Opinion manipulation on Farsi Twitter
Abstract For Iranians and the Iranian diaspora, the Farsi Twittersphere provides an important alternative to state media and an outlet for political discourse. But this understudied online space has become an opinion manipulation battleground, with diverse actors using inauthentic accounts to advanc...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Nature Portfolio
2023-01-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-26921-5 |
| _version_ | 1797958705755455488 |
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| author | Amirhossein Farzam Parham Moradi Saeedeh Mohammadi Zahra Padar Alexandra A. Siegel |
| author_facet | Amirhossein Farzam Parham Moradi Saeedeh Mohammadi Zahra Padar Alexandra A. Siegel |
| author_sort | Amirhossein Farzam |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract For Iranians and the Iranian diaspora, the Farsi Twittersphere provides an important alternative to state media and an outlet for political discourse. But this understudied online space has become an opinion manipulation battleground, with diverse actors using inauthentic accounts to advance their goals and shape online narratives. Examining trending discussions crossing social cleavages in Iran, we explore how the dynamics of opinion manipulation differ across diverse issue areas. Our analysis suggests that opinion manipulation by inauthentic accounts is more prevalent in divisive political discussions than non-divisive or apolitical discussions. We show how Twitter’s network structures help to reinforce the content propagated by clusters of inauthentic accounts in divisive political discussions. Analyzing both the content and structure of online discussions in the Iranian Twittersphere, this work contributes to a growing body of literature exploring the dynamics of online opinion manipulation, while improving our understanding of how information is controlled in the digital age. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-11T00:22:48Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-53ce1b29af7e49cdac7e449241c5be4f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-11T00:22:48Z |
| publishDate | 2023-01-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj.art-53ce1b29af7e49cdac7e449241c5be4f2023-01-08T12:09:16ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222023-01-0113111810.1038/s41598-022-26921-5Opinion manipulation on Farsi TwitterAmirhossein Farzam0Parham Moradi1Saeedeh Mohammadi2Zahra Padar3Alexandra A. Siegel4Department of Political Science, Duke UniversityCenter for Complex Networks and Social Data ScienceCenter for Complex Networks and Social Data ScienceDepartment of Computer Science, University of FreiburgDepartment of Political Science, University of ColoradoAbstract For Iranians and the Iranian diaspora, the Farsi Twittersphere provides an important alternative to state media and an outlet for political discourse. But this understudied online space has become an opinion manipulation battleground, with diverse actors using inauthentic accounts to advance their goals and shape online narratives. Examining trending discussions crossing social cleavages in Iran, we explore how the dynamics of opinion manipulation differ across diverse issue areas. Our analysis suggests that opinion manipulation by inauthentic accounts is more prevalent in divisive political discussions than non-divisive or apolitical discussions. We show how Twitter’s network structures help to reinforce the content propagated by clusters of inauthentic accounts in divisive political discussions. Analyzing both the content and structure of online discussions in the Iranian Twittersphere, this work contributes to a growing body of literature exploring the dynamics of online opinion manipulation, while improving our understanding of how information is controlled in the digital age.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-26921-5 |
| spellingShingle | Amirhossein Farzam Parham Moradi Saeedeh Mohammadi Zahra Padar Alexandra A. Siegel Opinion manipulation on Farsi Twitter Scientific Reports |
| title | Opinion manipulation on Farsi Twitter |
| title_full | Opinion manipulation on Farsi Twitter |
| title_fullStr | Opinion manipulation on Farsi Twitter |
| title_full_unstemmed | Opinion manipulation on Farsi Twitter |
| title_short | Opinion manipulation on Farsi Twitter |
| title_sort | opinion manipulation on farsi twitter |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-26921-5 |
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