Human Centered Demystifying the Disinformation Marketplace
Jan 28, 2025
Ceren Budak, an Associate Professor at the University of Michigan, dives into the complex disinformation marketplace. She discusses the intricate ties between advertising and the spread of misinformation, advocating for transparency in ad practices. Budak highlights the challenges that researchers face in a climate filled with disinformation, emphasizing the need for accountability in media. The conversation also explores how evolving technologies may reshape online community dynamics, aiming to create healthier digital environments free from misinformation.
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Ad Firm Concentration Drives Disinformation Money
- A few dominant ad firms drive most ad traffic to low-credibility news sites.
- Top 10 ad servers accounted for about 60% of low-credibility news ad traffic in Budak's data.
Use Independent Web Emulation For Ad Research
- Collect display-ad data independently using web emulation to avoid platform gatekeeping.
- This method lets researchers record ad sources and build transparency tools without negotiating with platforms.
Credibility Lists Produce Big Differences
- Domain-level credibility lists vary widely and produce different prevalence estimates.
- Depending on the list, estimated misinformation prevalence can range dramatically, for example from 3% to 40%.
