Research articles on INFORMATION & DATA

Facebook, the EU and Russia’s war: Challenges of moderating authoritarian news

Julia Kling, University of Passau
Serge Poliakoff, University of Amsterdam
PUBLISHED ON: 11 Sep 2025 DOI: 10.14763/2025.3.2036

Despite several measures to curb their visibility, this study shows how Facebook mediates predominantly Russian state-aligned news during Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine

How the new digital knowledge order is impacting science

Donya Alinejad, Utrecht University
PUBLISHED ON: 26 Aug 2025 DOI: 10.14763/2025.3.2031

To develop a response to what the new digital knowledge order means for science and scholarship, we need research and policy that focuses on the multiple ways platform power shapes academic knowledge production and communication.

Regulating pressing systemic risks – but not too soon?

Defne Halil, Maastricht University
Konrad Kollnig, Maastricht University
Aurelia Tamò-Larrieux, University of Lausanne
PUBLISHED ON: 25 Jun 2025 DOI: 10.14763/2025.2.2010

The EU’s 2022 Digital Services Act mandates data access for researchers to study platform risks, but delays and diverging opinions of authorities hold back the DSA’s practical implementation.

From threat to opportunity: Gaming the algorithmic system as a service

Marijn Sax, University of Amsterdam
Hao Wang, Wageningen University & Research
PUBLISHED ON: 6 May 2025 DOI: 10.14763/2025.2.2007

Gaming the system is often portrayed as a threat to platforms and services, but this alleged threat can also be turned into a commercial service which raises ethical questions on exploitative digital environments, equality, and the erosion of democratic values.

In this study, we developed a consumer survey to investigate the extent to which legislation can (and should) keep up with existing and changing social and ethical norms regarding the use of data for personalising online prices.

Fulfilling data access obligations: How could (and should) platforms facilitate data donation studies?

Valerie Hase, LMU Munich
Jef Ausloos, University of Amsterdam
Laura Boeschoten, Utrecht University
Nico Pfiffner, University of Zurich
Heleen Janssen, University of Amsterdam
Theo Araujo, University of Amsterdam
Thijs Carrière, Utrecht University
Claes de Vreese, University of Amsterdam
Jörg Haßler, LMU Munich
Felicia Loecherbach, University of Amsterdam
Zoltán Kmetty, Centre for Social Sciences
Judith Möller, University of Hamburg – Leibniz Institute for Media Research (HBI)
Jakob Ohme, Weizenbaum Institute for the Networked Society
Elisabeth Schmidbauer, LMU Munich
Bella Struminskaya, Utrecht University
Damian Trilling, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Kasper Welbers, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Mario Haim, LMU Munich
PUBLISHED ON: 16 Sep 2024 DOI: 10.14763/2024.3.1793

This study critically discusses platforms’ non-compliance with data access based on a collaborative policy effort from scholars engaging in data donation studies.

A mixed method study of the EU geo-block's effectiveness in limiting sharing of Russian propaganda media and content in the wake of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Monitoring infrastructural power: Methodological challenges in studying mobile infrastructures for datafication

Stine Lomborg, University of Copenhagen
Kristian Sick, University of Copenhagen
Sofie Flensburg, University of Copenhagen
Signe Sophus Lai, University of Copenhagen
PUBLISHED ON: 26 Jun 2024 DOI: 10.14763/2024.2.1763

The article outlines and discusses the methodological conditions for studying software development kits as an empirical entry point to research on mobile infrastructures for datafication.

Observing “tuned” advertising on digital platforms

Nicholas Carah, University of Queensland
Lauren Hayden, University of Queensland
Maria-Gemma Brown, University of Queensland
Daniel Angus, Queensland University of Technology
Aimee Brownbill, Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education
Kiah Hawker, University of Queensland
Xue Ying Tan, Queensland University of Technology
Amy Dobson, Curtin University
Brady Robards, Monash University
PUBLISHED ON: 26 Jun 2024 DOI: 10.14763/2024.2.1779

We develop an approach to observe the algorithmically-tuned nature of digital advertising by creating visualisations of ad sequences from a citizen scientist data-donation project.