https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Publications from Centre for Media, Technology and Democracy en-ca https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ The Canadian news environment is being reshaped by platform decisions, shifting audience habits, and the rise of new voices in political information. This brief examines how Canadians consume news and define journalism, drawing on a national survey of 1,518 respondents and analysis of nearly 9 million social media posts from Canadian news organizations across multiple platforms during 2023-2025. Tue, 30 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT news-canadians-actually-see_2026 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ A technical audit of four widely-used AI chatbots (Google Gemini, Anthropic Claude, Meta AI, and OpenAI ChatGPT), testing their responses to harmful requests. The audit found significant variation in safety measures across products, with roughly one in three tests across all four resulting in harmful content generation. Conducted in relation to Canada's Safe Social Media Act (Bill C-34). Thu, 25 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT online-harms-ai-audit-technical-brief_2026 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ A policy memo accompanying the Online Harms AI Audit technical brief, outlining recommendations arising from testing four widely-used AI chatbots for safety against harmful requests, in the context of Canada's Safe Social Media Act (Bill C-34). Thu, 25 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT online-harms-ai-audit-policy-memo_2026 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ A coordinated network of 340 Facebook pages, primarily operated from Vietnam, distributes AI-fabricated news stories targeting users in Canada, the US, the UK, and Europe. The network generates engagement through false narratives about politics, celebrities, and sports, driving traffic to fabricated-news websites monetized via advertising. Canadian public and private organizations inadvertently fund this operation through legitimate ad campaigns. Mon, 22 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT facebook-news-slop-economy_2026 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ A national survey of 1,306 Canadians found strong backing for platform accountability measures, including age-appropriate design requirements (84%), stronger legal accountability (82%), and an independent regulator with enforcement powers (72%). Canadians prefer design modifications over outright bans and support equivalent protections for AI chatbot services. Wed, 17 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT canadians-preference-age-verification-policies_2026 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ An examination of seven age verification methods recognized under the UK's Online Safety Act and their applicability to Canada. The analysis concludes that age verification is technically achievable and already deployed at scale, but that its effectiveness depends on broader governance structures rather than technology alone. Facial age estimation is found most viable for under-16 restrictions, though robust privacy protections and independent oversight remain essential. Tue, 16 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT age-verification-online-platforms-policy-note_2026 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ A commentary on the redrafted Online Harms Act (now the Digital Safety Act), drawing on submissions to the AI Task Force and the Expert Panel on Online Safety. It sets out four design choices to watch in the new bill: amend rather than rewrite the C-63 architecture; pause rather than ban under-16 access; include consumer-facing chatbots with bespoke obligations; and build an independent, technically capable regulator. Mon, 08 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT digital-safety-act-four-things_2026 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ When we set out to design Gen(Z)AI: Canada's Youth Assembly on Artificial Intelligence, we were animated by an urgent conviction: that young people, among the most exposed to and affected by AI systems, should not merely be subjects of this technology, but architects of its governance. The recommendations presented here are evidence-based, consensus-built, and grounded in the realities of how AI and online harms are actually experienced by young people. Thu, 23 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT genzai-youth-voices-ai-futures_2026 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Alberta secession is a prominent topic in Canadian news, driven in part by a petition campaign for a referendum in 2026. Online, Alberta secession inhabits its own distinct social media ecosystem. Social media conversations can be difficult for the public to navigate, as democratic discourse is often interspersed with financial interests and covert influence campaigns. This incident report focuses on a network of 20 inauthentic YouTube channels boosting Alberta secession and U.S.-annexation. Tue, 21 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT slopaganda-alberta-secession_2026 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ The internet is a vital fixture in how young Canadians live, learn, and connect. Yet as national calls for digital age assurance regulation on platforms and AI systems intensify, safeguarding youth online has become an urgent priority. This forum report captures youth perspectives on AI and age assurance from the Gen(Z)AI Halifax forum. Wed, 01 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT genzai-ai-age-assurance_2026 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ AI models have become a primary way for millions of Canadians to get information. When people ask ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, or Grok about current events, the responses they receive, and the sources those responses cite, shape which news organizations get traffic, attribution, and revenue. This brief presents the first large-scale empirical audit of how AI models use and distribute Canadian journalism. Mon, 16 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT ai-news-audit_2026 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ As AI systems become increasingly embedded in everyday digital platforms, the collection and use of personal data is expanding rapidly, often without clear transparency or meaningful safeguards. This forum report captures youth perspectives on AI and data privacy from the Gen(Z)AI Vancouver forum. Sun, 01 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT genzai-ai-data-privacy_2026 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Calling for immediate action to scope AI chatbots into a revised Online Harms Act. Tue, 24 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT scoping-ai-chatbots-online-harms-act_2026 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ A national study revealing that while conspiracy theory belief remains limited, a small number of highly active online accounts drive outsized visibility of conspiratorial content. Mon, 23 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT conspiracy-distrust_2026 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Evidence-based mandate for AI chatbot regulation using nationally representative survey data from 1,454 Canadians. Tue, 03 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT ai-chatbots-perspectives_2026 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Addresses artificial intelligence and its relationship with information integrity. Sun, 01 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT genzai-ai-information-integrity_2026 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ On September 10, 2025, Charlie Kirk, prominent American right-wing activist and founder of Turning Point USA, was assassinated while at a public rally on the campus of Utah Valley University. His death resulted in an apparent surge of highly charged and polarized online conversations, disinformation and calls for political violence and retribution in the American but also in the Canadian information environment. Canadian commentators were targeted and Canadian politicians from across the political spectrum weighed in, warning about the dangers of political violence and the risks of escalating ideological conflict. The Canadian Digital Media Research Network responded with an incident notification, launching an investigation that produced eight incident updates. This debrief concludes that investigation, drawing out critical insights on future instances of political violence that can help us better prevent, mitigate, prepare for, and respond to future events. This minor information incident created a transnational information event reaching far outside the United States and deeply into the Canadian information environment. While the initial days and weeks following the assassination felt transformational for polarization, democratic discourse, and the acceptability of violence and harassment, several months later a full assessment became possible. The event highlights the permeability of the Canadian information environment to major U.S. political events, the polarizing and misinformation potential of such events, and the opportunities they create for foreign manipulation. It generated widespread awareness, transforming Kirk from a figure known mainly among youth into a household name in Canada. While engagement was widespread and polarized and conspiratorial narratives were visible online for several weeks, the real-world consequences for Canadians have been limited. Wed, 28 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT charlie-kirk-debrief_2026 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Memo with recommendations on AI governance, safety, and trust for Canada's National AI Task Force. Thu, 22 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT ai-strategy-task-force-final-report_2026 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ A research snapshot, written in collaboration with Re.Climate, on the prevalence and perception of climate doomerism in Canada. Drawing on an original nationally representative survey of 1,431 Canadians (Aug 28-Sept 3, 2025; margin of error +/-2.6%), it finds that only 11-12% of Canadians identify as climate doomers -- believing it is too late for climate action to make a difference -- yet Canadians estimate the doomer share of the population at 42%, a 30-percentage-point perception gap. Doomerism is concentrated among men (15% vs 8% for women), younger generations, and heavy social media users, with up to 37% of Bluesky users self-identifying as doomers. The report also examines the reach and emotional impact of David Suzuki's July 2025 iPolitics interview headline ("'It's too late': David Suzuki says the fight against climate change is lost"), which roughly 18% of Canadians -- about 6 million people -- recalled encountering. Mon, 01 Dec 2025 00:00:00 GMT are-canadians-climate-doomers_2025 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Research demonstrating that political influencers have become central figures in Canada's online political discourse, fundamentally altering information flow dynamics. Thu, 13 Nov 2025 00:00:00 GMT power-shift-influencers_2025 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Examines AI chatbots and related technology concerns. Sat, 01 Nov 2025 00:00:00 GMT genzai-ai-chatbots_2025 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ The final report of MEO's monitoring of British Columbia's 2024 provincial election information ecosystem, analyzing platform dynamics, misinformation spread, and media coverage patterns. Fri, 29 Aug 2025 00:00:00 GMT bc-election-final_2025 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Contribution to privacy code development for children. Fri, 01 Aug 2025 00:00:00 GMT opc-childrens-privacy_2025 https://doi.org/10.1609/icwsm.v19i1.35957 A two-year dataset documenting gender and topic diversity in Canadian TV news broadcasts. Tue, 08 Jul 2025 00:00:00 GMT ocanada-tvnews-dataset_2025 https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2506.10942 This paper describes the design, implementation, and operation of the Media Ecosystem Observatory — a large-scale infrastructure for monitoring Canada's information environment across multiple digital platforms. Tue, 08 Jul 2025 00:00:00 GMT meo-infrastructure_2025 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Two-year study that draws on best practices in public service media from within Canada and in 17 other countries, with national survey insights. Tue, 01 Jul 2025 00:00:00 GMT what-should-the-cbc-be_2025 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Comprehensive report on Canada's 2025 federal election information ecosystem. Concludes that while election integrity was upheld, Canada's democratic resilience is weakening under pressure from manipulation and polarization. Sun, 01 Jun 2025 00:00:00 GMT federal-election_2025 /publications/source-response-scam-ai-fake-news/ Investigates the sources of AI-generated scams and fake news sites during Canada's 2025 federal election, and the platform/government response. Fri, 25 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMT ai-scam-sources_2025 /publications/scam-ai-fake-news/ Documents how social media platforms host and profit from AI-generated scam content mimicking legitimate Canadian news sources like CBC and CTV, linked to cryptocurrency scams. Fri, 18 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMT ai-scam-platforms_2025 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Part of the Democratic Legitimacy for AI Initiative. Seven-part essay series exploring how citizen assemblies and civic technology can strengthen AI governance. Tue, 01 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMT deliberative-governance_2025 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Comprehensive examination of Bill C-18 legislation and the struggle to regulate Big Tech in the news media context. Tue, 01 Apr 2025 00:00:00 GMT news-bargaining-c18_2025 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Analysis documenting how Meta's news ban, X's restructuring, and TikTok's rise have fundamentally altered how Canadians engage with political content. Tue, 11 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT changing-canadian-info-ecosystem_2025 https://doi.org/10.1609/icwsm.v19i1.35956 Introducing Can-PolNews, a comprehensive multi-platform dataset capturing political discourse across Canadian digital media, enabling research on cross-platform information flows. Wed, 01 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT canpolnews-dataset_2025 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Investigates climate misinformation patterns across Canada, revealing the growing impact of climate disinformation. Wed, 01 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT climate-obstruction_2025 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ November 2024: X Marks the Vote -- How Influencers Shape Canadian Politics Wed, 11 Dec 2024 00:00:00 GMT sitrep-november_2024 /pdfs/tenet-russia-funding-2024.pdf Initial notification documenting the DOJ indictment of two Russian nationals for funding Tenet Media, with Canadian influencer Lauren Chen and Liam Donovan allegedly receiving nearly $10 million USD from RT. Sun, 01 Dec 2024 00:00:00 GMT tenet-russia-funding_2024 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Analysis of public attitudes and media coverage of the 2023-2024 wildfire seasons and the role of social media in shaping climate change discourse. Tue, 12 Nov 2024 00:00:00 GMT smoke-mirrors-wildfire_2024 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ October 2024: Eh or Nay? Canadians Weigh In on the US Election Tue, 12 Nov 2024 00:00:00 GMT sitrep-october_2024 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ September 2024: Tuning In to the Canadian Podcast Ecosystem Tue, 08 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT sitrep-september_2024 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ National survey examining Canadian perspectives on the CBC. Tue, 01 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT do-we-need-the-cbc_2024 /pdfs/bc-election-baseline-2024.pdf A baseline analysis of British Columbia's information ecosystem ahead of the 2024 provincial election, establishing benchmarks for monitoring misinformation and media coverage. Fri, 27 Sep 2024 00:00:00 GMT bc-election-baseline_2024 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ August 2024: What's All This Buzz About Bots? Mon, 09 Sep 2024 00:00:00 GMT sitrep-august_2024 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ July 2024: Canadian Interest in American News & Politics Wed, 07 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT sitrep-july_2024 /pdfs/kirkland-bots-2024.pdf Final debrief concluding that the Kirkland Lake bot campaign was likely caused by a single entity or actor using newly created bot accounts with AI-generated content. Thu, 01 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT kirkland-bots_2024 /pdfs/meta-news-ban-2024.pdf An assessment of the impact of Meta's news ban in Canada one year after implementation, examining changes in information access, news consumption patterns, and platform dynamics. Thu, 01 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT meta-news-ban_2024 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ June 2024: State of Engagement with News Outlets Tue, 09 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT sitrep-june_2024 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ An analysis of misinformation surrounding Canadian wildfires and its intersection with climate change discourse online. Thu, 13 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT flame-wars-wildfire_2024 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ May 2024: Canadian Information Ecosystem Snapshot Tue, 11 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT sitrep-may_2024 /pdfs/news-deserts-2024.pdf A study of information ecosystems in Canadian communities that have lost local news outlets, examining how news deserts affect information quality and civic engagement. Thu, 18 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT news-deserts_2024 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ An analysis of the information ecosystem during the 2023 Alberta provincial election, examining misinformation exposure, media consumption patterns, and their relationship to political attitudes. Fri, 24 Nov 2023 00:00:00 GMT alberta-election_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ A comprehensive mapping of Canada's information ecosystem, examining how Canadians produce, disseminate, and consume information across digital media platforms, with analysis of media concentration, political discourse, and information health indicators. Sun, 15 Oct 2023 00:00:00 GMT canadian-info-ecosystem_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Youth-centered recommendations for digital safety from a gathering of 39 Canadian 18-year-olds. Fri, 01 Sep 2023 00:00:00 GMT youth-assembly-digital-rights_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Popular criticism holds that social media polarizes the mass public, yet scholarly research finds minimal effects on most users. This essay reconciles the two: roughly 5–10% of the population — those in limited information environments — experience heightened polarization, and this small, highly active group disproportionately shapes Canadian political discourse through elevated online engagement and participation in key political moments. Mon, 29 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT social-media-polarization_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Elizabeth Dubois and Guillermo Renna review the empirical evidence showing that very few people are caught in filter bubbles or echo chambers, and argue that these metaphors misdirect policy responses to polarization. They highlight the overlooked value of the filtering, sorting, and organizing affordances of digital media for sharing information, finding community, and mobilizing toward social change. Mon, 29 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT echo-chambers-filter-bubbles_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Erica Ifill examines how political polarization, democratic backsliding, and the economics of digital media have eroded journalism’s role in Canadian democracy, from declining trust and relevance to a media environment where reliable reporting sits behind paywalls while misinformation circulates freely. Mon, 29 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT journalism-age-of-polarization_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Eric Merkley assesses the state of mass polarization in Canada using original survey data and the Canadian Election Study, distinguishing ideological from affective polarization, evaluating its consequences for democratic health, and examining its causes. Mon, 29 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT mass-polarization-canada_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Stephanie Carvin traces the relationship between polarization and ideologically motivated violent extremism in Canada since 2015, from social media dynamics and the politics of the Trump and Trudeau eras to the 2022 Freedom Convoy, and considers the challenges these movements pose for national security and democratic politics. Mon, 29 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT polarization-violent-extremism_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ In this interview with Sonja Solomun, Wendy Hui Kyong Chun argues that polarization should be understood as a goal of social media systems built on homophily rather than an error. Drawing on her work on mis- and disinformation and authenticity, Chun discusses how network technologies segregate users into “neighbourhoods” and what this means for policy responses that go beyond technological fixes. Mon, 29 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT polarization-technological-goal_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Shopify's App Store — largely ignored by Canadian policymakers focused on Apple and Google — enables anti-competitive conduct and deceptive merchant practices (fake reviews, greenwashing, false scarcity signals) that expose gaps in both competition law and consumer protection enforcement in Canada. Thu, 25 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT pg-app-store-governance_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Canadian competition law's narrow efficiency focus incentivizes incumbent platforms to acquire rather than out-innovate rivals, suppressing productivity growth; reorienting policy to protect and promote organic competitive processes — as US and EU reforms attempt — would better serve innovation. Thu, 25 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT pg-competition-policy-organic-growth_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ The dominant competition law framing of platforms as simply 'big and bad' is analytically insufficient; Canada should adopt a market distortion lens that distinguishes between beneficial disruption and harmful gatekeeping, while moving beyond static efficiency analysis toward dynamic, pro-competition reform. Thu, 25 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT pg-big-is-bad-market-distortion_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Heidi Tworek and Sonja Solomun draw parallels between the histories of election interference and climate obstruction, showing how both rely on deliberate and misleading narratives, the weaponization of doubt, coordinated networks of actors, and attempts to drive polarization and influence policy. They argue that susceptibility to propaganda stems from broader societal, political, and economic conditions rather than specific technologies or bad actors. Wed, 24 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT beyond-technology-information-interference_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Riley Yesno examines the rise of far-right politics in Canada through its relationship to Indigenous peoples: the harms far-right organizing such as the Freedom Convoy poses to Indigenous communities, the movement’s parallel claims to sovereignty, and instances of Indigenous bandwagoning with right-wing movements. Wed, 24 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT indigenous-people-rise-of-right_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Regulating private online platforms presents a genuine governance dilemma — illegal content (including child exploitation and hate speech) proliferates in private spaces, yet effective regulatory mechanisms must balance enforcement with encryption and free expression principles in ways that existing frameworks have not resolved. Tue, 23 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT pg-private-online-spaces_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Platform verification systems — from Twitter's contested blue checkmark to Pornhub's content gating — offer an underexplored mechanism for implementing Bill C-11's Canadian content goals by distinguishing official, commercial, and Canadian-origin content within algorithmically curated feeds. Tue, 23 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT pg-verified-canadian-content-c11_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Canada's federal election laws — designed around broadcast-era placement costs — cannot capture paid influencer marketing, leaving a significant transparency and spending-limit loophole that campaigns can exploit as influencer-driven political communication grows. Tue, 23 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT pg-election-laws-influencers_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Bills C-11 and C-18 contain provisions that directly contradict Canada's stated foreign policy commitments to an open, interoperable, and human-rights-respecting internet as articulated in the Freedom Online Coalition's Ottawa Agenda, revealing a need for greater coherence between domestic regulation and digital diplomacy. Tue, 23 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT pg-domestic-foreign-digital-policy_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Risk management models for online safety legislation can and should target 'lawful but awful' content at the systemic level — through algorithmic due diligence, user empowerment tools, and child protection obligations — without imposing removal mandates that would unconstitutionally restrict free expression. Tue, 23 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT pg-diligent-platform-lawful-awful_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Empirical evidence contradicts the widely deployed claim that online harms regulation produces a chilling effect on speech; well-designed regulation can instead empower expression, particularly for women and minorities who are disproportionately silenced by harassment and abuse. Fri, 19 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT pg-online-harms-regulation-speech_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Platform data is inherently social — blurring public and private through technical architecture, algorithmic inference, and networked interaction — requiring a dual framework of both individual privacy rights against corporate extraction and public rights enabling collective action without collective harm. Fri, 19 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT pg-platform-data-social-privacy_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ The binary of personal versus anonymized data is insufficient for governing platform data practices; a distinct regulatory framework for 'human-derived data' is needed to address collective and group-level harms that fall outside current privacy law's individual-rights paradigm. (French-language essay by Teresa Scassa.) Fri, 19 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT pg-governing-human-derived-data_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Canada's existing privacy legislation cannot adequately address platform harms because it focuses narrowly on personally identifiable information, failing to govern the group-level harms that emerge when de-identified, human-derived data is mined for behavioral inference and discrimination. Fri, 19 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT pg-beyond-personal-information_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Fears of a 'splinternet' caused by domestic platform regulation are ideologically inflated; national regulatory diversity is normal in every other global industry, and sound platform governance — as the banking sector analogy demonstrates — can coexist with policy interoperability without fragmenting the internet. Fri, 19 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT pg-splinternet-policy-interoperability_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ ChatGPT's plug-in rollout reveals its owners' ambition to become the internet's primary infrastructure layer, built on the extraction of information commons and low-wage ghost work — problems that Canada's AI legislation (AIDA) must address through collective rights frameworks rather than individual harm protections alone. Fri, 19 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT pg-chatgpt-infrastructural-ambitions_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Platform companies' net-zero pledges are undermined by opaque, proprietary carbon accounting systems and continued environmental harms; bridging the artificial divide between climate policy and platform governance requires mandatory transparency, accountability, and standardization of corporate carbon tracking. Fri, 19 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT pg-carbon-tracking-net-zero_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Platform mediated work constitutes a form of 'private government' that systematically subordinates workers through algorithmic control and misclassification; re-governing it requires combining labour law reform, collective organizing rights, and portable benefit schemes across both ground and cloud work contexts. Fri, 19 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT pg-platform-mediated-work_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ A framework for understanding Canada's platform governance agenda across four interlinked domains — content, data, competition, and infrastructure — applied to sixteen policy briefs addressing bills C-11, C-18, AIDA, and Competition Act reform. Thu, 18 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT pg-series-introduction_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Une analyse du rôle de la mésinformation lors de l'élection provinciale québécoise de 2022, examinant les dynamiques de désinformation en français au Québec. Wed, 15 Mar 2023 00:00:00 GMT quebec-election-misinfo_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Executive summary of the final report of the Quebec Election Misinformation Project, which identified and evaluated the spread and consequences of misinformation circulating during the 2022 Quebec provincial election using automated and manual social media monitoring combined with representative pre- and post-election surveys. Wed, 15 Mar 2023 00:00:00 GMT quebec-misinfo-executive-summary_2023 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ A collaboration between interdisciplinary researchers at the Cybersecure Policy Exchange at Toronto Metropolitan University, McGill University’s Centre for Media, Technology and Democracy, and Princeton University’s Center for Information Technology Policy, this report analyzes the Artificial Intelligence and Data Act (AIDA) proposed in Bill C-27. It identifies key gaps in public consultation, oversight, application to government institutions, definitions, and human rights protections, with corresponding recommendations. Wed, 02 Nov 2022 00:00:00 GMT aida-comments_2022 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ This mid-election analysis from the Quebec Election Misinformation Project summarizes misinformation observed during the first half of the 2022 Quebec provincial election campaign. Drawing on automated and human monitoring of social media and a daily survey, it identifies three dominant narratives: perceptions of biased polls and media coverage, misinformation about the electoral process, and fears of an authoritarian shift under a re-elected Coalition Avenir Québec. Fri, 23 Sep 2022 00:00:00 GMT quebec-misinfo-midelection_2022 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ A brief submitted jointly with the Cybersecure Policy Exchange to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics for its study on the use and impact of facial recognition technology. The authors put forward recommendations to safeguard Canadians' rights and freedoms amid the rapid public and private adoption of facial recognition, including its known risks of identity-based discrimination and data privacy infringement. Mon, 20 Jun 2022 00:00:00 GMT facial-recognition-technology-submission_2022 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Platform accountability and transparency framework from Year 2 of the Canadian Commission on Democratic Expression. Sun, 01 May 2022 00:00:00 GMT ccde-final-report_2022 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ A comprehensive report on misinformation and disinformation during Canada's 2021 federal election, analyzing cross-platform dynamics and key narratives. Mon, 04 Apr 2022 00:00:00 GMT federal-election-misinfo_2022 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ An essay in the Centre's Kids & Technology essay series. Shariff and Stonebanks present the iMPACTS policy model, a multi-sectored partnership approach to rehumanizing children's online communication. Drawing on four decades of research on youth and social media, dehumanization and scapegoating online, and legal responses to teen suicides, they outline how academic, legal, educational, and industry partners can jointly address harmful online communication among young people. Mon, 08 Nov 2021 00:00:00 GMT impacts-policy-model_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ An essay in the Centre's Kids & Technology essay series. Stark examines how facial recognition technologies (FRTs) are being deployed in ways that particularly affect Canadian young people, from schools and policing to commercial 'privacy loss leader' applications, arguing that youth sit at the intersection of institutional social control and digital advertising and that Canada should heed international debates before entrenching these systems. Mon, 08 Nov 2021 00:00:00 GMT facial-recognition-canadian-youth_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ An essay in the Centre's Kids & Technology essay series. Laird argues that schools need to go beyond legal compliance to protect student privacy, examining tech-driven school safety initiatives and COVID-19 monitoring tools and setting out who should be involved in governing student data and which issues most urgently need better governance. Mon, 08 Nov 2021 00:00:00 GMT improving-student-privacy_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ An essay in the Centre's Kids & Technology essay series. Steeves argues that policy frameworks conceived around a binary of online benefits and risks have allowed pervasive commercial data collection to constrain young people's lives, and calls for rethinking data governance to place children's human rights, rather than data flows, at the centre. Mon, 08 Nov 2021 00:00:00 GMT childrens-rights-datafied-world_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ An essay in the Centre's Kids & Technology essay series. Banet-Weiser examines how authenticity is performed in influencer culture, tracing how visibility, vulnerability, burnout, scandal, and recovery are mobilized by predominantly white influencers, and what these performances mean for the young audiences who consume them. Mon, 08 Nov 2021 00:00:00 GMT white-influencer-vulnerability_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ An essay in the Centre's Kids & Technology essay series. Bridle traces the history of children's media from Teletubbies to algorithmically generated YouTube video, examining how attention-driven platforms have reshaped what children watch and arguing that engagement-optimized infrastructures have turned children's programming into a machinery of distraction. Mon, 08 Nov 2021 00:00:00 GMT great-distractor_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ An essay for the AI Now Institute's 'A New AI Lexicon' project presenting a call for environmental justice in AI. Solomun and Bergmann argue that dominant 'sustainable AI' discourse abstracts away race, class, and place, and that grounding critical AI research in local struggles over economic and environmental justice moves the field beyond computational efficiency as the measure of technological sustainability. Wed, 20 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT ai-lexicon-sustainability_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ A paper selected for the 22nd Annual Conference of the Association of Internet Researchers examining the intersection of environmental justice and algorithmically mediated work. Through the case of the San Bernardino Airport Communities Coalition and Amazon's air cargo logistics expansion in Southern California, Solomun and Bergmann show how the warehouses, trucks, and logistics hubs behind platform ecosystems continue a long legacy of environmental racism in predominantly Latino, working-class communities. Wed, 13 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT diesel-death-zones-amazon-empire_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Drawing on W.E.B. Du Bois's use of data visualization as counter-narrative, this essay argues that a just climate transition requires 'cultural technologies' — human systems that reshape norms and mental models alongside technical innovations — with mapping tools that expose patterns of environmental racism as one concrete example. Fri, 01 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT ct-multicultural-technologies-climate-justice_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ AI systems are not merely data-extractive but resource-extractive in a deeper sense, dependent on mining, fossil fuels, and hyperscale data infrastructure whose environmental and social costs are systematically obscured by industry narratives of efficiency and future climate benefit. Fri, 01 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT ct-extractive-ai_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Quantitative data science applied to toxic prisons treats environmental injustice as a measurement problem, producing 'solutions' (like respite areas) that are inaccessible in practice and that normalize rather than challenge carceral systems; restorative data science must integrate survivor testimony and transformative justice goals. Fri, 01 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT ct-resisting-detached-datafication_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Canada's oil and gas industry, led by the Pathways Alliance, operates a coordinated obstruction network — combining Google ad buys on climate search terms, lobbying, and greenwashing campaigns — that systematically undermines federal climate action while expanding production. Fri, 01 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT ct-oil-gas-obstruction-network_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ The 'appliance wars' over gas stoves are not a new culture war but a predictable extension of longstanding oil culture wars in which fossil fuel identity politics, amplified by social media virality, are deployed to block climate policy and energy transition. Fri, 01 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT ct-oil-culture-wars-combustion_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Dominant conceptions of innovation exclude the communities most harmed by extractive technologies; addressing the polycrisis requires broadening the definition of innovation to recognize and resource the ingenuity of frontline and equity-deserving communities rather than relying on voluntary 'tech for good' initiatives from incumbent firms. Fri, 01 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT ct-upgrading-environmental-innovation_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ The US CHIPS Act's celebration of domestic semiconductor manufacturing obscures the massive environmental costs of chip fabrication — water consumption, toxic emissions, and underreported carbon output — that Intel and other beneficiaries have minimized in their lobbying and public communications. Fri, 01 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT ct-chips-environmental-impacts-hardware_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Ecoacoustic AI tools for biodiversity monitoring hold promise for conservation but replicate existing inequities unless co-designed with marginalized forest communities; justice-led approaches that center local knowledge and participatory design are essential to realizing technology's conservation potential in the Global South. Fri, 01 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT ct-conservation-justice-technology_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Researcher and activist Ingrid Waldron discusses how she came to environmental racism research in Nova Scotia, arguing that effective advocacy requires combining legislative campaigns, community organizing, and artistic expression rather than relying on any single tactic — an approach she calls 'throwing everything at the wall.' Fri, 01 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT ct-environmental-racism-diversity-tactics_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Submission to the federal government's 2021 consultation on its proposed approach to address harmful content online. Solomun and Owen argue the proposal fails to consider children's rights, and recommend recognizing a duty of care toward the best interests of the child, breaking the proposal into child-specific legislation with risk assessments, and mandating strict disclosure of manipulated facial and body imagery in paid and sponsored content. Mon, 20 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT online-harms-childrens-safety-submission_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ The third memo of the Canadian Election Misinformation Project documents how U.S.-style election-integrity misinformation spread into Canadian discourse during the 2021 federal election. Based on a survey of 5,482 Canadians and monitoring of more than seven million election-related tweets, it finds widespread misconceptions about how ballots are counted and partisan-patterned distrust of mail-in voting, with vote-fraud narratives circulating across Twitter, Facebook, TikTok, Telegram, and 4chan. Thu, 16 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT cemp-memo-3_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ The second memo of the Canadian Election Misinformation Project examines COVID-19 misinformation and its role in fuelling aggressive protests during the 2021 federal election campaign. Combining analysis of 8,709 Canadian news headlines with surveys of thousands of voters, it finds that protest coverage outpaced other major stories even though few Canadians supported the protesters, and that positive reactions to the disruptions were concentrated among those holding COVID-19 misperceptions and conspiracy beliefs. Mon, 13 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT cemp-memo-2_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ The first memo of the Canadian Election Misinformation Project examines Liberal candidate Chrystia Freeland's tweet of a deceptively edited video of Conservative Leader Erin O'Toole, the first major misinformation incident of the 2021 Canadian federal election. Drawing on a survey of 806 Canadians, it finds that most people who heard of the story encountered it through traditional news media rather than Twitter, that beliefs about its truthfulness split along partisan lines, and that the incident spawned further conspiratorial narratives about Twitter's own labelling. Thu, 26 Aug 2021 00:00:00 GMT cemp-memo-1_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Following an April 2021 panel that brought together competition officials from Australia, France, Germany, South Africa, the United Kingdom, and Canada, Anya Schiffrin reflects on Australia’s News Media Bargaining Code and asks whether it can — and should — be replicated in other countries, how it could be adapted to help independent news rather than only large media houses, and whether platform payments risk capturing journalism. Tue, 27 Apr 2021 00:00:00 GMT competition-ministers-supporting-journalism_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Following the Clearview AI scandal, this report examines the state of facial recognition technology in Canada, arguing that technology companies and law enforcement are taking advantage of weak privacy and procurement regimes to increase capital and power under the pretext of public safety. Stevens and Brandusescu analyze the gaps in Canadian privacy and procurement law exposed by police use of facial recognition and offer recommendations for its governance. Tue, 06 Apr 2021 00:00:00 GMT weak-privacy-weak-procurement-frt_2021 https://doi.org/10.1017/XPS.2021.10 Analysis of public support for pandemic relief programs and perceptions of deservingness of government aid during the COVID-19 pandemic. Wed, 31 Mar 2021 00:00:00 GMT covid-government-aid_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ In preparation for the first annual conference of the Platform Governance Research Network in March 2021, conference co-organizer and CMTD Research Director Sonja Solomun reflects, in an article for the Centre for International Governance Innovation, on the state of the platform governance research field and the gaps it urgently needs to address. Mon, 22 Mar 2021 00:00:00 GMT global-platform-governance-research-agenda_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Canada’s federal institutions are collecting, using, and disclosing people’s facial information without adequate direction and protection from the Privacy Act. This submission recommends amending the Act to explicitly account for biometric and facial information, safeguard its collection, use, and disclosure, align the Act with the Directive on Automated Decision-Making, and implement a federal moratorium on automated facial recognition until a comprehensive framework is developed in consultation with Canadians. Wed, 17 Feb 2021 00:00:00 GMT facing-realities-facial-recognition_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ In November 2020, the Cybersecure Policy Exchange at Ryerson University and the Tech Informed Policy initiative at McGill’s Centre for Media, Technology and Democracy co-organized a roundtable of 30 expert stakeholders and government officials, held under Chatham House Rules, on the governance of facial recognition technology. This report summarizes what was heard: how facial recognition software is being used by the public sector, views on a temporary prohibition on its use, and options proposed by participants to mitigate risk before and during its use. Tue, 16 Feb 2021 00:00:00 GMT frt-policy-roundtable-what-we-heard_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Ahead of anticipated Canadian take-down legislation for harmful online speech, this Harvard Journal of Law & Technology Digest article outlines legislative considerations on transparency, clarity, and design. Without weighing in on the merits of take-down legislation, the article highlights the importance of mandatory transparency reporting and of detailed legislation that clearly defines categories of unlawful speech and establishes both notice and counter-notice requirements. Sat, 13 Feb 2021 00:00:00 GMT platform-responsibility-regulation-canada_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Year 1 final report of the Canadian Commission on Democratic Expression focused on online hate. Wed, 27 Jan 2021 00:00:00 GMT ccde-harms-reduction_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ This essay provides an overview of Canada’s COVID Alert exposure notification app and of the key privacy risks that contact-tracing apps must address. Cofone argues that COVID Alert handles many of these risks well, but that residual drawbacks and limitations remain, and that individuals and policymakers alike benefit from a clear picture of the resolved and remaining risks when making decisions about the app. Thu, 07 Jan 2021 00:00:00 GMT covid-alert-privacy-surveillance-risks_2021 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ This report examines harmful online communication during Canada’s 2019 federal election, drawing on an analysis of approximately one million tweets directed at candidates and interviews with over 30 candidates and their communication staff. The authors recommend a policy response focused on processes, people, and accountability rather than individual pieces of content, including a social media council, greater support for targeted candidates, and independent researcher access to platform data. Mon, 14 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT processes-people-public-accountability_2020 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ A summary of key findings from Chris Tenove and Heidi Tworek’s report Processes, People, and Public Accountability, which documented three forms of harmful online communication during Canada’s 2019 federal election and found that over 40% of a million tweets directed at candidates were negative. The report recommends a policy response focused on processes, people, and accountability rather than on individual pieces of content. Mon, 14 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT processes-people-accountability-highlights_2020 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Drawing on historical and contemporary examples, this essay shows how states have exploited public health and safety concerns to expand surveillance of their subjects, demonstrating that monitoring during the COVID-19 pandemic is neither an aberration nor unprecedented. It also highlights how targets of surveillance have resisted such efforts, and closes with recommendations for rethinking surveillance and the role civil society plays in countering its harms. Thu, 26 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT frustrating-the-state-surveillance-civil-society_2020 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Drawing on data from the Policing the Pandemic Mapping Project, this essay develops four arguments for skepticism about the use of monetary fines to control the spread of COVID-19 in Canada: fining rests on a weak empirical evidence base; fines can reasonably be believed to cause greater harm than good, especially for marginalized populations; they were rolled out with minimal education, consultation, or oversight; and they contradict governments’ parallel goals of financial relief and a collective pandemic response. Tue, 03 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT monetary-penalties-policing-covid19_2020 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ This essay examines how employers responded to COVID-19 in a regulatory vacuum, adopting workplace health and safety measures built on measuring, monitoring, and data collection. Nguyen argues that these tools normalize workplace surveillance in the name of public health, emphasize individual behaviour, shift accountability onto workers, and carry new privacy implications as data-centric technologies are integrated into the workplace. Wed, 28 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT workplace-health-safety-digital-infrastructures_2020 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ The second of two briefings on facial recognition technology, this document outlines the technological, social, policy, and legal conditions required to lift a Canadian moratorium on facial recognition systems. It argues that private-sector moratoriums such as Microsoft’s and Amazon’s are not a substitute for public policy, and that conditions for lifting a national moratorium should include data governance frameworks, accountability measures, privacy protections, and social impact assessments. Mon, 05 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT facial-recognition-moratorium-briefing-2_2020 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0340685 Study examining how economic factors and prospective costs affected public compliance with social distancing measures during the COVID-19 pandemic. Mon, 14 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT covid-social-distancing_2020 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Prepared for the Canadian Commission on Democratic Expression, this report by Lex Gill provides an overview of hate speech and its relationship to freedom of expression in Canadian law. It reviews the criminal and administrative provisions governing hate speech, the legal tensions and policy questions that have historically animated the field, and the ways technological, economic and social change challenge how we think about harmful expression, closing with discussion questions for further dialogue. Thu, 20 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT legal-aspects-hate-speech-canada_2020 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ The first of two briefings on facial recognition technology, this document explains how facial recognition works and is used, and examines the implications of a federal moratorium on its use in Canada. It outlines the concerns, limitations, and potential harms of the technology — including its capacity to discriminate against certain demographics — and argues that a national moratorium would give legislators time to develop comprehensive and effective regulation. Tue, 18 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT facial-recognition-moratorium-briefing-1_2020 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ In this report for the Canadian Commission on Democratic Expression, Mike Ananny argues that social media platforms should be understood and regulated as media infrastructures — sociotechnical systems that make the “pictures in our heads” that publics rely on to think, feel, and act. Revisiting Walter Lippmann’s challenge for the platform era, he contends that platforms’ infrastructural elements are the best and most underexploited sites where regulation in the public interest can have the greatest impact. Mon, 10 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT public-interest-media-infrastructures_2020 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-021-01112-w Study of expert distrust and COVID-19 information seeking behaviors, examining the role of anti-intellectualism in shaping pandemic information preferences. Tue, 04 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT covid-anti-intellectualism_2020 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ This commentary examines platform content moderation in light of COVID-19 misinformation and Twitter’s decision to fact-check and hide posts by U.S. President Donald Trump while Facebook refused to act. Drawing on Mike Ananny’s work on media infrastructures, it argues that a concerted regulatory response to social media requires understanding the ideologies and financial incentives embedded in platforms’ algorithmic systems. Thu, 30 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT facebook-safe-harbour-hate-speech_2020 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Written as the 2020 Facebook ad boycott escalated, this commentary argues that market pressure alone cannot fix platform harms: the boycott touched less than five percent of Facebook’s revenue and the company refused to change its policies. Drawing on Taylor Owen’s analysis on CBC’s Front Burner, it contends that activists should focus on pushing governments to write and implement regulations that make platforms serve the interests of broader society. Thu, 30 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT governments-not-markets-platform-harms_2020 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Analysis of government health messaging effectiveness on social media platforms during the COVID-19 pandemic. Mon, 27 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT covid-public-health-social-media_2020 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ This rapid-response briefing outlines the differences between contact tracing and exposure notification and reviews the security and privacy risks, adoptability, and feasibility of three technologies: GPS-based contact tracing, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) contact tracing, and BLE exposure notification (the Apple/Google model). Should the federal government implement or endorse such a technology, the briefing recommends Bluetooth-based exposure notification, stressing that location data can never be fully anonymized. Thu, 09 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT contact-tracing-vs-exposure-notification_2020 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ This briefing provides a framework for evaluating proposals for Bluetooth exposure notification and contact tracing applications, organized around two themes: privacy and security, and adoptability and implementation. Its guiding questions help policymakers assess the effectiveness, feasibility, and potential harms of a given proposal, and demand thorough, transparent implementation details rather than vague technological promises. Thu, 09 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT contact-tracing-evaluation-questions_2020 https://doi.org/10.37016/mr-2020-028 An examination of COVID-19 misperceptions in Canada, finding that social media consumption was associated with greater misperceptions while traditional news media consumption was associated with more accurate beliefs. Mon, 01 Jun 2020 00:00:00 GMT covid-misperceptions_2020 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ Lessons from monitoring Canada's 2019 federal election information environment through the Digital Democracy Project, a precursor initiative to the Media Ecosystem Observatory. Fri, 01 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT cdn-digital-media-2019-election_2020 https://doi.org/10.1017/S0008423920000311 Analysis of political elite and public response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada, documenting a rare moment of cross-partisan consensus. Thu, 16 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT covid-cross-partisan-consensus_2020 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ A study of vaccine hesitancy in Canada examining the relationship between information consumption, attitudes toward vaccines, and the broader information ecosystem. Wed, 01 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT vaccine-hesitancy_2020 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ An examination of Canada’s digital media environment during the election period, finding partisans consume content aligned with their existing views. Fri, 18 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT ddp-research-memo-7_2019 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ An analysis of political advertising during the 2019 campaign, including Facebook spending patterns across parties and public responses to different ad types. Thu, 10 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT ddp-research-memo-6_2019 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ An analysis of public support for fact-checking and of the social media discourse around the Trudeau blackface controversy during the 2019 campaign. Wed, 02 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT ddp-research-memo-5_2019 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ An examination of Canadian public opinion on immigration and how factual information about immigration and the economy shifts perceptions. Mon, 16 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT ddp-research-memo-4_2019 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ An analysis of polarization in Canada finding that affective polarization exists among partisans but is not driven by social media echo chambers. Mon, 02 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT ddp-research-memo-3_2019 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ An examination of the gap between high Canadian public concern about climate change and lower support for specific climate policy measures such as carbon taxes. Thu, 22 Aug 2019 00:00:00 GMT ddp-research-memo-2_2019 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ The Digital Democracy Project baseline report on Canadian media consumption, news trust, and the relationship between media exposure and misinformation ahead of the 2019 federal election. Thu, 08 Aug 2019 00:00:00 GMT ddp-research-memo-1_2019 https://mediatechdemocracy.com/en/publications/ An 18-team collaboration examining Canada's 2019 election digital ecosystem through the Digital Ecosystem Research Challenge. Fri, 05 Apr 2019 00:00:00 GMT digital-ecosystem-research-challenge_2019