Asymmetric flooding as a tool for foreign influence on social media

Bibliographic Data

ID6342138
AuthorsAlessio Cirone (0000-0003-3283-1119, Cornell University, corresponding author), William Hobbs (0000-0002-6229-2753, Cornell University)
Year2023
Volume11
Issue1
Pages160-171
Publication date2023-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenuePolitical Science Research and Methods (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2049-8470 • E-ISSN: 2049-8489
PublisherCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/psrm.2022.9
OpenAlexW4220657114
LanguageEN
Citations received10
References cited19

Research on Russian troll activity during the 2016 US presidential campaign largely focused on divisive partisan messaging. Here, we document the use of apolitical content—content that could counteract mobilization efforts and escape detection in future campaigns. We argue this resembled techniques used by autocratic regimes domestically, in “flooding” social media with entertainment content to distract from and displace mobilizing messaging. Using automated text analysis and hand coding to construct a timeline of IRA messaging on Twitter, we find left-leaning trolls posted large volumes of entertainment content in their artificial liberal community and shifted away from political content late in the campaign. Simultaneously, conservative trolls were targeting their community with increases in political content. This suggests the use of apolitical content might be an overlooked strategy to selectively manipulate levels of attention to politics

Autocracy · Content (measure theory · Content analysis · Democracy · Entertainment · Geography · Media content · Media studies · Multimedia · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Presidential system · Social media · Social science · Sociology · Timeline · Computer Science · Law · Media Influence and Politics · Misinformation and Its Impacts · Social Media and Politics

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