I’ve recently started a postdoctoral research fellowship at the University of Oxford, where I’ll be affiliated with the Oxford Internet Institute and the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. I’m joining a research team on the Misinformation, Science and Media project which is led by Philip Howard and Rasmus Nielsen. The project investigates the implications of misinformation campaigns online on the public understanding of techno-scientific issues.
My contribution to the project will focus on knowledge cultures that emerge online around climate science and policy. A particular focus area will be recent concerns about problematic information, junk news and misinformation online, and responses to these.
To examine these I will be drawing on recent research in new media studies, internet studies, digital sociology and science and technology studies. My work will also be informed by previous research that I have done in this area, including A Field Guide to “Fake News” and Other Information Disorders.The Field Guide is a free, open-access publication to help students, journalists and researchers investigate misleading and viral content, memes and trolling practices online. It is the result of a multi-institutional research collaboration to trace the circulation of political misinformation, junk news and memes online (also available in Japanese).