Publication
Title
Resilience to online disinformation : a framework for cross-national comparative research
Author
Abstract
Online disinformation is considered a major challenge for modern democracies. It is widely understood as misleading content produced to generate profits, pursue political goals, or maliciously deceive. Our starting point is the assumption that some countries are more resilient to online disinformation than others. To understand what conditions influence this resilience, we choose a comparative cross-national approach. In the first step, we develop a theoretical framework that presents these country conditions as theoretical dimensions. In the second step, we translate the dimensions into quantifiable indicators that allow us to measure their significance on a comparative cross-country basis. In the third part of the study, we empirically examine eighteen Western democracies. A cluster analysis yields three country groups: one group with high resilience to online disinformation (including the Northern European systems, for instance) and two country groups with low resilience (including the polarized Southern European countries and the United States). In the final part, we discuss the heuristic value of the framework for comparative political communication research in the age of information pollution.
Language
English
Source (journal)
The international journal of press/politics. - Cambridge, Mass., 2008, currens
Publication
Thousand oaks : Sage publications inc , 2020
ISSN
1940-1612 [print]
1940-1620 [online]
DOI
10.1177/1940161219900126
Volume/pages
p. 493-516
Article Reference
UNSP 1940161219900126
ISI
000509182100001
Medium
E-only publicatie
Full text (Publisher's DOI)
Full text (open access)
Full text (publisher's version - intranet only)
UAntwerpen
Faculty/Department
Research group
Project info
From Uninformed to Disinformed Citizens? Comparing Western Information Environments.
Publication type
Subject
Law 
Affiliation
Publications with a UAntwerp address
External links
Web of Science
Record
Identifier
Creation 24.02.2020
Last edited 02.10.2024
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