A hierarchical network-oriented analysis of user participation in misinformation spread on WhatsApp

作者:

Highlights:

• WhatsApp’s underlying co-sharing network favors misinformation spread at large.

• Users build well-structured communities, suggesting coordination to spread content.

• Users, groups, communities mostly engaged in misinformation have higher centrality.

• A few users, groups and communities generate most misinformation shared in a week.

• Users engaged in misinformation vary over time but remain mostly in the same groups.

摘要

•WhatsApp’s underlying co-sharing network favors misinformation spread at large.•Users build well-structured communities, suggesting coordination to spread content.•Users, groups, communities mostly engaged in misinformation have higher centrality.•A few users, groups and communities generate most misinformation shared in a week.•Users engaged in misinformation vary over time but remain mostly in the same groups.

论文关键词:Misinformation,WhatsApp,User behavior and network analysis

论文评审过程:Received 20 January 2021, Revised 17 August 2021, Accepted 5 September 2021, Available online 7 October 2021, Version of Record 7 October 2021.

论文官网地址:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ipm.2021.102757