This paper introduces a novel approach to measure Twitter users' exposure to misinformation from political elites. Using PolitiFact's fact-checks, the authors calculate falsity scores for 816 elites and assign users a misinformation-exposure score based on the elites they follow. The study finds a negative correlation between this score and the quality of news users share, and a positive correlation with estimated conservative ideology. Network analysis reveals an association between conservative ideology and misinformation exposure, with a stronger effect for conservatives than liberals. An open-source R library and API are provided for wider use.
Publisher
Nature Communications
Published On
Nov 21, 2022
Authors
Mohsen Mosleh, David G. Rand
Tags
misinformation
Twitter
political elites
PolitiFact
exposure score
network analysis
conservative ideology
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