@article{9b72f122651249e59d3b3ca4821c5c82,
title = "Fake thumbs in play: A large-scale exploration of false amplification and false diminution in online news comment spaces",
abstract = "This study explores how disinformation can dampen general users{\textquoteright} expressions of opinion online. In the context of a proven disinformation case in South Korea, this study analyzes externally validated click-logs of 1389 fake accounts and more than a million logs of 45,769 general users in a highly popular web portal. Findings show that the inflated visibility of anti-governmental opinions in the manipulated comment space was incongruent with the overall political tone that general users had spontaneously encountered from the broader media ecosystem beyond the manipulated space. Subsequently, this opinion “climate” incongruence decreased the likelihood of commenting in the manipulated space. The study concludes that false amplification (of the opinions that the manipulators promote) and false diminution (of general users{\textquoteright} political expressions) work in tandem to create a distorted opinion environment.",
keywords = "Click fraud, Spiral of Silence, computational propaganda, disinformation, fake engagement, false amplification, influence operation, opinion manipulation, political astroturfing, political bots",
author = "Kwon, {K. Hazel} and Lee, {Mi Hyun} and {Pil Han}, Sang and Sungho Park",
note = "Funding Information: The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: The first author{\textquoteright}s effort was partly supported by DEVCOM Army Research Laboratory-Army Research Office under Grant W911NF-19-1-0066, and MIT-Lincoln Lab under Grant Number PO7000506684. The views and conclusions contained in this document are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as representing the official policies, either expresssed or implied, of the Army Research Office or the U.S. Government. The U.S. Government is authorized to reproduce and distribute reprints for Government purpose notwithstanding any copyright notation herein. Funding Information: As one of the 2020-2021 U.S.-Korea NextGen scholar, the first author acknowledges the support from Korea Foundation. The authors are thankful to the editor and reviewers for their constructive comments. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} The Author(s) 2022.",
year = "2022",
doi = "10.1177/14614448221099170",
language = "English (US)",
journal = "New Media and Society",
issn = "1461-4448",
publisher = "SAGE Publications Ltd",
}