Disinformation as Collaborative Work
Abstract
In this paper, we argue that strategic information operations (e.g. disinformation, political propaganda, and other forms of online manipulation) are a critical concern for CSCW researchers, and that the CSCW community can provide vital insight into understanding how these operations function-by examining them as collaborative "work" within online crowds. First, we provide needed definitions and a framework for conceptualizing strategic information operations, highlighting related literatures and noting historical context. Next, we examine three case studies of online information operations using a sociotechnical lens that draws on CSCW theories and methods to account for the mutual shaping of technology, social structure, and human action. Through this lens, we contribute a more nuanced understanding of these operations (beyond "bots" and "trolls") and highlight a persistent challenge for researchers, platform designers, and policy makers-distinguishing between orchestrated, explicitly coordinated, information operations and the emergent, organic behaviors of an online crowd.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Pub Defense Publication
- Publication Date
- Nov 07, 2019
- Source ID
- 10.1145/3359229
Entities
People
- Ahmer Arif
- Kate Starbird
- Tom Wilson
Organizations
- National Science Foundation
- Office of Naval Research
- University of Washington