Alan Jagolinzer

Call for Papers, Cambridge Disinformation Summit, 23-25 Mar 2027. Research on incentives or power infrastructures that support malign cognitive influence or disinformation campaigns. To submit a paper, see the Summit's webpage and hit the Call for Papers tab: www.jbs.cam.ac.uk/events/cambr...

Diagnose a bot: —name different than @ name —low follower/following ratio —low post count —photo is not authentic —reposts prominent influencers —often “female” to potentially bait targets for inappropriate DM

As we approach the end of the Call for Papers [31 Oct] for the 2027 Cambridge Disinformation Summit, it might help to revisit some of the research discussed in 2026. Penn climate scientist @michaelmann.bsky.social on systemic disinformation risks for climate and science. youtu.be/s8u-_Vx1yKA?...

As we approach the end of the Call for Papers [31 Oct] for the 2027 Cambridge Disinformation Summit, it might help to revisit some of the research discussed in 2026. Nobel Economist Joseph Stiglitz on the impact of AI and digital platforms on the information ecosystem. youtu.be/D6yIdCvLMBU?...

@panievsky.bsky.social talks about this in our 2023 webinar on Journalism & Democratic Backsliding “In the long run, [giving airtime to actors who spread inflammatory lies, to chase ratings] …is not good for journalism.” youtu.be/7UItRnWIV-U?...

Seems consistent with what I think are the necessary elements to facilitate a “movement.”

It’ll be interesting to see how Lula engages the tech companies going forward.

We're open to tips about what to track next. If you see a new rumor emerging, or if there's a story spreading and you want to know what it looks like on X (or Bluesky), let me know. You can message me here. We don't have the capacity to map EVERYTHING, but we do for a few interesting things.

The second interactive graph is for the Arizona "felon registration" case. It's here: faculty.washington.edu/kstarbi/Spot... We have barely had time to scratch the surface of this. If you find anything interesting, let me know!

We have two interactive graphs available to explore how some of these stories are spreading on X. The first is around the Wedgewood (Fake) Polls story. faculty.washington.edu/kstarbi/Spot... Seriously, follow the link ^^^ & you can dive into this data. It's what we use to do our analyses.

We followed a AZ story where a video released by a self-described "muckraker" allegedly shows Democratic-aligned canvassers volunteering to help register non-citizens and felons to vote. The video is misleading. Its spread on X reveals the new shape of the "voter fraud" influencer machine there.

There were a few local stories. Ballots found w/ stolen mail in a dumpster in Seattle (easily remedied, unlikely to be politically motivated), and an offer by Gov. Ferguson to deploy National Guard troops to protect election infrastructure (stirring lots of suspicion). www.cip.uw.edu/2026/10/24/e...

We saw reports of "machines switching votes" in TN & TX. These are typically real issues — a calibration problem w/ older touchscreen machines — but not intentional efforts to rig the vote. Always good for voters to check that their vote is being recorded correctly. www.cip.uw.edu/2026/10/22/e...

On Tues, Wedgewood Polls confessed that polling data it had been publishing since June was fake. The news sparked criticism, then was quickly amplified (by rw influencers), then wrapped into speculative rumors (right & left) & conspiracy theories around "fake polls". www.cip.uw.edu/2026/10/23/f...

Our research team is doing real-time coverage of emerging news and rumors related to election integrity. We put out several outputs this week. Several of the rumors we covered are still percolating. Some of the stories may become seeds for conspiracy theories later in the cycle. Some highlights...

“A commonly deployed tactic is to cherry-pick anecdotes that generate visceral emotional resonance in media echo chambers. …anecdotes often deliberately amplify culture wars on issues such as climate, vaccines, diversity, race and gender studies.” www.timeshighereducation.com/opinion/its-...

No Signs of AI Payoff Outside the Tech Sector Analysis by @torstenslok.bsky.social www.apollo.com/insights-new...

Final call: Call for Papers, 2027 Cambridge Disinformation Summit Research on incentives or power infrastructures that support malign cognitive influence and disinformation campaigns. For more information, see the Call for Papers tab on the website. www.jbs.cam.ac.uk/events/cambr...

“Mafia State leaders are not reliable partners. You cannot rely on their internal enforcement systems because their enforcement systems have been neutered, compromised, or weaponized.” 2025 testimony in European Parliament. youtu.be/c-ZE_AErR7U?...

“…all the debate is around 'how dare you violate my rights!' And I'm like I'm not here to violate your rights. I'm here to stop your corruption."

In some cases, disinformation influencers use the "Free Speech" debate as a red herring and an intentionally wrong cognitive framing of the problem, to deflect attention away from accountability for their corruption. I talked about this with @jimludes.bsky.social. youtu.be/1p5r1VLEDvg?...

“Mafia State leaders are not reliable partners. You cannot rely on their internal enforcement systems because their enforcement systems have been neutered, compromised, or weaponized.” 2025 testimony in European Parliament. youtu.be/c-ZE_AErR7U?...

“…we must not cede whole areas of scholarship and higher education policy to culture warriors and clickbait opportunists.” My thoughts about attacks on academic freedom with @profsanderlinden.bsky.social. www.timeshighereducation.com/opinion/its-...

No Signs of AI Payoff Outside the Tech Sector Analysis by @torstenslok.bsky.social www.apollo.com/insights-new...

Two federal judges found Google to be an illegal monopolist, but neither broke up the company. Tech Policy Press editor Justin Hendrix talks with Barry Lynn of the Open Markets Institute and Princeton CITP’s Mihir Kshirsagar about what the remedies mean for competition in the AI era.

Final call: Call for Papers, 2027 Cambridge Disinformation Summit Research on incentives or power infrastructures that support malign cognitive influence and disinformation campaigns. For more information, see the Call for Papers tab on the website. www.jbs.cam.ac.uk/events/cambr...

“A commonly deployed tactic is to cherry-pick anecdotes that generate visceral emotional resonance in media echo chambers. …anecdotes often deliberately amplify culture wars on issues such as climate, vaccines, diversity, race and gender studies.” www.timeshighereducation.com/opinion/its-...

“…we must not cede whole areas of scholarship and higher education policy to culture warriors and clickbait opportunists.” My thoughts about attacks on academic freedom with @profsanderlinden.bsky.social. www.timeshighereducation.com/opinion/its-...

"Fines on billionaires and...big tech companies...will do almost nothing for behavioural change. ...if you really want true enforcement, you have to be willing to name human beings and move beyond fining them." 2025 testimony in EU Parliament. youtu.be/I2QNJh7WLbI

Jennifer Nou from University of Chicago Law School has an important forthcoming paper that describes the structure and impact of "parapresidency." "can expand ... control while diffusing ...accountability, heightening the risks of corruption and self-dealing." papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....

"Fines on billionaires and...big tech companies...will do almost nothing for behavioural change. ...if you really want true enforcement, you have to be willing to name human beings and move beyond fining them." 2025 testimony in EU Parliament. youtu.be/I2QNJh7WLbI

A super-timely and insightful new paper by @jennifernou.bsky.social

This paper relates to my testimony in European Parliament last year about the rise of “mafia states”—when organized crime syndicates hijack nation states to further their corruption. youtu.be/y3QKtwFis-o?...

While people are celebrating the New Mexico $25B damages ruling for Meta, I think it’s important to consider that institutional fines will not likely alter behavior sufficiently. Leaders of institutions need to be held individually accountable. youtu.be/I2QNJh7WLbI?...

As background, Musk stated in 2024 that he had expected to be in prison if Kamala Harris had been elected. I am not aware of any public evidence nor rationale to explain his statement or perception of that risk, but I am curious why he said it. www.facebook.com/reel/5055483...

Link to an excerpt of my interview with @karaswisher.bsky.social youtu.be/O1fgOsNm1wM?...

Musk suggests @karaswisher.bsky.social will go to prison in response to her podcast that discusses the potential for Democrats to investigate him in the new Congress. When I interviewed her in May, she said tech ceo incentives boil down to: “Money. Power. Dominance.” x.com/elonmusk/sta...

This is how the Trump administration ended dozens of disinformation and propaganda experts’ careers in government. With an awkward, almost gleeful speech from known white supremacist and conspiracy theorist Darren Beattie. Listen to the rest on DISARMED: www.thewayfinder.net/p/is-the-us-...

While people are celebrating the New Mexico $25B damages ruling for Meta, I think it’s important to consider that institutional fines will not likely alter behavior sufficiently. Leaders of institutions need to be held individually accountable. youtu.be/I2QNJh7WLbI?...

Dangers of crypto and meme asset investing. youtu.be/xP0_eBZDLXc?...

Opportunist-populists find or stoke grievance to foster, empower, and further radicalize ideological communities. youtu.be/yEjtLikxQGs?...

Based on… 🤷‍♂️

Note also that this timing comes as there’s speculation of a merger with Tesla. If SpaceX stock is tender for Tesla’s shareholders, then there may be incentives behind the hype. ideas.repec.org/a/spr/reaccs...