On 6th March 2025, the Centre for Digital Trust and Society (CDTS) hosted an insightful seminar with Professor Cristian Vaccari, Chair of Future Governance, Public Policy, and Technology at the University of Edinburgh. The event explored how trusted news sources like BBC News can both enhance truth and unintentionally aid the spread of disinformation on personal messaging platforms such as WhatsApp.
About the speaker: Professor Cristian Vaccari
Prof. Vaccari is a renowned expert in political communication, digital media, and governance. With an extensive research portfolio, he has advised on freedom of expression and online information integrity for the Council of Europe and served as the Editor-in-Chief of The International Journal of Press/Politics. His latest book, Outside the Bubble: Social Media and Political Participation in Comparative Perspective, won the 2022 Best Book Award from the American Political Science Association.
Key Takeaways from the Talk
Prof. Cristian Vaccari presented findings from a large-scale study (N=2,580) that examined how news attribution impacts misinformation discernment. The study found that messages attributed to BBC News were perceived as significantly more credible, even when the content was false. Interestingly, participants' trust in false messages labelled as BBC News was statistically indistinguishable from their trust in true messages.
This raises important questions about the double-edged nature of source credibility: while it helps promote truthful information, it can also be exploited to spread falsehoods more effectively.
Check out the seminar
Interactive Discussions: Attendees engaged in lively Q&A sessions, leading to insightful conversations on research impact and future challenges.
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