Anna Gausen, of the 2020 cohort of the UKRI Centre for Doctoral Training in Safe and Trusted Artificial Intelligence, presented her research on agent-based modelling and fake news at the Mediate workshop in June 2021, part of the 15th International AAAI Conference on Web and Social Media (IWCSM). The workshop theme was Misinformation: automation, uptake, and digital governance.
Online communication has transformed society, changing the way we seek information and communicate with one another. Whilst the internet and social media have brought great benefits, the proliferation of data has also created distinctive challenges. Misinformation, or ‘fake news’, can have particularly damaging consequences for democracy, public health and society. There is therefore a growing demand for research into countermeasures against online misinformation.
Anna’s paper, “Can We Stop Fake News? Using Agent-Based Modelling to Evaluate Countermeasures for Misinformation on Social Media” shows that agent-based modelling of social media networks can be a useful tool for decision-makers to evaluate misinformation countermeasures before implementing them on a live platform. The paper was co-authored with Anna’s supervisors, Professor Wayne Luk and Dr Ce Guo.