A new experimental study published in the Journal of Risk Research by @freiling.bsky.social of the University of Utah and TIP Center Postdoctoral Scholar Anja Stevic explores how people make decisions about sharing online, including the role emotions can play.

To address social media platforms' influence on academic research, @raffaelheiss.bsky.social and I draw on lessons learned from industry-academy collaborations in other fields. Industry influence can be subtle, so we need policy reforms, plus critical academic debates and clear ethical guidelines.

Raffael Heiss@raffaelheiss.bsky.social · 6mo ago

Do #socialmedia #platforms influence academic research? Little reason to assume they don’t. They fund research and control data access—amplifying industry influence across the research cycle. New comment w/ @freiling.bsky.social: www.nature.com/articles/s41... #DataAccess #ResearchIntegrity #DSA

[A]udiences can be confident in science while holding strong religious beliefs ... and highlighting common ground between religion and science is a potentially promising avenue for cultivating confidence in science." Somehow missed this important work by @freiling.bsky.social and colleagues ...

Religious values and confidence in science: Perceived tensions and common ground

While confidence in science is high compared to other institutions, many Americans question whether scientists share their values, including religious ones. Narratives surrounding science and religion...

journals.plos.org

It’s really hard to defend industry academic collaborations with meta as earnest, if they’re internally burying evidence of harm. www.reuters.com/sustainabili...

This exchange about the Meta election collaboration highlights how industry can manufacture doubt without corrupting scientists or creating any sort of conpsiracy. A small 🧵 www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Reply to González-Bailón and Lazer: Industry control and conflicts of interest in social media research | PNAS

Reply to González-Bailón and Lazer: Industry control and conflicts of interest in social media research

pnas.org

"[T]he reliance on industry-controlled conceptualization and categorization of data by academic researchers undermines ... peer review and the replicability of what Meta claims are highly policy-relevant findings." Glad our field is continuing these difficult but important conversations ...

Reply to González-Bailón and Lazer: Industry control and conflicts of interest in social media research | PNAS

Reply to González-Bailón and Lazer: Industry control and conflicts of interest in social media research

pnas.org

This nicely reinforces findings from our recent @pnas.org piece in which we argue “that industry players like Meta make significant investments into long-term research streams … to absolve their platforms of responsibility for adverse effects on society or individuals.” www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Our changing information ecosystem for science and why it matters for effective science communication | PNAS

Current information ecologies present unique opportunities to communicate science and engage diverse publics in science. Unfortunately, they also p...

pnas.org

Carl T. Bergstrom@carlbergstrom.com · 10mo ago

2. Here's the paper itself: arxiv.org/abs/2510.19894

In @pnas.org, we outline current challenges #scicomm research faces, incl. social media having all the power over data and issues that come with that. @dietram.bsky.social Press release: attheu.utah.edu/science-tech... Paper: doi.org/10.1073/pnas... @uofuhumanities.bsky.social

‘The elephant in the room’ for science communication - @theU

Science organizations are ill-prepared to leverage current media landscapes most effectively to communicate with the public. A new article asserts that the struggle is partly...

attheu.utah.edu

ONLINE FIRST & OPEN ACCESS! How did perceptions of elite manipulation influence resistance to COVID-19 reporting and the spread of misinformation? This study by Stubenvoll, @freiling.bsky.social and Matthes examines how audiences in Austria resisted news evidence. www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

Resistant and Misinformed: Understanding the Role of Elite Perceptions and Resistance Strategies Against COVID-19 Reporting in Legacy Media in Adopting COVID-19 Misperceptions

At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, individuals strongly relied on legacy media for current information. At the same time, parts of the population grew increasingly critical of the evidence ...

tandfonline.com

I'm still in need of reviewers. If you can, please sign up :)

Isabelle Freiling@freiling.bsky.social · last yr.

Please consider helping the Comm Theory and Methodology division by signing up as a reviewer for #AEJMC25! We need you :) To sign up, please (1) fill out this survey: tinyurl.com/aejmc25-ctm and (2) create an account on AllAcademic: convention2.allacademic.com/one/aejmc/ae...

Please consider helping the Comm Theory and Methodology division by signing up as a reviewer for #AEJMC25! We need you :) To sign up, please (1) fill out this survey: tinyurl.com/aejmc25-ctm and (2) create an account on AllAcademic: convention2.allacademic.com/one/aejmc/ae...

AEJMC Communication Theory & Method Division Reviewer Recruitment Survey

Thank you for completing this survey and for your service to CT&M.

tinyurl.com

This week, University of Utah Assistant Professor @freiling.bsky.social will be presenting on "Generative AI, Social Media Algorithms, & Misinformation" at LSC's #scicomm Colloquium. Join us in person or follow along on X at #UWLSC700 Learn more at: lsc.wisc.edu/2025/01/17/l...

Mark your calendars for these upcoming events tied to SCI and its One-U Responsible AI Initiative! Visit rai.utah.edu/events for details. @parasharmanish.bsky.social @katakeith.bsky.social @anamarasovic.bsky.social @freiling.bsky.social

💯 -- we discuss issues this creates for #scicomm in our forthcoming PNAS piece. Pre-publication version is accessible here: osf.io/preprints/so... @dietram.bsky.social

Kai Kupferschmidt@kakape.bsky.social · 2y ago

Whenever I talk to researchers trying to answer crucial questions related to social media/misinfo/etc I run into this problem: We simply don’t know enough about how exactly these platforms operate to really understand what effects changes in algorithm or content moderation will ultimately have…

My department at the University of Utah is hiring a teaching position (3/3 load; no research expectations) in strategic communication. Great department and SLC is an underrated place to live. I'm on the search committee and am happy to answer questions. Info here: careers.icahdq.org/jobs/view/as...

Recent Jobs - International Communication Association

View jobs available on International Communication Association. Search for and apply to open jobs from International Communication Association.

careers.icahdq.org

Socioeconomic status positively predicted factual science knowledge among White, Black, and Hispanic Americans, "but was only positively associated with perceived knowledge among White respondents." (🧵) #scicomm doi.org/10.1080/1520...

Understanding Knowledge Among White, Black, and Hispanic Audiences: Media Attention and Inequities in Factual and Perceived Knowledge

There is a normative assumption that a knowledgeable populace can make informed civic decisions that are central to the well-being of society. Yet, access to knowledge is not equitable. Using the c...

doi.org

"Settling for circumstances in which researchers are unable to provide the scientific community and its institutions a reliable evidence base to drive effective science communication strategies in modern information environments is simply not an option."

"[W]e need [good faith collaboration] across industry and academia, if we hope to resolve issues of data control, COIs, and transparency that currently hinder the emergence of transparent research and robust scientific consensus."

Our inability to reliably study algorithmic info ecosystems, and why it matters for #scicomm. Pre-publication version of our forthcoming PNAS piece led by Nicky Krause and Isabelle Freiling : osf.io/preprints/so... (a 🧵)

"[Any approach] that dismisses rather than speaks to the concerns that have driven so many Americans away from the expert establishment and toward a figure such as Mr. Kennedy will surely fail." #scicomm #scipol

Opinion | The MAGA Science Agenda Reveals America’s Future

If there’s a thread tying this coalition together, it’s suspicion of expertise and elitism.

nytimes.com

Thinking about going to #gradschool and interested in science communication and #AI? I am looking to fund a grad student to work with me on that next year. Apply to our program here (DL: Dec 1): communication.utah.edu/graduate/ind... #scicomm

Social media users are significantly more likely than non-users to say that social media has benefitted democracy in their country. In every country surveyed, there is a difference of at least 10 points between users and non-users on this question. pewrsr.ch/3wmCmqe

Majorities in most countries surveyed say social media is good for democracy

Across 27 countries surveyed, people generally see social media as more of a good thing than a bad thing for democracy.

pewrsr.ch

"Assuming passions are immutable and essential—rather than something to cultivate and build—can cause people to be less open to different topics ... and less creative when problem-solving." Probably one of the best pieces of advice for new grad students ...

Laura Helmuth@laurahelmuth.bsky.social · 3y ago

"Find your passion" is bad advice! Here's some interesting research on how interests develop and why they shouldn't be thought of as fixed 🧪 www.scientificamerican.com/article/stop...