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The structural fingerprints of disinformation: a content-agnostic framework
Infodemics fuel the proliferation of misinformation and disinformation, often outpacing the effectiveness of existing countermeasures. Current interventions—such as debunking and psychological inoculation—typically address either specific instances of false or misleading content or the known manipulative tactics through which such content spreads. While these approaches are effective and scalable, most remain inherently corrective and struggle to…
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Why ethics in social listening and infodemic management matters for public health
In a time where mis/disinformation continues to shape public discourse and influence policy decisions, the need for effective and ethical infodemic management has never been more pressing. In this context, and against the backdrop of recent health emergencies, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the mpox epidemic, along with a rapidly evolving information ecosystem shaped…
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Mastering critical thinking skills is strongly associated with the ability to recognize fakeness and misinformation
In today’s world of information overload, people need skills to quickly and critically evaluate online content; they must be able to consider the credibility and quality of information as well as recognize fake and misleading information. Here, we operationalize critical thinking skills into 6 measurable concepts (i.e., causation and correlation, independent data and replicates, reproducibility,…
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The role of AI in election interference and political propaganda in Europe
Notes for the panel discussion “Artificial Intelligence: A double-edged sword for truth” @ Voices 2025 Introduction Existing and emerging digital technologies pose significant concerns, challenges, and risks for the functioning of healthy and full democracies (see: EGE 2023). AI-driven disinformation and misinformation pose a growing threat to society’s information ecosystem. Advances in generative AI enable…
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Soliciting Diaries for “Real-Time” Insights Into the COVID-19 Pandemic: Methodological Reflections on Using Digital Technologies to Engage the Public
Objectives: To discuss the opportunities and challenges of the qualitative solicited diary approach using digital technologies as an innovative way to access insights into people’s lives and their unique stories in times of COVID-19-related social distancing in Switzerland. Methods: This case study provides reflective arguments from a social science perspective for the selection of different (digital) diary…
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WHO leads the way? Bridging ethics and practice in social listening and infodemic management @EACME. Halle 2024
In light of the critical importance of ethical considerations in healthcare, particularly during public health emergencies, this conference contribution will focus on detailing the journey and insights gained from the creation of the WHO guidance document on ethical infodemic management. Specifically, it will explore the process of developing a framework that is both theoretically solid,…
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Ethical Considerations in Infodemic Management: Systematic Scoping Review
Background: During health emergencies, effective infodemic management has become a paramount challenge. A new era marked by a rapidly changing information ecosystem, combined with the widespread dissemination of misinformation and disinformation, has magnified the complexity of the issue. For infodemic management measures to be effective, acceptable, and trustworthy, a robust framework of ethical considerations is…
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Beyond Trade-Offs: Autonomy, Effectiveness, Fairness, and Normativity in Risk and Crisis Communication
This paper addresses the critiques based on trade-offs and normativity presented in response to our target article proposing the Public Health Emergency Risk and Crisis Communication (PHERCC) framework. These critiques highlight the ethical dilemmas in crisis communication, particularly the balance between promoting public autonomy through transparent information and the potential stigmatization of specific population groups,…
