Political micro-targeting

Political advertising exposed: tracking Facebook ads in the 2021 Dutch elections

Davide Beraldo, University of Amsterdam
Stefania Milan, University of Amsterdam
Jeroen de Vos, University of Amsterdam
Claudio Agosti, University of Amsterdam
Bruno Nadalic Sotic, University of Amsterdam
Rens Vliegenthart, University of Amsterdam
Sanne Kruikemeier, University of Amsterdam
Lukas P Otto, University of Amsterdam
Susan A. M. Vermeer, University of Amsterdam
Xiaotong Chu, University of Amsterdam
Fabio Votta, University of Amsterdam
PUBLISHED ON: 11 Mar 2021

How can we monitor political ads circulating on social media in the run-up to an election? This essay learns from the project "Analysis of Political Ads in Digital Campaigns”, combining scraping methods and public opinion research to investigate how online advertising shape political preferences in the Dutch general elections (15-17 March 2021).

Recommendation algorithms

Regulation of news recommenders in the Digital Services Act: empowering David against the Very Large Online Goliath

Natali Helberger, University of Amsterdam
Max van Drunen, University of Amsterdam
Sanne Vrijenhoek, University of Amsterdam
Judith Möller, University of Amsterdam
PUBLISHED ON: 26 Feb 2021

​A much anticipated provision in the European Commission’s proposal for a Digital Service Act is Art. 29 DSA - the provision about recommendation algorithms. In this brief commentary we reflect on the background, purpose and potential of Art. 29 to address the effects of recommenders for users and society.

Freedom of expression

Borderline speech: caught in a free speech limbo?

Amélie Heldt, Hans-Bredow-Institut
PUBLISHED ON: 15 Oct 2020

To ban content that might possibly violate their own content policies, social media platforms use the term 'borderline‘. This means categorising content as potentially unwanted (e.g. harmful, inappropriate, etc) and sanctioning legitimate expressions of opinion - hence putting lawful speech in a twilight zone.

Data protection

Harnessing the collective potential of GDPR access rights: towards an ecology of transparency

René L. P. Mahieu, Delft University of Technology
Jef Ausloos, University of Amsterdam
PUBLISHED ON: 06 Jul 2020

The European Commission recently released its first review of two years of application of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). René Mahieu and Jef Ausloos do not agree with the largely positive self-assessment and explain their main points of contention by summarising their own submission to the Commission.

Data protection

How the GDPR on data transfer affects cross-border payment institutions

Luana P. Nogueira, CurrencyFair
PUBLISHED ON: 22 Jun 2020

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in Recital 23 brought an obligation to all companies that receive, control or process personal data of European Union (EU) residents to comply with the minimal safeguards stated in European legislation. One of the main issues is the fact that companies that are not based in the EU, which receive, store

Intermediary liability

The President and free speech: consequences of Twitter’s fact-checking indication

Amélie Heldt, Hans-Bredow-Institut
PUBLISHED ON: 04 Jun 2020

Since Twitter labelled a tweet by Donald Trump as ‘potentially misleading’ and indicated that it was fact-checking the statement made, the US President signed an ‘ Executive Order'. Amélie Heldt finds that far from being new, the situation illustrates how torn we are when it comes to intermediary immunity or rather liability.

Digital inclusion

Digital inclusion and well-being

Douglas White, Carnegie UK Trust
PUBLISHED ON: 28 May 2020

This commentary is part of Digital inclusion and data literacy , a special issue of Internet Policy Review guest-edited by Elinor Carmi and Simeon J. Yates. At the Carnegie UK Trust, a charitable foundation based in Scotland and operating across the UK and Ireland, we have been working for more than 100 years to improve well-being for individuals

Open budgets

Want to open the budget now? Ask me how! Budget data literacy in Israel - a case study

Mary Loitsker, Public Knowledge Workshop
PUBLISHED ON: 27 May 2020

This commentary is part of Digital inclusion and data literacy , a special issue of Internet Policy Review guest-edited by Elinor Carmi and Simeon J. Yates. A particularly useful type of data literacy, instrumental for civic participation, for the ability to hold governments accountable, and to monitor policy implementation, as well as the

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