Half the truth is often a whole lie A research on the spread of fake news in online communities through agentbased
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2018-06-26
Language
en
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Abstract
Fake news has been around for a long time, but in this time of online networks, the problem is
under debate even more. This research examines the role of different mechanisms in the
spread of fake news in online networks. Opinion leaders, the division in a left-wing and rightwing
network, the influence of organizations and the prioritization of posts from friends over
organizations are studied. These mechanisms are investigated using an agent-based social
simulation model, as it is hard to study these phenomena in real life. The results show that
placing posts from friends above posts from organizations accounts for a significant spread of
fake news. The degree of influence from organizations and the division in a left-wing and
right-wing network can also take care of the spread of fake news. The role of opinion leaders
is not clear, and can therefore be studied further in future research. However, agent-based
modeling has proved to be a useful instrument for studying how fake news spreads through
online communities.
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Faculteit der Sociale Wetenschappen