WhatsApp and the right to encrypt

Encrypted messaging has become a very difficult business. Despite their reach, it’s hard to make money from messaging apps and their key service – encryption – is under constant attack from actors across the political spectrum.

The insights and idiocy of social media research

The methods used to generate evidence for seemingly significant scientific findings regarding social media can also seem to support nonsensical claims.

You are the product

A recent expose by the investigative journalists at The Markup revealed how Facebook uses detailed information about what people do online – the websites they visit and the search terms they use – to allow pharmaceutical companies to target people regarding medical conditions in which they’ve shown an interest.

No news isn’t good news

Thousands of Australian journalists have lost their jobs in recent years as traditional newsrooms cut staff after advertising revenues collapsed in the face of internet competition.

May cause side effects

A UNSW researcher says a positive social media campaign could help to counter misinformation and fears about COVID vaccine side effects and boost vaccination uptake.

The case for a ‘disinformation CERN’

The scale and reach of the disinformation problem is now so vast that only research cooperation across the democratic world can address the shared threat to our societies.

We need herd immunity against vaccine misinformation

A new study published in the scientific journal PLOS ONE revealed over 103 million people globally liked, shared, retweeted or reacted with an emoji to misinformation and conspiracy theories about COVID-19 vaccines.

China’s propaganda war pays off

Chinese propaganda may be crude in terms of content, but the sheer weight of the Communist Party’s misinformation campaign is shifting the narrative in its favour around the world.

People still want country newspapers

The majority of country press audiences prefer to read their local paper in print than online. In fact, many said they would stop reading their papers if they went digital only.

How the world saw Australia’s ‘black summer’

Australia’s ‘black summer’ of bushfires was depicted on the front pages of the world’s media with images of wildlife and habitat destruction, caused by climate change, while in Australia the toll on ordinary people remained the visual front-page focus.

Facebook’s stance on human rights

The news that Facebook would launch a corporate human rights policy and fund human rights defenders facing online threat is welcome, but while it is a step in the right direction, the context of the decision should be examined.

Fact-checking the fact-checkers: Platforms are failing the misinformation test

Social media platforms still aren’t doing enough to tackle the misinformation spread by bots, foreign propagandists and conspiracy peddlers.