Countering misinformation and disinformation during contentious episodes in a divided society: tweeting the 2014 and 2015 Ardoyne parade dispute

Reilly, P. (2021) Countering misinformation and disinformation during contentious episodes in a divided society: tweeting the 2014 and 2015 Ardoyne parade dispute. First Monday, 26(7), (doi: 10.5210/fm.v26i7.10303)

Abstract

Whereas there has been much research into the manufacture of ‘fake news’ to sow disunity within liberal democracies, little is known about how information disorders affect deeply divided societies. This paper addresses that gap in the literature by exploring how digital media are used to share misinformation and disinformation during contentious public demonstrations in Northern Ireland. It does so by reviewing the literature on social media information flows during acute crisis events, and qualitatively exploring the role of Twitter in spreading misinformation and disinformation during the 2014 and 2015 Ardoyne parade disputes. Results indicate that visual disinformation, presumably shared to inflame sectarian tensions during the parade, was quickly debunked in information flows co-curated by citizens and professional journalists. Online misinformation and disinformation appeared to have minimal impact on events on the ground, although there was some evidence of belief echoes among tweeters who distrusted the information provided by mainstream media.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Reilly, Dr Paul
• Authors: Reilly, P.
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > School of Social and Political Sciences > Politics
• Journal Name: First Monday
• Publisher: University of Illinois at Chicago Library
• ISSN: 1396-0466
• ISSN (Online): 1396-0466
• Published Online: 11 June 2021
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2021 Paul Reilly
• First Published: First published in First Monday 26(7)
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the publisher copyright policy