Making Meta pay

Big tech companies would have to either do deals with news organisations to help fund journalism or pay a charge to the Australian government, under a new plan announced by the Albanese government.

They want to believe

Are credulous people are less capable of recognizing fake news and more susceptible to conspiracy thinking? A new study has the answer.

Australians want more accessible political reporting

There’s more news, more politics and more people ignoring both than ever before, so could changes in the way politics is reported encourage more people to stop avoiding it and get better informed?

Dissecting Australia’s youth social media ban

The Government wants to safeguard young Australians from the perceived mental health harms of social media but its approach remains vague and misguided.

The library of Babel

The internet is often described as one of humanity’s great achievements. But like any other resource, it’s important to give serious thought to how it is maintained and managed – lest we end up confronting the dystopian vision imagined by Jorge Luis Borges over 80 years ago.

Freedom and responsibility

We must hold ourselves and our democratic governments to account. But freedom of the press and freedom of expression are not enjoyed where one is only free to actually harm our own societies.

Who elected social media?

AI algorithms have completely altered the way we consume information so what does this mean for our decision-making come election time?

Detecting fake news with AI

Fake news detection systems can combine AI and insights from behavioural science to flag fake news content, but could also create problems of their own.

Musclebound

Adolescent boys and young men are increasingly resorting to the dangerous use of anabolic steroids to achieve the muscular build idealised on social media according to a new study by Flinders University reseachers.

Will misinformation rules curb freedom of speech?

The federal government’s proposed legislation on misinformation and disinformation has passed the House of Representatives but questions remain about its practicality and impact.

Finding a cure for “digital flu”

Misinformation spreads like a virus online, but this model also offers hope for countermeasures such as ‘prebunking’.

Will a children’s social media ban work?

The Federal government is moving ahead with plans to ban children under 16 from using social media platforms but many questions remain about the practicality and effectiveness of the proposed policy.