The Role of Social Media Images in Fake News

Lead Research Organisation: Manchester Metropolitan University
Department Name: Faculty of Education

Abstract

Social media images play a crucial role in the spread of fake news by helping stories appear more believable
and more attractive and easy to share. Whilst there is a growing body of work around verification and fake
news, the complex role of images has to date been neglected. This proposed PhD project addresses this
through an innovative collaboration between the Visual Social Media Lab (directed by the principal supervisor)
and First Draft News. This project will specifically focus on the role of social media images in the production,
circulation and reception of fake news, paying particular attention to understanding how users assess stories
and why they choose to share them.

Publications

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Studentship Projects

Project Reference Relationship Related To Start End Student Name
ES/P000746/1 01/10/2017 30/09/2027
1940962 Studentship ES/P000746/1 01/10/2017 30/12/2021 Hannah Guy
 
Description Disinformation, defined as knowingly sharing false information on social media for the purpose of deceiving and/or manipulating people, has become a genuine educational, journalistic, and governmental concern within the last decade. There is ample evidence that online disinformation has been used to attempt to manipulate a variety of social and political events and issues, such as elections, narratives about immigrants and refugees, and LGBTQ+ topics. Researchers have therefore worked hard to examine and analyse the issue and have produced vital insights, which work towards understanding and combatting disinformation.

However, because disinformation is a relatively new phenomenon, there are certain knowledge gaps in research, meaning the full scope of disinformation is not currently wholly understood. A major knowledge gap is the role of images, which is significant because visuals are an important communication tool on social media platforms. My doctoral research consequently worked to address this knowledge gap by examining an iconic piece of visual disinformation. This was a photograph taken during the aftermath of the 2017 Westminster Bridge terrorist attack, which was given a false caption on Twitter by a disguised Russian disinformation account in order to spread Islamophobic disinformation. The photograph spread widely and quickly on the site, so much so that it was reported in the UK news. My doctoral research tracked the evolution of the photograph using an innovative case study methodology not typical of disinformation research, in which the photograph's journey across social and traditional media was the principal component that drove the research. I also spoke to British Muslim women about their opinions about and experiences of disinformation in order to explore what we can learn when speaking to affected media consumers. My research showed how photographs can be a powerful tool of manipulation when they are given a false caption and circulated on social media, particularly when shared during an anxious and confusing event like a terrorist attack. Long-standing media stereotypes about Muslims and Islam also helped fuel the spread of the photograph on Twitter, and reporting from the media amplified the photograph further. Speaking to Muslim women about this case showed how involving media consumers in disinformation research can strengthen and nuance findings, exploring the relationship between disinformation and the lived experiences of British Muslim women.
Exploitation Route My PhD contributes to research examining disinformation as my thesis engaged with a methodological approach not typical of disinformation research. This mixed-methods, case study approach worked to produce different kinds of knowledge, implications, and questions about disinformation that can be taken forward for future research. Moreover, by examining the role of images, which is currently typically overlooked by disinformation research despite images being a key communication tool on social media, my research highlights the power and pervasiveness of visual disinformation. My PhD, therefore, contributes to the call for more examinations of visual disinformation and potentially has a future impact on the direction of disinformation research. Outside of academia, strengthening digital/media literacy skills is seen as a key educational tool for tackling disinformation. My examination of how images are used to deceive and manipulate on social media consequently shows that the visual also needs to be taken into consideration in future digital/media literacy efforts. Disinformation is a threat to journalistic and democratic processes, and so my research could be taken forward to build a better understanding of how disinformation functions, which in turn could help contribute to governmental and journalistic efforts to combat disinformation.
Sectors Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software),Education,Government, Democracy and Justice
 
Description MisInfoCon 2018 London 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact MisInfoCon describes itself as a global movement and hosts multiple conferences and events internationally several times a year. I co-managed a workshop at the event with one of my supervisors (Farida Vis). The aim of the workshop was to introduce those working in journalism, politics, NGOs, and other relevant industries to a method they could use to understand and interrogate visual disinformation. We conducted the workshop using the "20 Questions: Interrogating the Social Media Image" framework, a methodology used by my project, developed by the Visual Social Media Lab and First Draft News (project partners).

Attendees used the "20 Questions" framework as a guide to investigating an example piece of visual disinformation, this example disinformation being the case study of my PhD thesis. In terms of outcomes, attendees were engaged and keenly interested, and it was clear from discussions that they saw value in the methodology and understood the need to take images into consideration when examining disinformation. Many attendees expressed a desire for further information. Therefore, the most apparent impact was the stimulation of interest in visual disinformation research. Attendees that expressed interest in the research left their email addresses to stay in touch and hear about future work and opportunities.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2018
URL https://misinfocon.com/join-us-for-misinfocon-london-oct-24th-a5c597303bab
 
Description Myth, Rumour and Misinformation conference (University of York) 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Postgraduate students
Results and Impact For this conference, I presentation my PhD research to around 75 attendees, with a Q&A session as part of a panel centred on politics. My presentation sparked a discussion about examining visual disinformation.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2022
URL https://www.york.ac.uk/sociology/about/department/2022/folklore-to-fake-news/
 
Description News Impact Summit 2019 Lyon: Can one image change the political debate? 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Professional Practitioners
Results and Impact My role was to co-lead the workshop with one of my supervisors (Farida Vis). We conducted the workshop using the "20 Questions: Interrogating the Social Media Image" framework, a methodology used in my project, developed by the Visual Social Media Lab and First Draft News (project partners). Attendees used the framework to understand and analyse a piece of visual disinformation, which is used as the case study of my PhD thesis. I acted as the expert on this disinformation, providing further information and clarification.

Workshop attendees generally came from journalism (including several journalists from EuroNews). The workshop generated a small amount of media attention. The European Journalism Centre produced a blog where the workshop was discussed: https://medium.com/we-are-the-european-journalism-centre/low-tech-high-risk-whats-behind-the-biggest-misinformation-threats-16966ad095c3

The key outcome was generating discussions about and interest in image-based disinformation. From the level of enthusiasm, it was clear that journalists want to understand how they can manage visual disinformation they encounter in their work. Considering impact, the level of enthusiasm suggests that some attendees would have taken what they learned from the workshop and applied it to their work in journalism. Some attendees noted that several of the framework's questions would be applicable in their work. Attendees that expressed interest in the research left their email addresses to stay in touch and hear about future work and opportunities.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2019
URL https://newsimpact.io/summits/news-impact-summit-lyon#programme
 
Description Social Media Research and the Politics of Citizenship and Education panel (Manchester Metropolitan University) 
Form Of Engagement Activity A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Postgraduate students
Results and Impact A panel organised by the Education and Global Futures research group at Manchester Metropolitan University, where I presented my PhD research in the context of implications of social media research for citizenship education. The panel ended with a discussion about my research on visual disinformation and how it relates to citizenship education.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2023