mastodon 4.7.2The QUT Digital Media Research Centre conducts world-leading interdisciplinary research for a flourishing digital society. We are based at Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane, Australia.
#digitalsociety #platformGovernance #mediaIndustries #digitalInclusion #responsibleAI #AIEthics #digitalMethods #algorithmicCulture #disinformation #digitalLiteracy
Research Fellows Dr Kateryna Kasianenko and Ned Watt spoke with the SBS Examines podcast on the topic of fact-checking on social media platforms, and how effective it is. You can listen at the link below or wherever you get your podcasts!
https://www.sbs.com.au/language/english/en/podcast-episode/fact-checking-social-media/cis7iqd2x
New article alert!
“Just Asking Questions”: Doing Our Own Research on Conspiratorial Ideation by Generative AI Chatbots is now available to read open access! This study conducted an audit of popular chatbots to examine how chatbots respond to conspiratorial prompts.
DMRC researchers prompted seven chatbots with questions related to nine conspiracy theories to test the efficacy of safety guardrails against conspiratorial ideation.
https://www.cogitatiopress.com/mediaandcommunication/article/view/11337
For our 40th episode of the Read Them Sideways podcast, we have a recording of a panel from our recent Summer School, looking at Australian media diets and attitudes in the 21st century. Tune in to hear more about this ongoing project!
https://open.spotify.com/episode/7LH3eBFvUXl6x4o2s5UJkf?si=ecca7be77afa42cc
Well done to Tim Graham for his new piece in The Conversation! Tim discusses recent studies that investigate the X (formerly Twitter) algorithm, its ability to push far-right content onto users, and the implications. Read at the link below!
New podcast episode available!
Your host Klaus Groebner chatted with Caroline Gardam and Carly Lubicz-Zaorski about misinformation on Climate Change and Energy.
https://open.spotify.com/episode/2MlOdKQQtTujTGgo4jahwi?si=b7f6d30a76ec4444
In 2025, the Australian Government appointed a committee to investigate the prevalence and impacts of misinformation and disinformation which relates to climate change and energy.
NEW PUBLICATION!
In a new article in Journalism and Media, the DMRC's Aljosha Karim Schapals and colleagues consider communicative traits young people prefer in a "newsfluencer".
Available to read in open access here: https://www.mdpi.com/2673-5172/7/1/19
Teenagers and young people prefer those who talk to them “as a friend”, emphasizing authenticity, emotional proximity, and conversational clarity over traditional, formal modes of reporting.
Congratulations to PhD Candidate Caroline Gardam, who was recently a finalist in the 2026 Australian Consortium for Social and Political Research (ACSPRI). As part of her application, Caroline created a video describing her PhD project.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHs_yUUIvs8
In this video, Caroline describes the real world potential impact of her research, which examines climate change denial discourse.
Research Fellow Dr Aimee Hourigan has recently been featured in some fantastic media literacy videos, produced by ABC Education. These are appropriate for both primary and high school aged students, with some excellent questions, particularly around generative AI.
Check out the video series below!
https://www.abc.net.au/education/digibooks/media-explained-misinformation/106152400
The Read Them Sideways podcast is back from summer hiatus! Our first episode of 2026 welcomes Ehsan Dehghan and Pardis Yarahmadi to discuss the ongoing Iranian digital blackout, its implications, and how digital activism can assist. An important listen for your Monday!
https://open.spotify.com/episode/0x91AahcRBW2dgugAfqKDL?si=3e21657320064182
Congratulations to PhD candidate, Klaus Groebner, for his acceptance into the Bluebook Traineeship Program at the EU Commission this year! Klaus will be contributing his expertise to regulatory frameworks for electronic communications and digital initiatives, such as the Digital Decade. 🎉
Starting 2026 by sharing a new paper from Prof Axel Bruns, A/Prof Tim Graham and DMRC colleague Simon Copland. You can check out "Sky News Australia as network propaganda: how a niche cable channel became an international right-wing propaganda machine" here!
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1329878X251406899
This paper considers the digital form of Sky News Australia and uses a unique combination of digital methods examine its growth during the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2020 United States presidential election.
Congratulations to DMRC scholars Katharina Esau, Axel Bruns, Michelle Riedlinger, Samantha Vilkins, Laura Vodden, and Thet Zin Myint for their new publication in Media International Australia as part of the AANZCA special issue!
Congratulations to PhD candidates Carly Lubicz and Caroline Gardam, along with Associate Professor Michelle Riedlinger for their recent QUT Faculty award in the "Sustainability" category!
This award acknowledges initiatives that support QUT's commitment to sustainability goals, while enhancing research related to and extending public understanding of sustainability challenges.
This week's episode of Read Them Sideways is the recording of a panel discussion from this year's Summer School from Prof Axel Bruns, which invites us to rethink our our everyday experience of public communication.
Link below or listen wherever you get your podcasts!
https://open.spotify.com/episode/1jodZQnrGH1J8niY1USzCY?si=f33b2b50673d4285
This week's episode of Read Them Sideways podcast is another Summer School discussion, this time from Prof Patrik Wikstrom, discussing the 'For You' project on TikTok. @pwik.bsky.social discusses user experiences on TikTok and our highly individualised media systems.
https://open.spotify.com/episode/2gPOsZbbpDtO8SPou4au1B?si=1a755d8931ae42ef
Our latest episode of the Read Them Sideways podcast features @snurb.info and @kkasianenko.bsky.social, speaking about the recently released second edition of The Routledge Companion to Social Media and Politics.
https://open.spotify.com/episode/3nnXPab8ONZKQxSEJuQXN2?si=c9f8d14cb252444d
Congratulations Prof Axel Bruns and PhD Candidate Laura Vodden on their new paper in Political Communication Report. Their work explores the challenges of working within a 'clean room' environment, now that academic access to research data has been limited. Check it out now!
Congratulations to Dr Aimee Hourigan who, as part of a larger visiting fellowship to the UK, recently spoke on information resilience and youth media literacy at the University College London's Knowledge Lab. Aimee also contributed a blog post, which you can read here: https://reflect.ucl.ac.uk/remap-collaborative-blog/2026/06/30/fostering-information-resilience-through-holistic-media-literacy-initiatives/
Congratulations to Luke Pearson (pictured left) on passing his Confirmation Seminar last week! This is an important milestone that PhD students complete one year into their candidature. Luke's project is entitled, "IndigenousX as a tool for promoting racial literacy".
Together with two sport sociologists from Griffith, the DMRC's Kateryna Kasianenko has a timely article in The Conversation today, discussing Trump hosting a UFC event at the White House, ostensibly to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the US Independence / his birthday.
Another excellent piece from Kateryna Kasianenko and former DMRC member, Erin O'Brien. In this article, out now in International Political Science Review, they analyse practices of calling for the boycott of Russia on Twitter.
You can read Kateryna and Erin's paper here: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/01925121261442380
Our latest episode of the Read Them Sideways podcast is a discussion between postdoctoral research fellow, Phoebe Matich and host Sebastian Svegaard. They chat about Phoebe's recently completed PhD, with a focus on misinformation and truth claims in Australian journalism.
https://open.spotify.com/episode/6bUOdbiQE7e6UwqthIjyQl?si=ad8be1199f2048fb
Congratulations to Sebastian Svegaard on his new article: "Voice on video: Music, affect, and communication in campaign videos in the Australian Voice to Parliament referendum".
This article considers the role of audio-visual communication in political communication, specifically considering the case study of the 2023 Australian Indigenous Voice referendum in Australia.
Associate Professor Stephen Harrington has a new piece out in Crikey Australia, discussing the decline of the American conservative outlet The Daily Wire. Great work, Stephen!
Congratulations to Prof Axel Bruns (@snurb.info) and our colleagues at the University of Edinburgh on their new article! This study analyses the various important Twitter conversations around the 2022 FIFA World Cup, finishing with an assessment of online third spaces.
Congratulations to Axel Bruns and Alfred Hermida on editing a new special issue of M/C Journal, which coincides with the 20th anniversary of Twitter this year.
https://journal.media-culture.org.au/index.php/mcjournal/issue/view/twitter
We see articles tracing the history of the platform, how Twitter was used by journalists and the general public in its heydey, Twitter as epistemic infrastructure and more - culminating in a Twitter obituary.
A large number of scholars contributed various perspectives - absolutely worth the read!
Congratulations to Dr Phoebe Matich on her first paper from her postdoctorate research. In this article, Phoebe, Professor Michael Richardson of UNSW and Dist Prof Jean Burgess discuss the role of AI generated content and authenticity in witness media.
