MA in Social Media Communications

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The MA in Social Media Communications Chair Alessio Cornia features in ‘The Listening Post’ (AJ English), providing an academic perspective on new online players emerging in an otherwise static Italian news industry. Report at 13’00’’.

Peace talks and propaganda: Russia’s war on Ukraine continues Zelenskyy talks directly to Russian reporters, and Putin’s promised scaling back of the war fails to materialise.

Ma in Social Media Communications lecturer Dr. Tanya Lokot spoke to Adam Satariano and Valerie Hopkins at The New York Times for their article on Russia being blocked from the global internet.

Russia, Blocked From the Global Internet, Plunges Into Digital Isolation Russian authorities and multinational companies have erected a digital barricade between the country and the West, erasing the last remnants of independent information online.

“The machine-learning models that maximize engagement also favor controversy, misinformation, and extremism: put simply, people just like outrageous stuff. … A former Facebook AI researcher who joined in 2018 says he and his team conducted “study after study” confirming the same basic idea: models that maximize engagement increase polarization”

The Facebook whistleblower says its algorithms are dangerous. Here’s why. Frances Haugen’s testimony at the Senate hearing today raised serious questions about how Facebook’s algorithms work—and echoes many findings from our previous investigation.

"To outsiders, QAnon can appear like a US-centred conspiracy which has attracted a small number of international followers sucked in by online algorithms and the darker corners of the internet. … Although still on the fringe here, Ireland has not proven completely immune to the problem with misinformation tropes linked to QAnon regularly espoused by prominent conspiracy theorists here. Irish-based Facebook groups have imported the language of QAnon followers and feature posts containing beliefs linked to the conspiracy."

Adrenochrome: why was a QAnon conspiracy drug name-checked at Dublin's anti-lockdown protest? A false claim involving the chemical, RTÉ and dead infants was made at Saturday’s protest.

““Political ads are not bad things in and of themselves,” said Siva Vaidhyanathan, a media studies professor and the author of a book studying Facebook’s effects on democracy. “They perform an essential service, in the act of directly representing the candidate’s concerns or positions.” He added, “When you ban all campaign ads on the most accessible and affordable platform out there, you tilt the balance toward the candidates who can afford radio and television.”

Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Democrat of New York, has also said that political advertising on Facebook can be a crucial component for Democratic digital campaign strategies.

Some political ad buyers applauded the lifting of the ads ban. “The ad ban was something that Facebook did to appease the public for the misinformation that spread across the platform,” said Eileen Pollet, a digital campaign strategist and founder of Ravenna Strategies. “But it really ended up hurting good actors while bad actors had total free rein. And now, especially since the election is over, the ban had really been hurting nonprofits and local organizations.”"

Facebook Ends Ban on Political Advertising The social network had prohibited political ads on its site indefinitely after the November election. Such ads have been criticized for spreading misinformation.

"Many of these ads are constructed from found images of social media, or at least they are made to appear that way. They locate hope in amateur video of a woman cutting her own bangs and a baby riding a Roomba. I think it’s safe to say that few people are having the time of their lives under lockdown, but these ads assign a profound emotional lift to posting stuff online. They implicate us in the branding exercise. They make us feel like, by turning the selfie camera on, we are producing something, too."

The Pandemic Ad Salutes You In coronavirus-themed commercials, consumption is reframed as a public service performed by heroes, for heroes.

"Feuds between friends have played out on social media since the platforms were first created, but for many people, this is probably the first time the passive aggression has been about public health."

The Secret Lives of Perfect Social Distancers Someone who looks like they’re always staying inside on Instagram may actually have a double life they’re hiding to avoid judgment.

Covid-19 pandemic has shown social media platforms to be vital infrastructure - Independent.ie As countries around the world imposed lockdowns, increasing numbers of people have turned to social media sites such as Instagram and messaging service WhatsApp to keep in contact with friends, relatives and the outside world.

"The experience of diaspora has something to teach those who are new to this kind of distancing from family and friends and familiar sights".

Six Feet From Forever — Real Life For diasporic communities, social distancing is not new

"You used to have to go to a desk, sit down, and log in, and do the tasks you set out to do online — checking email, or message boards, or some blogs — and then you logged off. There was a definitive, tactile barrier between when you were online and when you were not. That way of using the internet has been completely obliterated by smartphones, which allow us to carry it with us wherever we go, hanging around us like a cloud of gas."

Welcome Back to the Appointment Internet Social distancing has given rise to an older — and better — way of being online.