccine controversies are not only revolving around the bilateral relation of pro- and anti-vaccination, because the controversy exists of many sub-controversies and subdiscussions. This shows a controversy of high complexity and being reduction-resistant (Venturini, T., 2010a).
(Vaccine hesitancy, 2018). This controversy is mapped through an actor-network theory (ANT) approach; thus an actor is whatever makes a difference through action in a situation, human or non-human (Venturini, T., 2010a). An example of a significant actor in this specific controversy could be Andrew Wakefield, an anti-vaccine activist and former British doctor, who has had a great impact on the issue about vaccine hesitancy and connection between MMR and autism.
The first part of this article will revolve around data harvesting of a Wikipedia category and the member pages, and different networks and visualisations of these with annotations. The second half will focus on how debates on a social media platform communicate about vaccine controversies, here specifically Reddit. We would like to map how different networks occur in the vaccine controversy debate. Besides, explore the key issues and actors in the debate on vaccine controversies on both Wikipedia’s category pages (under ‘Vaccine Controversies’) and Reddit as a social media platform.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {online}
}
The controversy on vaccines is a controversy because of its embedded value based, ethical and cultural arguments (Law, J. & Singleton, V., 2014). The key issues include both scientific discussions on whether or not scientific results are valid, more specifically an example of the controversy of the Mumps, Measles and Rubella vaccine (MMR) and its relation to cause autism in children. As well as dissemination of specific arguments for or against vaccines from a broad perspective. The nuances of vaccine controversies are not only revolving around the bilateral relation of pro- and anti-vaccination, because the controversy exists of many sub-controversies and subdiscussions. This shows a controversy of high complexity and being reduction-resistant (Venturini, T., 2010a).
(Vaccine hesitancy, 2018). This controversy is mapped through an actor-network theory (ANT) approach; thus an actor is whatever makes a difference through action in a situation, human or non-human (Venturini, T., 2010a). An example of a significant actor in this specific controversy could be Andrew Wakefield, an anti-vaccine activist and former British doctor, who has had a great impact on the issue about vaccine hesitancy and connection between MMR and autism.
The first part of this article will revolve around data harvesting of a Wikipedia category and the member pages, and different networks and visualisations of these with annotations. The second half will focus on how debates on a social media platform communicate about vaccine controversies, here specifically Reddit. We would like to map how different networks occur in the vaccine controversy debate. Besides, explore the key issues and actors in the debate on vaccine controversies on both Wikipedia’s category pages (under ‘Vaccine Controversies’) and Reddit as a social media platform.
(Vaccine hesitancy, 2018). This controversy is mapped through an actor-network theory (ANT) approach; thus an actor is whatever makes a difference through action in a situation, human or non-human (Venturini, T., 2010a). An example of a significant actor in this specific controversy could be Andrew Wakefield, an anti-vaccine activist and former British doctor, who has had a great impact on the issue about vaccine hesitancy and connection between MMR and autism.
The first part of this article will revolve around data harvesting of a Wikipedia category and the member pages, and different networks and visualisations of these with annotations. The second half will focus on how debates on a social media platform communicate about vaccine controversies, here specifically Reddit. We would like to map how different networks occur in the vaccine controversy debate. Besides, explore the key issues and actors in the debate on vaccine controversies on both Wikipedia’s category pages (under ‘Vaccine Controversies’) and Reddit as a social media platform.
2018
Journal Articles
18.
Poletti, Chiara; Michieli, Marco
Smart cities, social media platforms and security: online content regulation as a site of controversy and conflict Journal Article
In: City, Territory and Architecture, vol. 5, no. 20, 2018.
@article{Poletti2018,
title = {Smart cities, social media platforms and security: online content regulation as a site of controversy and conflict},
author = {Chiara Poletti and Marco Michieli},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1186/s40410-018-0096-2},
doi = {10.1186/s40410-018-0096-2},
year = {2018},
date = {2018-11-13},
urldate = {2018-11-13},
journal = {City, Territory and Architecture},
volume = {5},
number = {20},
abstract = {Smart, technologically managed city-regions are one of the main characteristics of the contemporary world. Since the attack to the Charlie Hebdo offices, city-regions and social media digital technologies have increasingly been changing the definition of ‘territory of security’ and ‘security governance’. What are the characteristics of the security architecture created by the interaction of smart city-regions and digital technologies? Drawing from Actor-Network theory and Science and Technology Studies, we provide an empirical account of the shape of this new territory, by presenting a study of the controversy concerning security and social media in UK, the role of cities in this changed security space, and how social sciences can help better understand and respond to the opportunities and threats of smart cities.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {article}
}
Smart, technologically managed city-regions are one of the main characteristics of the contemporary world. Since the attack to the Charlie Hebdo offices, city-regions and social media digital technologies have increasingly been changing the definition of ‘territory of security’ and ‘security governance’. What are the characteristics of the security architecture created by the interaction of smart city-regions and digital technologies? Drawing from Actor-Network theory and Science and Technology Studies, we provide an empirical account of the shape of this new territory, by presenting a study of the controversy concerning security and social media in UK, the role of cities in this changed security space, and how social sciences can help better understand and respond to the opportunities and threats of smart cities.
Online
19.
Omena, Janna Joceli; Rabello, Elaine; Mintz, André; Sanchez-Querubin, Natalia; Ozkula, Suay; Sued, Gabriela; Elbeyi, Ece; Cicali, Alessandra
Visualising hashtag engagement: imagery of political polarization on Instagram Online
(DMI), The Digital Methods Initiative (Ed.): 2018, visited: 10.07.2018.
@online{Omena2023,
title = {Visualising hashtag engagement: imagery of political polarization on Instagram},
author = {Janna Joceli Omena and Elaine Rabello and André Mintz and Natalia Sanchez-Querubin and Suay Ozkula and Gabriela Sued and Ece Elbeyi and Alessandra Cicali},
editor = {The Digital Methods Initiative (DMI)},
url = {https://digitalmethods.net/Dmi/InstagramLivenessVisualisingengagement},
year = {2018},
date = {2018-07-10},
urldate = {2018-07-10},
abstract = {Engagement is a key parameter in social media studies: a conductor for scientific analysis and thoughts. The overall engagement is not only a representative form (or depiction) of human activities, but also a common path to think political and social issues. However, engagement can stem from and be fostered by algorithms or bots, advertising, the popularity of actors or subjects, local or global context. On social media, engagement gathers the sum of different grammars of actions (Agre, 1994) or the reoccurrence of isolated actions, which, taken together, may represent collective thought. In other words, engagement is typically perceived through a dual logic: the sums of actions media items receive (e.g. the total number of likes and comments in a picture on Instagram); the recurrent use of natively digital objects or grammars of action from many people about a topic, e.g. the adoption of hashtags (that can be driven by personal, isolated or collective acts of communication). The first returns the most engaged list what can be defined as the dominant voices, the second returns the ordinary list that is composed by the ordinary voices.
Studies based on engagement have been commonly undertaken by vanity metrics instead of critical analytics; the former being comprised of measures of analysis based on a content or actor being well-known or influential, whereas, the latter, proposes metrics of engagement (dominant voice, concern, commitment, positioning and alignment) that focus on causes and issues overtime (Rogers, 2016). That is why we should not oversimplify engagement behind “the most engaged lists or active users”. On the contrary, we should investigate and analyze the domains of engagement activity; logic, structure and the vocabulary of actions together with an understanding of the social relations. Thus,instead of looking only at most popular actors/content or total of reactions on posts, how can we study engagement through the constant repetition of ordinary voice publications?},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {online}
}
Engagement is a key parameter in social media studies: a conductor for scientific analysis and thoughts. The overall engagement is not only a representative form (or depiction) of human activities, but also a common path to think political and social issues. However, engagement can stem from and be fostered by algorithms or bots, advertising, the popularity of actors or subjects, local or global context. On social media, engagement gathers the sum of different grammars of actions (Agre, 1994) or the reoccurrence of isolated actions, which, taken together, may represent collective thought. In other words, engagement is typically perceived through a dual logic: the sums of actions media items receive (e.g. the total number of likes and comments in a picture on Instagram); the recurrent use of natively digital objects or grammars of action from many people about a topic, e.g. the adoption of hashtags (that can be driven by personal, isolated or collective acts of communication). The first returns the most engaged list what can be defined as the dominant voices, the second returns the ordinary list that is composed by the ordinary voices.
Studies based on engagement have been commonly undertaken by vanity metrics instead of critical analytics; the former being comprised of measures of analysis based on a content or actor being well-known or influential, whereas, the latter, proposes metrics of engagement (dominant voice, concern, commitment, positioning and alignment) that focus on causes and issues overtime (Rogers, 2016). That is why we should not oversimplify engagement behind “the most engaged lists or active users”. On the contrary, we should investigate and analyze the domains of engagement activity; logic, structure and the vocabulary of actions together with an understanding of the social relations. Thus,instead of looking only at most popular actors/content or total of reactions on posts, how can we study engagement through the constant repetition of ordinary voice publications?
Studies based on engagement have been commonly undertaken by vanity metrics instead of critical analytics; the former being comprised of measures of analysis based on a content or actor being well-known or influential, whereas, the latter, proposes metrics of engagement (dominant voice, concern, commitment, positioning and alignment) that focus on causes and issues overtime (Rogers, 2016). That is why we should not oversimplify engagement behind “the most engaged lists or active users”. On the contrary, we should investigate and analyze the domains of engagement activity; logic, structure and the vocabulary of actions together with an understanding of the social relations. Thus,instead of looking only at most popular actors/content or total of reactions on posts, how can we study engagement through the constant repetition of ordinary voice publications?
20.
Taylor, Linnet; Jameson, Shazade; Bullock, Josh; Hoang, Quynh Tu; de Vos, Jeroen; van Gestel, Maarten; Nijssen, Timo; Dziwak, Olivia; Rekve, Kristoffer; Lausberg, Yoren; Santosa, Stefany Winona; Yang, Wen; Zenga, Giovanni
Data Justice and Singapore’s Smart Nation Online
(DMI), The Digital Methods Initiative (Ed.): 2018, visited: 25.01.2018.
@online{Taylor2018,
title = {Data Justice and Singapore’s Smart Nation},
author = {Linnet Taylor and Shazade Jameson and Josh Bullock and Quynh Tu Hoang and Jeroen de Vos and Maarten van Gestel and Timo Nijssen and Olivia Dziwak and Kristoffer Rekve and Yoren Lausberg and Stefany Winona Santosa and Wen Yang and Giovanni Zenga},
editor = {The Digital Methods Initiative (DMI)},
url = {https://digitalmethods.net/Dmi/SingaporeSmartNation},
year = {2018},
date = {2018-01-25},
urldate = {2018-01-25},
abstract = {We aimed to map the networks and key concepts involved in Singapore’s ‘Smart Nation’ initiative from the perspective of the Singaporean authorities, and to map and analyse the popular response to datafication.
We found that the authorities’ narrative is clear and replicated across multiple online sources. It is authored by a mixture of government and commercial actors and has strong resonance with international discourse on smart cities. It is principally hosted via Facebook and websites belonging to the government and its partners, and there is little engagement (regarding response/re-sharing) visible online from citizens.
We were able to map the official discourse quite quickly, but a widespread/critical counter-narrative was harder to find, draw out and analyse. We found that the visible critical response to the smart nation initiative revolves principally around functionality and efficiency (‘this does not work as promised’) and that there are no clearly visible public threads of discourse around rights or surveillance in relation to data. We found concerns with datafication mainly on local news sites and Reddit.
This analysis has mainly been used to help us to identify gaps and silences on the side of citizens. The social media sources with the highest penetration in Singapore carry the government narrative almost exclusively. Those with lower penetration have some responses from citizens, but in general, the public-facing component of the smart nation initiative is governmental.
Critical voices in relation to Singapore’s datafication are largely unavailable to remotely conducted digital methods. We conclude from our investigation that it is worth using digital methods to analyse the government narrative on datafication, but that researchers hoping to identify the alternative narratives should initially do so through ethnographic fieldwork and through that generate questions that are more amenable to digital methods.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {online}
}
We aimed to map the networks and key concepts involved in Singapore’s ‘Smart Nation’ initiative from the perspective of the Singaporean authorities, and to map and analyse the popular response to datafication.
We found that the authorities’ narrative is clear and replicated across multiple online sources. It is authored by a mixture of government and commercial actors and has strong resonance with international discourse on smart cities. It is principally hosted via Facebook and websites belonging to the government and its partners, and there is little engagement (regarding response/re-sharing) visible online from citizens.
We were able to map the official discourse quite quickly, but a widespread/critical counter-narrative was harder to find, draw out and analyse. We found that the visible critical response to the smart nation initiative revolves principally around functionality and efficiency (‘this does not work as promised’) and that there are no clearly visible public threads of discourse around rights or surveillance in relation to data. We found concerns with datafication mainly on local news sites and Reddit.
This analysis has mainly been used to help us to identify gaps and silences on the side of citizens. The social media sources with the highest penetration in Singapore carry the government narrative almost exclusively. Those with lower penetration have some responses from citizens, but in general, the public-facing component of the smart nation initiative is governmental.
Critical voices in relation to Singapore’s datafication are largely unavailable to remotely conducted digital methods. We conclude from our investigation that it is worth using digital methods to analyse the government narrative on datafication, but that researchers hoping to identify the alternative narratives should initially do so through ethnographic fieldwork and through that generate questions that are more amenable to digital methods.
We found that the authorities’ narrative is clear and replicated across multiple online sources. It is authored by a mixture of government and commercial actors and has strong resonance with international discourse on smart cities. It is principally hosted via Facebook and websites belonging to the government and its partners, and there is little engagement (regarding response/re-sharing) visible online from citizens.
We were able to map the official discourse quite quickly, but a widespread/critical counter-narrative was harder to find, draw out and analyse. We found that the visible critical response to the smart nation initiative revolves principally around functionality and efficiency (‘this does not work as promised’) and that there are no clearly visible public threads of discourse around rights or surveillance in relation to data. We found concerns with datafication mainly on local news sites and Reddit.
This analysis has mainly been used to help us to identify gaps and silences on the side of citizens. The social media sources with the highest penetration in Singapore carry the government narrative almost exclusively. Those with lower penetration have some responses from citizens, but in general, the public-facing component of the smart nation initiative is governmental.
Critical voices in relation to Singapore’s datafication are largely unavailable to remotely conducted digital methods. We conclude from our investigation that it is worth using digital methods to analyse the government narrative on datafication, but that researchers hoping to identify the alternative narratives should initially do so through ethnographic fieldwork and through that generate questions that are more amenable to digital methods.
2016
Book Chapters
21.
Fausto, Sibele; Aventurier, Pascal
Scientific Literature on Twitter as a subject research: findings based on bibliometric analysis Book Chapter
In: Handbook Twitter For Research 2015 – 2016, pp. 242, EMLYON Press, 2016.
@inbook{fausto2016scientific,
title = {Scientific Literature on Twitter as a subject research: findings based on bibliometric analysis},
author = {Sibele Fausto and Pascal Aventurier},
url = {https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01297804/},
year = {2016},
date = {2016-01-01},
urldate = {2016-01-01},
booktitle = {Handbook Twitter For Research 2015 – 2016},
pages = {242},
publisher = {EMLYON Press},
abstract = {Since its launch in 2006, Internet platform Twitter has rapidly expanded. As a phenomenon of the digital era, Twitter generates a new type of research data that has received a good deal of attention in the academic literature. It has turned into a popular subject research that has been widely investigated in the academic world in different fields ranging from the Social Sciences to Health Sciences, addressing various questions, methods approaches, and covering multiple data sets. This study provides some findings of a bibliometric study which was conducted to describe the scientific literature available on Twitter with descriptive, quantitative information and also in a qualitative approach, in addition to the previous studies and designed as a contribution to a broader picture of how the evolution of the current scientific literature about Twitter is related to bibliographic data sets. Results show a variety of findings that can provide a better comprehension of this social media platform which evolved from a data source for the research to, nowadays, being a research subject itself },
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {inbook}
}
Since its launch in 2006, Internet platform Twitter has rapidly expanded. As a phenomenon of the digital era, Twitter generates a new type of research data that has received a good deal of attention in the academic literature. It has turned into a popular subject research that has been widely investigated in the academic world in different fields ranging from the Social Sciences to Health Sciences, addressing various questions, methods approaches, and covering multiple data sets. This study provides some findings of a bibliometric study which was conducted to describe the scientific literature available on Twitter with descriptive, quantitative information and also in a qualitative approach, in addition to the previous studies and designed as a contribution to a broader picture of how the evolution of the current scientific literature about Twitter is related to bibliographic data sets. Results show a variety of findings that can provide a better comprehension of this social media platform which evolved from a data source for the research to, nowadays, being a research subject itself
Proceedings Articles
22.
Rykov, Yuri; Nagornyy, Oleg; Koltsova, Olessia
Semantic and Geospatial Mapping of Instagram Images in Saint-Petersburg Proceedings Article
In: Artificial Intelligence and Natural Language AINL FRUCT 2016 Conference, pp. 75, 2016.
@inproceedings{rykov2016semantic,
title = {Semantic and Geospatial Mapping of Instagram Images in Saint-Petersburg},
author = {Yuri Rykov and Oleg Nagornyy and Olessia Koltsova},
url = {https://www.researchgate.net/publication/316664797_Semantic_and_Geospatial_Mapping_of_Instagram_Images_in_Saint-Petersburg},
year = {2016},
date = {2016-01-01},
booktitle = {Artificial Intelligence and Natural Language AINL FRUCT 2016 Conference},
volume = {2607},
pages = {75},
abstract = {The availability of large urban social media data creates new opportunities for studying cities. In our paper we propose a new direction for this research: a joint analysis of geolocations of shared images and their content as determined by computer vision. To test our ideas, we use a dataset of 47,410 Instagram images shared in the city of St.Petersburg over one year. We show how a combination of semantic clustering, image recognition and geospatial analysis can detect important patterns related to both how people use a city and how they represent in social media.},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {inproceedings}
}
The availability of large urban social media data creates new opportunities for studying cities. In our paper we propose a new direction for this research: a joint analysis of geolocations of shared images and their content as determined by computer vision. To test our ideas, we use a dataset of 47,410 Instagram images shared in the city of St.Petersburg over one year. We show how a combination of semantic clustering, image recognition and geospatial analysis can detect important patterns related to both how people use a city and how they represent in social media.
2014
Conferences
23.
Barbier, Marc; Cointet, Jean-Philippe
Socio-semantic dynamics for digital humanities: Methodology and epistemology of large textual corpora analysis Conference
2014.
@conference{barbier2014sociosemantic,
title = {Socio-semantic dynamics for digital humanities: Methodology and epistemology of large textual corpora analysis},
author = {Marc Barbier and Jean-Philippe Cointet},
url = {https://easst.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/easst2014.pdf},
year = {2014},
date = {2014-01-01},
abstract = {Until recent time, the description, light-modeling and interpretation of socio-cognitive dynamics of science-society relations and social media relationships required a constructivist approach, involving collecting, reading, classifying and interpreting tasks performed by scholars examining sets of digital data (texts, archives, structured databases, websites, blogs, etc.). The growing mass of data produced in the so-called Knowledge Society owes a lot to the acceleration and profusion of digital tools that are now widely used in different areas of human activities: work, culture, leisure, political expression, etc. Social scientists now largely acknowledge that the various modes of interaction brought by new information and communication technologies are changing the very nature of micro-politics and the expression of the self. In our views the conditions for producing knowledge in social sciences and humanities more widely are changed too. New digital infrastructures specifically designed for social sciences and humanities make it possible to equip scientists with tools that enable them to tackle the complexity of heterogeneous textual corpora dynamics and to develop innovative analytical methodologies that will bring new insights and renewed capacities to investigate contemporary issues. The aim of this communication is to propose (1) to discuss some of the epistemic problems that surge from the use of digital platforms ambitioning the development of our capacities of enquiry of knowledge production in society; (2) to present the main developments and experience that had been led within the CorTexT plateform as well as their driving principles.},
howpublished = {Communication to the EASST Conference, Torun, Pologne},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {conference}
}
Until recent time, the description, light-modeling and interpretation of socio-cognitive dynamics of science-society relations and social media relationships required a constructivist approach, involving collecting, reading, classifying and interpreting tasks performed by scholars examining sets of digital data (texts, archives, structured databases, websites, blogs, etc.). The growing mass of data produced in the so-called Knowledge Society owes a lot to the acceleration and profusion of digital tools that are now widely used in different areas of human activities: work, culture, leisure, political expression, etc. Social scientists now largely acknowledge that the various modes of interaction brought by new information and communication technologies are changing the very nature of micro-politics and the expression of the self. In our views the conditions for producing knowledge in social sciences and humanities more widely are changed too. New digital infrastructures specifically designed for social sciences and humanities make it possible to equip scientists with tools that enable them to tackle the complexity of heterogeneous textual corpora dynamics and to develop innovative analytical methodologies that will bring new insights and renewed capacities to investigate contemporary issues. The aim of this communication is to propose (1) to discuss some of the epistemic problems that surge from the use of digital platforms ambitioning the development of our capacities of enquiry of knowledge production in society; (2) to present the main developments and experience that had been led within the CorTexT plateform as well as their driving principles.
Proceedings Articles
24.
Steinfeld, Nili; Lev-On, Azi
Well-done, Mr. Mayor!: Linguistic analysis of municipal facebook pages Proceedings Article
In: Proceedings of the 15th Annual International Conference on Digital Government Research, pp. 273-279, ACM 2014, (https://doi.org/10.1145/2612733.2612763).
@inproceedings{steinfeld2014well,
title = {Well-done, Mr. Mayor!: Linguistic analysis of municipal facebook pages},
author = {Nili Steinfeld and Azi Lev-On},
url = {http://delivery.acm.org/10.1145/2620000/2612763/p273-steinfeld.pdf?ip=193.50.159.53&id=2612763&acc=ACTIVE%20SERVICE&key=7EBF6E77E86B478F%2E61E9A885BAD764B5%2E4D4702B0C3E38B35%2E4D4702B0C3E38B35&__acm__=1552899282_c684371c6e1983abb09f4803232dbb4c},
doi = {/10.1145/2612733.2612763},
year = {2014},
date = {2014-01-01},
urldate = {2014-01-01},
booktitle = {Proceedings of the 15th Annual International Conference on Digital Government Research},
pages = {273-279},
organization = {ACM},
abstract = {The increasing use of social networks has given rise to a new kind of relations between residents and authorities at the municipal level, where residents can speak directly to administrators and representatives, can take part in open discussions, and may have more direct involvement and influence on local affairs. The more direct democracy facilitated by social media outlets fascinates communication and political science researchers. But while most of their attention is drawn to national politics, the municipal arena can be even more affected by these new means of direct communication. This paper focuses on municipal administration on Facebook, and analyzes the discourse that has developed between citizens and local administrators on municipal Facebook pages, using automatic digital tools.
The formal Facebook pages of all of the cities in Israel were extracted using digital tools, and all posts and comments published on these pages in a period of six months were analyzed using automatic linguistic analysis tools that provided information regarding the use and frequencies of words and terms in the texts.
The paper presents the prominent topics, use of language, and basic features of citizens--municipalities interactions in formal Facebook pages. The study discusses the findings, their implications, and the advantages and limitations of using digital tools to analyze texts in a digital research field.},
note = {https://doi.org/10.1145/2612733.2612763},
keywords = {},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {inproceedings}
}
The increasing use of social networks has given rise to a new kind of relations between residents and authorities at the municipal level, where residents can speak directly to administrators and representatives, can take part in open discussions, and may have more direct involvement and influence on local affairs. The more direct democracy facilitated by social media outlets fascinates communication and political science researchers. But while most of their attention is drawn to national politics, the municipal arena can be even more affected by these new means of direct communication. This paper focuses on municipal administration on Facebook, and analyzes the discourse that has developed between citizens and local administrators on municipal Facebook pages, using automatic digital tools.
The formal Facebook pages of all of the cities in Israel were extracted using digital tools, and all posts and comments published on these pages in a period of six months were analyzed using automatic linguistic analysis tools that provided information regarding the use and frequencies of words and terms in the texts.
The paper presents the prominent topics, use of language, and basic features of citizens--municipalities interactions in formal Facebook pages. The study discusses the findings, their implications, and the advantages and limitations of using digital tools to analyze texts in a digital research field.
The formal Facebook pages of all of the cities in Israel were extracted using digital tools, and all posts and comments published on these pages in a period of six months were analyzed using automatic linguistic analysis tools that provided information regarding the use and frequencies of words and terms in the texts.
The paper presents the prominent topics, use of language, and basic features of citizens--municipalities interactions in formal Facebook pages. The study discusses the findings, their implications, and the advantages and limitations of using digital tools to analyze texts in a digital research field.
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