Abstract: Previous research dedicated a lot of effort to investigation of the activities of the Internet Research Agency, a Russia-based troll factory, as well as other information operations. However, those studies are mostly focused on the 2016 U.S. presidential election, Brexit, and other major international political events.
Social Media + Society, 8 (4), 2022: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic was an unexpected event and resulted in catastrophic consequences with long-lasting behavioral effects. People began to seek explanations for different aspects of COVID-19 and resorted to conspiracy narratives.
The debate over free expression on social media today straddles politics, technology, and civil liberties. When Elon Musk completed his $44 billion acquisition of Twitter on October 27–28, 2022, he declared his ambition to transform the platform into a global forum for candid discussion. One of his earliest and most controversial actions was restoring the account of former U.S.
In the 1850s, upon receiving the first telegraph messages, the flummoxed British Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary, Lord Palmerston, famously exclaimed, "My God, this is the end of diplomacy!" His reaction reflected the skepticism and surprise that often accompany shifts in public diplomacy.
Twitter has banned US President Donald Trump for using its platform for life. This action by Twitter has made many uncomfortable. There is a view that companies providing digital platforms like Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp and others have developed a kind of business monopoly, and they behave as per their whims and fancies.