These are my slides for a presentation to the CFUW Ontario Council for a workshop aimed at exploring political discourse in an age of misinformation/how to navigate information with a critical eye leading up to the Ontario election. More on the event available here http://cfuwontcouncil.org/standing-committees/

1. Algorithms
&
Analytics
as
Gatekeepers
Nicole Blanchett Neheli
Sheridan College/Bournemouth University
@NicoleBlanchett

3. Newsrooms in Crisis(Greenspon 2017; SCCH 2017)
• Massive cuts to newsrooms and jobs
• Fewer journalists producing more content for
multiple platforms
• More reliance on public relations and agency
material
• Loss of revenue to Google and Facebook
• Loss of trust in media—although growing trust in
journalism (Edelman 2018)

4. “The abundance of content on the
internet combined with new forms of
distribution have contributed to a crisis
of confidence in journalism where it is
hard to distinguish verified facts from
untruths, ‘alternative facts’, or
information that is laced with extreme
agendas.”
(Newman et al., 2017, pg. 26)

5. Algorithms Rule(Frizzera 2017/2018)
• Algorithms determine the flow of information
• Algorithms can develop and/or be embedded
with bias
• Algorithms perpetuate the gatekeeping function
of traditional media
• Personalization can undermine “deliberative
democracy by limiting contradictory information”
(Frizzera, 2018, pg.4)

6. The Facebook Breach
• Millions of users data taken without consent—but
impact hard to measure
• Analytics used to target and manipulate voters in
U.S. and U.K.
• Manipulation amplified outside of the social platform:
“Drain the swamp”
• Whistleblower once hired by federal Liberals
• Canada’s privacy commissioner now investigating
impact of breach on Canadians

7. Echo Chamber Amplification
“The right-wing echo chamber
allows for the development and
recirculation of ideas, some of
which are then actively shopped to
the broader media conversation.”
(Faris et al., 2017, pg. 131)
Internet subcultures
manipulate mainstream
news to propagate extreme
ideas, particularly from the
far-right.
(Marwick & Lewis 2017)

8. “Getting the mainstream
media to amplify rumour and
dis-information is the
ultimate goal of those who
seek to manipulate. Without
amplification, dis-information
goes nowhere.”
(Wardle &Derakhshan, 2017, pg. 13)

9. “The media’s dependence on
social media, analytics and
metrics, sensationalism, novelty
over newsworthiness, and
clickbait makes them vulnerable
to such media manipulation.”
(Marwick & Lewis, 2017, pg. 1)

10. The impact of analytics on
editorial decision-making
• Pageviews is the most followed metric (ICFJ 2017)
• Stories are chosen to optimize reach/traffic
• Analytics determine promotion/placement of
content on websites and social media feeds
• Analytics/metrics help determine which stories
will be covered
• Analytics/metrics shape formatting of stories

11. Media Logic
(Altheide & Snow 1979;1991; Altheide 2017)
• Standardized, recognized news formats that facilitate expedient
production
• Entertaining and attracting eyeballs take precedence over
informing
• Information is decontextualized then recontextualized into a
“news perspective”
• Results in narrowed frames of reference
• Standardized formats can be used to help spread misinformation,
promote fear

12. Positive Media Logic
“So to use rumours about Obama’s religious affiliation as
an example, rather than stating ‘Barack Obama is not a
Muslim’ it is more effective to provide a story (preferably
with a powerful narrative structure) of Obama going to his
local Christian church with his family.”
(Wardle &Derakhshan, 2017,pg. 78)

13. Media Literacy or
Construction of Knowledge?
We cannot and should not assert
authority over epistemology, but we can
encourage our students to be more aware
of how interpretation is socially
constructed. And to understand how that
can be manipulated.”
(boyd 2018)

14. “Verify, then trust.”
Craig Silverman

15. References & Additional Resources
Altheide, D., 2004. Media logic and political communication. Political Communication, 21, 293-296.
Altheide, D., 2007. The mass media and terrorism. Discourse and Communication, 1(3), 287-308.
Altheide, D., 2013. Media logic, social control, and fear. Communication Theory, 23(3), 223-238.
Altheide, D., 2017. Terrorism and the politics of fear. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield
Altheide, D. and Snow, P., 1979. Media logic. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publications.
Altheide, D. and Snow, P., 1991. Media worlds in the postjournalism era. New York, NY: Walter de Gruyter Inc.
boyd, d., 2018. You think you want media literacy…do you? [online] Data and Society: Points. Available from https://points.datasociety.net/you-think-you-want-media-literacy-do-you-7cad6af18ec2
[Accessed 16 March 2018].
Faris, Robert M., Hal Roberts, Bruce Etling, Nikki Bourassa, Ethan Zuckerman, and Yochai Benkler. 2017. Partisanship, Propaganda, and Disinformation: Online Media and the 2016 U.S. Presidential
Election. Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society Research Paper.
Edelman, 2018. Edelman Trust Barometer Global Report. Available from http://cms.edelman.com/sites/default/files/2018- 02/2018_Edelman_Trust_Barometer_Global_Report_FEB.pdf [Accessed 23
March 2018].
Frizzera, L., 2018. I/O: Reinforcing Newsmaking Practices Through Algorithmic Media. Stream: Inspiring Critical Thought, 10(1), 39-51.
Greenspon, J., 2017. The shattered mirror: News, democracy and trust in the digital age [online]. Ottawa: Public Policy Forum. Available from: https://shatteredmirror.ca
International Center for Journalists (ICFJ), 2017. The state of technology in global newsrooms. Available from: https://www.icfj.org/sites/default/files/ICFJTechSurveyFINAL.pdf
[Accessed 10 October 2017].
Ingram, M., 2018b. Fake news is part of a bigger problem: automated propaganda [online]. Columbia Journalism Review. February 22 2018. Available from
https://www.cjr.org/analysis/algorithm-russia-facebook.php [Accessed 23 February 2018].
Marwick, A. and Lewis, R., 2017. Media manipulation and disinformation online. Data and Society Research Institute. Available from https://datasociety.net/output/media-manipulation-
and-disinfo-online/ [Accessed 13 May 2017].
Newman, N. (2018). Journalism, media and technology trends and predictions 2018 [online]. Oxford: Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. Available from
https://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/sites/default/files/2018-01/Journalism%2C%20Media%20and%20Technology%20Trends%20and%20Predictions%202018%20Newman.pdf
[Accessed 20 January 2018].
Newman, N., Fletcher, R., Kalogeropoulos, A., Levy, D., and Kleis Nielsen, R., 2017. Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2017 [online]. Oxford: Reuters Institute for the Study of
Journalism Available from: http://www.digitalnewsreport.org [Accessed 22 June 2017].
Phillips, A., 2015. Futures of journalists: Low-paid piecework or global brands? In: Vos, T. and Heinderyckx, F., eds. Gatekeeping in Transition. New York, NY: Routledge, 65-81. **Worth
reading this whole book if you’re interested in gatekeeping
Schudson, M. and Zelizer, B., 2017. Fake news in context. Understanding and addressing the disinformation ecosystem: Annenberg School for Communication, December 15-26, 2017,
pp 1-4. Available from https://firstdraftnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/The-Disinformation-Ecosystem-20180207-v4.pdf?x47084 [**Worth reading the entire publication for differing
views on impacts of echo chambers and media literacy]
Shoemaker, P.J. and Vos, T., 2009. Gatekeeping theory. Routledge.
Silverman, C., 2018. ”Verify, then trust.” Testimony before the Knight Commission on trust, media and democracy. Buzzfeed. Available from https://medium.com/trust-media-and-
democracy/verify-then-trust-testimony-before-the-knight-commission-on-trust-media-and-democracy-aacb5e7ef4de [Accessed 18 March 2018].
Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage (SCCH), 2017. Disruption: Change and churning in Canada’s media landscape. Ottawa: House of Commons. Available from https://nmc-
mic.ca/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/Heritage-Committee-Report-June-2017.pdf/ [Accessed 6 July 2017].
Wardle, S., 2017. Assessing current efforts by the platforms and their effectiveness. Understanding and addressing the disinformation ecosystem: Annenberg School for Communication,
December 15-26, 2017, pp. 64-68.
Wardle, S. and Derakhshan, H., 2017. Information disorder: Toward an interdisciplinary framework for research and policy making. Council of Europe report. Available from:
https://rm.coe.int/information-disorder-toward-an-interdisciplinary-framework-for-researc/168076277c [Accessed 1 October 2017].
Wardle managed collection of works on disinformation: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1nL1SDWSKimudB5yOEslIOPGkVnOgfzLjWwi8PRkDehw/edit