(Mis)information Aggregation in Hierarchical Networks

• In Event: Networked Political Communication: Framing, Ideology, and Misinformation

Abstract

This paper examines how an individual's communication network(s) shape the spread of information. We focus in particular on how multiplex networks of communication can inhibit or exacerbate misinformation.

We find that, not surprisingly, exposure to cross-cutting information and social networks can inhibit a person's likelihood of accepting misinformation. However, at the same time, these multiplex networks can lead to faster spread of misinformation at the aggregate level.

Our results build on previous research by one of the authors examining information transmission and the Condorcet Jury Theorem in hierarchical voting models. As in that work, we examine selective abstention (here from communication rather than voting), and find that the rate and success of spreading (mis)information depends on how correlated abstention rates are within groups.

Authors

• PJ Lamberson, UCLA

• Georgia Kernell, UCLA