News and Misinformation Consumption in Europe: A Longitudinal
Cross-Country Perspective
- URL: http://arxiv.org/abs/2311.05487v2
- Date: Fri, 10 Nov 2023 13:50:37 GMT
- Title: News and Misinformation Consumption in Europe: A Longitudinal
Cross-Country Perspective
- Authors: Anees Baqir, Alessandro Galeazzi, Fabiana Zollo
- Abstract summary: This study investigated information consumption in four European countries.
It analyzed three years of Twitter activity from news outlet accounts in France, Germany, Italy, and the UK.
Results indicate that reliable sources dominate the information landscape, although unreliable content is still present across all countries.
- Score: 49.1574468325115
- License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
- Abstract: The Internet and social media have transformed news availability and
accessibility, reshaping information consumption and production. However, they
can also facilitate the rapid spread of misinformation, posing significant
societal challenges. To combat misinformation effectively, it is crucial to
understand the online information environment and news consumption patterns.
Most existing research has primarily focused on single topics or individual
countries, lacking cross-country comparisons. This study investigated
information consumption in four European countries, analyzing three years of
Twitter activity from news outlet accounts in France, Germany, Italy, and the
UK and focusing on the role of misinformation sources. Our work offers a
perspective on how topics of European significance are interpreted across
various countries. Results indicate that reliable sources dominate the
information landscape, although unreliable content is still present across all
countries and topics. While most users engage with reliable sources, a small
percentage consume questionable content. Interestingly, few users have a mixed
information diet, bridging the gap between questionable and reliable news in
the similarity network. Cross-country comparisons revealed differences in
audience overlap of news sources, offering valuable guidance for policymakers
and scholars in developing effective and tailored solutions to combat
misinformation.
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