Media
Medium Posts
- Ad Observer over collection incident report
Tl;dr: The Ad Observer team discovered that a code formatting change by Facebook led to Ad Observer’s inadvertent collection of the top public comments on ~200 Facebook ads. None of these comments were seen by anyone other than NYU researchers. The researchers deleted all…
- Testimony of Laura Edelson, NYU Cybersecurity for Democracy
Before the Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight, U.S. House Science, Space, and Technology Committee Hearing on “The Disinformation Black Box: Researching Social Media Data” September 28, 2021 Good afternoon Chairman Foster, Ranking Member Obernolte, and the members of…
- Understanding Engagement with (Mis)Information News Sources on Facebook
Posts from misinformation news sources got six times more engagement than factual information in lead up to 2020 elections by Laura Edelson, Minh-Kha Nguyen, Ian Goldstein, Oana Goga, Tobias Lauinger, and Damon McCoy. This summary is based on an upcoming paper which has been…
- ‘Inside Amazon’ Facebook ads surged after Teamsters union drive announced
Ads focused on company’s minimum wage policy, a company talking point when facing criticism from lawmakers & critics A new analysis of Amazon corporate 2021 spending on Facebook political ads by NYU Cybersecurity for Democracy reveals patterns of strategic spending nationally as…
- Researchers, NYU, Knight Institute Condemn Facebook’s Effort to Squelch Independent Research about…
Researchers, NYU, Knight Institute Condemn Facebook’s Effort to Squelch Independent Research about Misinformation Say Facebook is moving to silence independent research into Facebook’s practices regarding political advertising, the spread of COVID 19 misinformation, and efforts…
- Cybersecurity for Democracy
Our theory of change for reducing online harms The NYU Cybersecurity for Democracy project is a research-based effort to expose online threats to our social fabric — and recommend how to counter them. Our focus is on systems, revealing the ways that online platforms leave…
- Platforms: It’s time to show your work
Platforms: it’s time to show your work Transparency for online advertising is essential for holding platforms accountable As a scientist, I’m judged not just by my analysis and findings: my work also must be reproducible by other researchers. They need access to the data and code…
- The political ads Facebook won’t show you
The 2020 elections may be over, but undisclosed content about U.S. political issues flourishes online Even as Michigan’s Democratic governor and a senator offer plans to create incentives for wind, solar, and other renewable sources, when individual wind farms are proposed in the…
- When social trust is the attack
How bad actors exploited social media algorithms to erode users’ confidence in democratic institutions On January 6th, 2021 an armed and angry mob stormed the U.S. Capitol. Poll data gathered shortly after the insurrection indicated that millions of Americans believed that…
- Far right news sources on Facebook more engaging
Far-right news sources on Facebook more engaging Unlike other news across the political spectrum, no “misinformation penalty” for far-right pages by Laura Edelson, Minh-Kha Nguyen, Ian Goldstein, Oana Goga, Tobias Lauinger, and Damon McCoy. Facebook has become a major way people…
In the News
2021
- "Social Media Companies Fail at Curbing Spanish-Language Misinformation: Report," Zoe Strozewski, Newsweek, November 29, 2021.
- "Inside the 'big wave' of misinformation targeted at Latinos," Amanda Seitz and Will Weissert, Associated Press, November 29, 2021.
- "Facebook Papers: UMass Amherst professor Ethan Zuckerman partnering with Gizmodo, ACLU and other universities to make documents public," Cassie McGrath, MassLive, November 23, 2021.
- "We’re Making the Facebook Papers Public. Here’s Why and How," Dell Cameron, Andrew Couts, and Shoshana Wodinsky, Gizmodo, November 22, 2021.
- "Facebook’s new academic research API opens in early access," Taylor Hatmaker, TechCrunch, November 15, 2021.
- "Facebook parent Meta to remove sensitive ad categories," Barbara Ortutay, Associated Press, November 10, 2021.
- "Facebook under pressure to curb climate misinformation," Rebecca Klar, The Hill, November 4, 2021.
- "Threats, red lines and roadblocks stand in way of a deal." Rachel Bade, Eli Okun and Garrett Ross, Politico, October 26, 2021.
- "In-fighting, data show potential bias at Facebook against conservative outlets," Alec Schemmel, The National Desk, October 25, 2021.
- "In-fighting, data show potential bias at Facebook against conservative outlets," Alec Schemmel, The National Desk, October 25, 2021.
- "Perfecting an imperfect future," NYU Tandon School of Engineering, October 21, 2021.
- "Meeting NYC's Growing Tech Needs: Q&A With NYC Media Lab's Rosenbaum," Charlene Weisler, MediaPost, October 20, 2021.
- "Facebook must prioritise children’s wellbeing," Dan Milmo, The Guardian, October 15, 2021.
- "The Facebook whistleblower’s revelations are rocking the U.K., too," Cristiano Lima, The Washington Post, October 15, 2021.
- "Facebook’s biggest critics say whistleblower’s ideas for regulating the tech giant aren’t enough," Cristiano Lima, The Washington Post, October 8, 2021.
- "Faceoff: Combating fake news on Facebook," David Pogue, CBS News, October 3, 2021.
- "Altercation: The Facebook Threat to Democracy—and Us All," Eric Alterman, The American Prospect, October 1, 2021.
- "Facebook ads have enabled discrimination based on gender, race and age. We need to know how ‘dark ads’ affect Australians," Mark Andrejevic, Abdul Karim Obeid, Daniel Angus, and Jean Burgess, The Conversation, September 30, 2021.
- "Open AI Chairman and CTO Greg Brockman to Keynote the NYC Media Lab Summit 2021: Future Imperfect," NYC Media Lab, PR Newswire, September 29, 2021.
- "Tobacco giants don't get to decide who does research on smoking. Why does Facebook get to dictate studies?," Thomas Claburn, The Register, September 29, 2021.
- "Researcher banned from Facebook beseeches Congress to regulate social media," Thomas Macaulay, The Next Web, September 29, 2021.
- "The fight to get tech giants to reveal their data is coming to a head in Congress," Cristiano Lima, The Washington Post, September 29, 2021.
- "Yes, Rep. Casten. Facebook anticipated violence on January 6th.," Justin Hendrix, Tech Policy Press, September 29, 2021.
- "Experts Slam Social Media Platforms' Data Policies," Dan Gunderman, Information Security Media Group, September 29, 2021.
- "Researcher To Urge Congress To Require Full Advertising Transparency From Platforms," Karlene Lukovitz, MediaPost, September 28, 2021.
- "Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis launches investigation into Facebook for election interference over its 'whitelisting policy that allowed certain elites to post whatever they wanted without review'," Ariel Zilber and Harriet Alexander, Daily Mail, September 28, 2021.
- "House Committee Explores Social Media Research and Data Transparency," Justin Hendrix, Tech Policy Press, September 28, 2021.
- "Will lawmakers really pass $65B for broadband?," Benjamin Din, Politico, September 27, 2021.
- "How Facebook Hinders Misinformation Research," Laura Edelson and Damon McCoy, Scientific American, September 22, 2021.
- "How Facebook Hinders Misinformation Research," Laura Edelson and Damon McCoy, Scientific American, September 22, 2021.
- "Researchers say Facebook is interfering with their tools to study News Feed," Karissa Bell, Engadget, September 21, 2021.
- "No More Apologies: Inside Facebook’s Push to Defend Its Image," Ryan Mac and Sheera Frenkel, The New York Times, September 21, 2021.
- "Facebook Takes Aim at Ad Blockers, Hits Blind Users and Researchers Instead," Shoshana Wodinsky, Gizmodo, September 21, 2021.
- "Facebook Rolls Out News Feed Change That Blocks Watchdogs from Gathering Data," Corin Faife, The Markup, September 21, 2021.
- "Data Facebook gave to misinformation researchers was misleading, company admits," Andrew Wyrich, The Daily Dot, September 13, 2021.
- "Facebook Has Been Found Giving Academics Researchers Incomplete Data, Report Says," Sophie Webster, Tech Times, September 11, 2021.
- "Facebook reportedly provided inaccurate data to misinformation researchers," Kim Lyons, The Verge, September 11, 2021.
- "Facebook has been giving misinformation researchers incomplete data," Mariella Moon, Engadget, September 11, 2021.
- "Free speech in a pandemic: Congress wrestles with drawing a line," Christa Case Bryant, The Christian Science Monitor, September 8, 2021.
- "The fight to study what happens on Facebook," Karissa Bell, Engadget, September 7, 2021.
- "Facebook posts from misinformation sources get 6 times more engagement than reputable news sites, new study says," Isobel Asher Hamilton, Business Insider, September 6, 2021.
- "New study: Misinformation gets 6x more clicks than news," Reliable Sources with Brian Stelter, CNN, September 5, 2021.
- "Researchers studying Facebook misinformation say they were deplatformed," Ramishah Maruf, CNN Business, September 5, 2021.
- "New study: Misinformation gets 6x more clicks than news," Reliable Sources with Brian Stelter, CNN, September 5, 2021.
- "Facebook Misinformation Generates More Clicks Than Factual News [STUDY]," Joseph Henry, Tech Times, September 4, 2021.
- "Misinformation on Facebook got six times more clicks than factual news during the 2020 election, study says," Elizabeth Dwoskin, The Washington Post, September 3, 2021.
- "New study will show misinformation on Facebook gets way more engagement than news," Sean O'Kane, The Verge, September 3, 2021.
- "Decoding the Social Effects Of Media with Machine Learning," Julien Simon, AWS Blog, September 3, 2021.
- "Misinformation on Facebook got six times more clicks than factual news during the 2020 election, study says," Elizabeth Dwoskin, The Washington Post, September 3, 2021.
- "Thousands of posts around January 6 riots go missing from Facebook transparency tool," Mark Scott, Politico, August 31, 2021.
- "Telling conservatives it’s a shot to ‘restore our freedoms’: How online ads are promoting coronavirus vaccination," Jeremy Merrill and Drew Harwell, The Washington Post, August 24, 2021.
- "Why Facebook Is Suddenly Afraid of the F.T.C.," Sue Halpern, The New Yorker, August 23, 2021.
- "Facebook buried an earlier report on popular posts. So much for transparency.," Adam Rosenberg, Mashable,
- "The Lawfare Podcast: Facebook Shuts Down Research On Itself," Jen Patja Howell, The Lawfare Podcast, August 19, 2021.
- "Only Facebook knows the extent of its misinformation problem. And it’s not sharing, even with the White House," Elizabeth Dwoskin, Cat Zakrzewski and Tyler Pager, The Washington Post, August 19, 2021.
- "Facebook’s War on Research Comes at a Cost to Our Democracy," Viviana Padelli, Decode Democracy by MapLight, August 19, 2021.
- "What Content Is Most Popular on Facebook? It's Complicated," Nathaniel Mott, PC Mag, August 18, 2021.
- "Researchers Dig Up Embarrassing Data About Facebook — And Lose Access To Their Accounts," Dan Kennedy, GBH 89.7, August 18, 2021.
- "Mozilla, MacArthur and Ford foundations unite to oppose Facebook ban on NYU disinformation research," Jonathan Greig, ZDNet, August 18, 2021.
- "Why no one really knows how bad Facebook’s vaccine misinformation problem is," Shirin Ghaffary, Vox, August 16, 2021.
- „Facebook hat eine Linie überschritten“ Christina Brause, Die Welt, August 14, 2021.
- "Facebook is obstructing our work on disinformation. Other researchers could be next," Laura Edelson and Damon McCoy, The Guardian, August 14, 2021.
- "Facebook butts heads with Instagram researchers studying photo site's algorithm," Oscar Gonzalez, CNET, August 13, 2021.
- "Researchers shut down Instagram study following backlash from Facebook," Igor Bonifacic, Engadget, August 13, 2021.
- "Facebook shut down German research on Instagram algorithm, researchers say," Russell Brandom, The Verge, August 13, 2021.
- "Facebook’s excuses for shutting down research ring hollow," Mathew Ingram, Columbia Journalism Review, August 13, 2021.
- "Cause for Terror — and Some Hope — in New Climate Report," Undark Staff, Undark, August 13, 2021.
- "Laura Edelson on why her research got her banned by Facebook," Tavis Smiley, August 12, 2021.
- "Facebook’s Attack on Research is Everyone's Problem," Rory Mir and Cory Doctorow, Electronic Frontier Foundation, August 12, 2021.
- "Princeton researchers ditch Facebook political ad project after the platform used a debunked FTC privacy defense," Kate Kaye, Digiday, August 12, 2021.
- https://open.spotify.com/show/2Mt8oyeVcsgEquDIZnysU6
- "Big Tech can’t outrun demands for accountability," Financial Times, August 11, 2021.
- "PANETTA: Recall a ‘roll of the dice’ — PRISCILLA CHAN drops $750,000 on anti-recall effort — TEACHERS must get VAX OR TEST, Newsom to say — PG&E’s role examined in DIXIE FIRE," Carla Marinucci, Jeremy B. White, Graph Massara and Camryn Dadey, Politico, August 11, 2021.
- "Facebook Allows Republican Fundraising Ads Falsely Linking COVID Surge To Migrants," Karlene Lukovitz, Digital News Daily, August 11, 2021.
- "We Research Misinformation on Facebook. It Just Disabled Our Accounts." Laura Edelson and Damon McCoy, NY Times, August 10, 2021
- "Facebook Shuts Down NYU Political Ad Targeting Study Over Use of Data Scraping Tool, FTC Steps in," Scott Ikeda, CPO Magazine, August 10, 2021.
- "Democrats want answers over Facebook’s decision to ban ad researchers," Andrew Wyrich, The Daily Dot, August 10, 2021.
- "Senators Probe Facebook’s Decision to Remove NYU Researchers from Platform," Christina Tabacco, Law Street Media, August 10, 2021.
- "Facebook stonewalls Biden on stopping vaccine disinformation — because right-wing lies are enriching," Amanda Marcotte, Salon, August 10, 2021.
- "Joe Biden Has Had It Up to Here With Facebook’s COVID Misinformation," Eric Lutz, Vanity Fair, August 10, 2021.
- "We Research Misinformation on Facebook. It Just Disabled Our Accounts," Laura Edelson and Damon McCoy, The New York Times, August 10, 2021
- "The Clash Between Facebook and Independent Researchers" Ryan Knutson, The Journal, August 10, 2021
- "Académicos de la Universidad de Nueva York piden a Facebook reabrir sus cuentas luego de ser cerradas por “incumplimiento de condiciones”," Alexa Liendo, La Opinión, August 9, 2021.
- "Lawmakers Question Facebook Over Shutdown Of NYU Political Ad Research," Wendy Davis, Media Post, August 9, 2021.
- "Virginia senator presses Facebook on decision to remove independent researchers from platform," Chatham Star Tribune, August 9, 2021.
- "Democrats press Facebook over suspension of researchers' accounts," Rebecca Klar, The Hill, August 9, 2021.
- "Senators press Facebook for answers about why it cut off misinformation researchers," Taylor Hatmaker, TechCrunch, August 9, 2021.
- "Hillicon Valley: Cryptocurrency amendment blocked in Senate | Dems press Facebook over suspension of researchers' accounts | Thousands push back against Apple plan to scan US iPhones for child sexual abuse images," Rebecca Klar, Maggie Miller and Chris Mills Rodrigo, The Hill, August 9, 2021.
- "Crypto tax provision intact in infrastructure deal, as final vote approaches," Leah Nylen, Politico, August 9, 2021.
- "Facebook's accountability bind," Scott Rosenberg, Axios, August 9, 2021.
- "Senators Demand Answers From Zuckerberg Over Suspended Researchers," David Gilbert, Vice, August 9, 2021.
- "Facebook pressed by U.S. lawmakers on disabling NYU research accounts," Diane Bartz, Reuters, August 9, 2021.
- "Senators Want Facebook To Provide More Info About Data Privacy And Political Ads Policies," Marty Swant, Forbes, August 9, 2021.
- "TikTok, YouTube and Facebook Want to Appear Trustworthy. Don’t Be Fooled." Ashley Boyd, New York Times, August 8, 2021.
- "FTC disputes Facebook reasoning for shutting down NYU disinformation project," Jonathan Greig, ZDNet, August 8, 2021.
- "Facebook shut down political ad research, daring authorities to pursue regulation," Christianna Silva, Mashable, August 8, 2021.
- Facebook Bans NYU Researchers' Accounts", Ali Velshi, MSNBC, August 8, 2021
- "Facebook Disables Access for Researchers Studying Misinformation", Pamela Brown, CNN, August 7, 2021
- "Facebook vs. Independent Research" Julia Angwin, The Markup, August 8, 2021
- "Facebook Cares About Privacy—But Only If You’re an Advertiser," Ethan Zuckerman, The Atlantic, August 6, 2021
- "Facebook Disables NYU Research Accounts," Emma Whitford, Inside Higher Ed, August 6, 2021.
- "Altercation: Who’s More Dangerous? Murdoch or Zuckerberg?," Eric Alterman, The American Prospect, August 6, 2021.
- "Facebook’s justification for banning third-party researchers ‘inaccurate,’ says FTC," James Vincent, The Verge, August 6, 2021.
- "It’s a lousy time for Facebook to be rattling the FTC’s cage," David Meyer, Fortune, August 6, 2021.
- "FTC Slams Facebook for Lying About Why It Shut Down Misinformation Research," David Gilbert, Vice, August 6, 2021.
- "The Technology 202: As senators zero in on deepfakes, some experts fear their focus is misplaced," Cristiano Lima, The Washington Post, August 6, 2021.
- "Libs RAGE: Facebook Shuts Down ‘Misinformation’ Research Project Due to Privacy Concerns," Gabriela Pariseau, MRC News Busters, August 6, 2021.
- "FTC to Facebook: Don't Blame Us for Your Ban on NYU Researchers," Michael Kan, PC Mag, August 6, 2021.
- "Broadband budgeting pits FCC against Commerce," Leah Nylen, PC Mag, August 6, 2021.
- "FTC Accuses Facebook of Misusing Privacy Decree as Reason for Banning Third-Party Researchers is 'Inaccurate'," Sophie Webster, Tech Times, August 6, 2021.
- "FTC says Facebook improperly banned disinformation researchers," Claire Goforth, The Daily Dot, August 6, 2021.
- "FTC rejects Facebook's reasons for shutting down NYU ad researchers," CNBC TechTime, August 6, 2021.
- "FTC Takes Aim at Facebook Following NYU Researcher Ban," Lucas Nolan, Breitbart, August 6, 2021.
- "Facebook blocks research into political ads, falsely blames FTC privacy order," August 6, 2021.
- “People do not trust that Facebook is a healthy ecosystem”, Shirin Ghaffary, Vox, August 6, 2021.
- "The FTC Pushes Back on Facebook Revoking Researchers’ Access," Max A. Cherney, Barrons, August 6, 2021.
- "FTC slams Facebook for suspending researchers who were studying the social media giant's ad-targeting," Aleeya Mayo, Business Insider, August 6, 2021.
- "There’s a better way for Facebook to resolve its fight with NYU researchers," Casey Newton, The Verge, August 6, 2021.
- "FTC hits Facebook over 'inaccurate' explanation for banning researchers," Rebecca Klar, The Hill, August 6, 2021.
- "Facebook Killed Research Into Capitol Riot to Protect Itself—Not Users," Dell Cameron, Gizmodo, August 6, 2021.
- "Facebook accused of silencing researchers running NYU’s Ad Observatory," Anna Versai, TechnoWize, August 5, 2021.
- "Protocol Source Code," Benjamin Pimentel and Source Code Staff, Protocol, August 5, 2021.
- "The Technology 202: Facebook shuttered a crucial tool for oversight. Lawmakers say it just made their jobs harder," Cristiano Lima, Washington Post, August 5, 2021
- "Facebook’s ban of third-party researchers ‘deeply concerning’," James Vincent, The Verge, August 5, 2021.
- "Facebook sparks outrage by shutting down NYU misinformation study," Jonathan Greig , ZDNet, August 5, 2021.
- "What’s Driving Facebook’s Spat With NYU," Kurt Wagner, Bloomberg, August 5, 2021.
- "Facebook shuts down research, blames user privacy rules," Mathew Ingram, Columbia Journalism Review, August 5, 2021
- "Facebook stops NYU researchers from examining misinformation, is criticized for 'silencing' transparency efforts," Tonya Riley, Cyberscoop, August 5, 2021.
- "Facebook: Damian Collins and US politicians criticise data ban," BBC News, August 5, 2021.
- "FTC rejects Facebook’s justification for cutting off researchers as ‘inaccurate’," Cristiano Lima, The Washington Post, August 5, 2021.
- "FTC Official Blasts Facebook Over Revoking Researchers’ Access," Naomi Nix, Bloomberg, August 5, 2021.
- "The FTC hits back at Facebook after it shut down NYU research," Naomi Nix, Protocol, August 5, 2021.
- "FTC official raps Facebook for booting political ads probe," Marcy Gordon, Associated Press, August 5, 2021.
- "U.S. FTC says Facebook misused privacy decree to shut down ad research," Diane Bartz, Reuters, August 5, 2021.
- "Facebook Shuts Down Project Analyzing the Impact of Misinformation in Political Ads on the Platform," Andrew Hutchinson, Social Media Today, August 5, 2021.
- "FTC rebukes Facebook for ‘misleading’ comments about NYU researchers," Karissa Bell, Engadget, August 5, 2021.
- "Facebook just lost some friends," Rob Litterst, The Hustle, August 6, 2021.
- "Researchers, Knight Institute Call on Facebook to Reinstate Researchers' Accounts in Light of FTC Statement," Knight First Columbia Institute at Columbia University, August 5, 2021.
- "Facebook censured by US trade commission for suspending researchers’ accounts," Financial Times, August 5, 2021.
- "Facebook is an ad tech company. That’s how we should regulate it.," Nathalie Maréchal, Tech Policy Press, August 5, 2021.
- "Facebook is eager to be the arbiter of truth about itself. The NYU Ad Observer Ban shows us why.," David Carroll, Tech Policy Press, August 5, 2021.
- "Facebook Disables Accounts Of NYU Research Project It Claims Violated User Privacy," Ailan Evans, Daily Caller, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook Move Against NYU Research Stirs Scraping Policy Feud," Andrea Vittorio, Bloomberg Law, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook bans researchers who were investigating Facebook ads," Andrew Wyrich, Daily Dot, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook disabled accounts of researchers looking into political ad practices," Augusta Free Press, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook shuts out NYU academics' research on political ads," Barbara Ortutay, Associated Press, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook and academics row over data access," BBC News, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook BANS team of NYU engineering students and professors who designed browser extension to reveal data on political ads," Dan Avery, Daily Mail, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook Boots NYU Researchers Who Were Using a Browser Extension to Study Political Ads," David Cohen, AdWeek, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook Just Suspended the Accounts of Some of its Biggest Critics," David Gilbert, Vice, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook Bans Vaccine Hoax Researchers, Blames FTC," Dell Cameron, Gizmodo, August 4, 2021.
- "Senator slams Facebook for closing political ad research accounts," Deutsche Welle, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook disables accounts of NYU team looking into political ad targeting," Erin Fox, News Brig, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook’s Reason for Banning Researchers Doesn’t Hold Up," Gilad Edelman, Wired, August 4, 2021.
- "NYU researchers accuse Facebook of ‘silencing’ them after accounts disabled," Hannah Murphy, Financial Times, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook Blocks COVID-19 Misinformation Researchers from NYU, Cuts off Access to Ad Library," Isabella James, Tech Times, August 4, 2021.
- "NYU researchers speak out after Facebook disables their accounts," Issie Lapowsky, Protocol, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook bans academics who researched ad transparency and misinformation on Facebook," James Vincent, The Verge, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook blocks researchers from scrutinising data," Joseph Brookes, InnovationAus, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook Shuts Down Users Researching Political Advertising," Karlene Lukovitz, Digital News Daily, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook Blacklists Academics Researching Ad Transparency," Lucas Nolan, Breitbart, August 4, 2021.
- "Hillicon Valley: Senators highlight security threats from China during rare public hearing | Facebook suspends accounts of NYU researchers who've criticized platform," MAGGIE MILLER,CHRIS MILLS RODRIGO AND REBECCA KLAR, The Hill, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook disables accounts of NYU team looking into political ad targeting," Mariella Moon, Engadget, August 4, 2021.
- "Top Lawmakers And Consumer Advocates Condemn Facebook’s Decision To Block Academic Research On Political Ads," Marty Swant, Forbes, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook banned researchers who pried into its ads and misinformation," Matt Wille, Input, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook Cuts Off Access for NYU Research Into Political-Ad Targeting," Meghan Bobrowsky, The Wall Street Journal, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook Bans NYU Researchers Investigating Political Ad Trends, Spending," Nathaniel Mott, PC Mag, August 4, 2021.
- "Researchers, NYU, Knight Institute Condemn Facebook’s Effort to Squelch Independent Research about Misinformation," Knight First Columbia Institute at Columbia Institute, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook Goes After NYU Ad Observatory In Attack on Critics," Real Facebook Oversight Board, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook suspends accounts of NYU researchers who've criticized platform," Rebecca Klar, The Hill, August 4, 2021.
- "U.S. lawmaker says Facebook move to cut off researcher access is 'deeply concerning'," Reuters, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook Boots NYU Disinformation Researchers Off Its Platform And Critics Cry Foul," Shannon Bond, NPR, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook cuts off NYU researcher access, prompting rebuke from lawmakers," Taylor Hatmaker, TechCrunch, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook takes bold stance on privacy – of its ads: Independent transparency research blocked," Thomas Claburn, The Register, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook bans NYU Ad Observatory's accounts for unauthorized data scraping," Usama Jawad, Neowin, August 4, 2021.
- "Mozilla calls out Facebook for its "counterproductive" approach to research," Usama Jawad, Neowin, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook disables New York University accounts studying political ads on platform," Victor Barreiro Jr., Rappler, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook scrapes some researchers," Casey Newton, Platformer, August 4, 2021.
- "Facebook Disables Accounts Tied to NYU Research Project," Kurt Wagner and Naomi Nix, Bloomberg, August 3, 2021.
- "Research Cannot Be the Justification for Compromising People’s Privacy," Mike Clark, Facebook Newsroom, August 3, 2021.
- "Facebook disables accounts tied to NYU's research into political ads," Queenie Wong, CNET, August 3, 2021.
- "Jeremy Merrill joins The Post’s Data team as a data journalist embedded on the Technology team," WashPostPR, The Washington Post, July 13, 2021.
- "Cybersecurity for Democracy," Cybersecurity for Democracy, Medium, June 17, 2021.
- "Platforms: it's time to show your work," Laura Edelson, Medium, June 17, 2021.
- "Privacy Without Monopoly, EU edition," Cory Doctorow, OneZero by Medium, June 11, 2021.
- "Facebook to take action against the sharing of misinformation," Alexis Christoforous and Kristin Myers, Yahoo Finance, May 27, 2021.
- "The political ads Facebook won’t show you," Nancy Watzman, Medium, May 12, 2021.
- "Facebook is ‘not a researchers-friendly space’ say academics encountering roadblocks to analyzing its 2020 election ad data," Kate Kaye, Digiday, May 4, 2021.
- "Republicans in key 2024 states targeted with anti-China ads," Lachlan Markey, Axios, April 27, 2021.
- "The platforms get in a scrape," Casey Newton, Platformer, April 13, 2021.
- "How Facebook’s Ad System Lets Companies Talk Out of Both Sides of Their Mouths," Jeremy B. Merrill, The Markup, April 13, 2021.
- Y
- "We need to know more about political ads. But can transparency be a trap?," Madelyn Webb and Bethan John, NiemanLab, March 30, 2021.
- "Is Cyberwar War?," Steven Cherry, IEEE Security, March 29, 2021.
- "When social trust is the attack," Laura Edelson, Medium, March 26, 2021.
- "Privacy Laws Giving Big Internet Companies A Convenient Excuse To Avoid Academic Scrutiny," Mike Masnick, Techdirt, March 26, 2021.
- "Tech CEOs Face Congressional Grilling," Colm Quinn, Foreign Policy, March 25, 2021.
- "POLITICO Digital Bridge: Tech CEOs — Global free speech — Transatlantic friction," Mark Scott, Politico, March 25, 2021.
- "Platforms vs. PhDs: How tech giants court and crush the people who study them," Issie Lapowsky, Protocol, March 19, 2021.
- "How Facebook got addicted to spreading misinformation," Karen Hao, MIT Technology Review, March 11, 2021.
- "Decoder Newsletter: Voting Rights, Privacy & Antitrust Take Center Stage," Margaret Sessa-Hawkins and Viviana Padelli, MapLight, March 8, 2021.
- "Far-right misinfo is big on Facebook, but it's Facebook that blocks attempts to fix it," Adam Rosenberg, Mashable, March 7, 2021.
- "Far-Right Misinformation Is Thriving On Facebook. A New Study Shows Just How Much," Michel Martin, NPR, March 6, 2021.
- "Talking Tech: If you are TV shopping, you need to know the facts about these buying myths," Mike Snider, USA Today, March 6, 2021.
- "Need to Know: March 4, 2021," American Press Institute, March 4, 2021.
- "Right-wing fake news scores far better engagement on Facebook than left-wing fake news, or real news - study," Daniel Rutledge, Newshub, March 4, 2021.
- "Far-right news and misinformation received the most engagement on Facebook during 2020 US election," James Vincent, The Verge, March 4, 2021.
- "Study: Facebook Users Find Fake News More Engaging Than Facts," Jessibelle Garcia, MakeUseOf, March 4, 2021.
- "Far-right sources on Facebook get more engagement than any other political posts, study finds," Lateshia Beachum, Washington Post, March 4, 2021.
- "Scores of political groups sidestepped Facebook’s ad ban," Mark Scott and Zach Montellaro, Politico, March 4, 2021.
- "Study shows lies perform better on Facebook if they’re right-wing-flavored," Mehreen Kasana, Input, March 4, 2021.
- "Far-right misinformation received highest engagement on Facebook: study," Rebecca Klar, The Hill, March 4, 2021.
- "Right-wing misinformation on Facebook is more engaging than its left-wing counterpart, research finds," Brian Fung, CNN, March 3, 2021
- "POLITICO Playbook PM: NRCC chief to Trump: Please don’t," Eugene Daniels, Rachael Bade, Eli Okun, and Garrett Ross, Politico, March 3, 2021.
- "Fake News Gets More Engagement on Facebook—But Only If It's Right-Wing" Gilad Edelman, Wired, March 3, 2021
- "What's popular on Facebook? Extreme far right political views and lies, study says" Jessica Guynn, USA Today, March 3, 2021
- "Far-right news sources on Facebook more engaging," Laura Edelson, Minh-Kha Nguyen, Ian Goldstein, Oana Goga, Tobias Lauinger, and Damon McCoy, Medium, March 3, 2021.
- "Far-right misinformation on Facebook outranks real news," Shannon Vavra, Cyberscoop, March 3, 2021.
- "Far-right misinformation gets by far the most engagement on Facebook, study finds," Summer Meza, The Week, March 3, 2021.
- "Study: Far-Right Propaganda Gets the Most Engagement on Facebook, Especially When It's Lies," Tom McKay, Gizmodo, March 3, 2021.
- "Google Has Been Allowing Advertisers to Exclude Nonbinary People from Seeing Job Ads," Jeremy B. Merrill, The Markup, February 11, 2021.
- "Facebook will let researchers study its election ad targeting data," Kris Holt, Engadget, January 25, 2021.
- "Facebook to grant access to targeting information about political ads," Rebecca Klar, The Hill, January 25, 2021.
- "Tech Firms Profited from Far-Right Militia Content Despite Ban on “ThreePercenters”," Jeremy B. Merrill, The Markup, January 21, 2021.
- "Opinion: Voluntary, piecemeal actions by online companies to cut down on misinformation are not enough," Nancy Watzman, The Colorado Sun, January 17, 2021.
- "How We Built a Facebook Inspector," Surya Mattu, Leon Yin, Angie Waller, Jon Keegan, The Markup, January 5, 2021.
- "New ‘Centrist’ Georgia Group Tied to Former Trump Lawyer," Lachlan Markay, Daily Beast, January 5, 2021.
- "Cory Doctorow: Neofeudalism and the Digital Manor," Cory Doctorow, Locus, January 4, 2021.
2020
- “Social media companies should permanently ban political advertising,” Eric Goldman and Irina Raicu, San Francisco Chronicle, December 8, 2020.(opinion)
- “After public criticism, Facebook will allow Political ad-tracking project to continue,” David Gilbert, Vice, December 4, 2020.
- "Facebook still has a problem with political ads. Now politicians want to solve it.," Mark Scott, Politico, November 30, 2020.
- “Facebook is going after its critics in the name of privacy,” Cory Doctorow, Wired, November 28, 2020. (opinion)
- "Facebook Is Trying To Ban A Browser For Offering Privacy: The Full Story," Manik Berry, Fossbytes, November 23, 2020.
- “Facebook shouldn’t block a journalist tool revealing our political ads are targeted,” Nancy Watzman, The Colorado Sun, November 22, 2020. (opinion)
- "Once Again, Facebook Is Using Privacy As A Sword To Kill Independent Innovation," Mitch Stoltz and Andrew Crocker, EFF, November 20, 2020.
- “How fake news aimed at Latinos thrives on social media,” Vox/Recode, November 19, 2020.
- "Why Facebook’s Blocking of New Political Ads May Fall Short," Davey Alba and Sheera Frenkel, The New York Times, November 17, 2020.
- "Targeting Trump Fans, QAnon Ad Slips Through Facebook’s Filters," Jeremy B. Merrill, The Markup, November 17, 2020.
- "Don’t Blame Section 230 for Big Tech’s Failures. Blame Big Tech.," Elliot Harmon, Electronic Frontier Foundation, November 16, 2020.
- “How Facebook ad spend predicted the US 2020 election,” New Statesman, November 12, 2020.
- “Facebook shields itself from scrutiny,” Colorado Journalism Review, November 11, 2020.
- “Facebook demands shutdown of NYU research on political ads targeting,” NYU Local, November 5, 2020.
- “Glitches, loopholes dent Facebook election disinformation efforts,” Agence France-Presse, November 3, 2020.
- "Facebook Takes Aim at NYU Web Scrapers," Schulte Roth & Zabel LLC, Lexology, November 3, 2020.
- Infotagion (podcast), November 2, 2020.
- “Political Groups Elude Facebook’s Election Controls Repost False Ads,” The Wall Street Journal, November 1, 2020.
- “Report suggests political media spending could reach $6.7 billion,” WCSC (South Carolina), October 30, 2020.
- "What it’s like to actually use Facebook’s ad transparency tools," Paul Duke, Medium, October 30, 2020.
- “Facebook glitch blocks certain political ads, raising new questions about transparency,” Vox/Recode, October 30, 2020.
- "Ahead of the Election, New Tools Help NYU Researchers Shed Light on the Internet’s Dark Power," Sarah Binney, NYU News, October 30, 2020.
- "Facebook admits it 'improperly' blocked some political ads due to 'technical issues' as Joe Biden's campaign slams it for being 'wholly unprepared'," Tyler Sonnemaker, Business Insider India, October 30, 2020.
- “Facebook’s threat to the NYU Ad Observatory is an attack on ethical research,” NiemanLab, October 29, 2020 (opinion).
- “Michigan again a target of election disinformation,” Detroit Free Press, October 29, 2020.
- "Facebook Charged Biden a Higher Price Than Trump for Campaign Ads," Jeremy B. Merrill, The Markup, October 29, 2020.
- "How We Analyzed the Cost of Trump’s and Biden’s Campaign Ads on Facebook," Jeremy B. Merrill, The Markup, October 29, 2020.
- “Checking Facebook: Candidates add social media buys to their arsenal ahead of election,” VTDigger, October 29, 2020.
- "Trump campaign has spent over $380K on Facebook ads in New Mexico since July, report shows," Russell Contreras, Las Cruces Sun News, October 29, 2020.
- "Facebook’s Election-Week War on Accountability is Wrong, Wrong, Wrong," Andrew Crocker, Cory Doctorow, and Naomi Gilens, Electronic Freedom Foundation, October 27, 2020.
- “Why aren’t Facebook’s emergency measures in place all the time?” New York, October 27, 2020.
- “Facebook moves to block academic research into micro-targeting of political ads,” Forbes, October 27, 2020.
- "Facebook and the NYU Ad Observatory, Facebook’s FTC Decrees, Tradeoffs and Politics," Ben Thompson, Stratechery Blog, October 26, 2020.
- "Facebook fights a browser extension," Casey Newton, Platformer, October 26, 2020.
- "Reporting Recipe: How is your audience targeted by political ads?,"Jeremy B. Merrill, Medium, October 26, 2020.
- "Watchdog Fights Back as Facebook Attempts to Shut Down Research Exposing 'Political Disinformation' in Ad Practices," Kenny Stancil, Common Dreams, October 26, 2020.
- "Facebook Threatens University To End Research About Its Political Ads," Manik Berry, Fossbytes, October 26, 2020.
- "Facebook Tries to Shut Down NYU Study on Targeted Political Ads," Tom Ciccotta, Brietbart, October 26, 2020.
- "Decoder Newsletter: Facebook Trying to Avoid Scrutiny," Viviana Padelli and Margaret Sessa-Hawkins, MapLight, October 26, 2020.
- “Academics, journalists and lawyers rally behind NYU researchers in showdown with Facebook,” October 26, 2020.
- “Why can't questions be asked of Facebook's ads?” The Guardian, October 25, 2020 (opinion)..
- "Facebook to researchers: Stop using our data," Donie O'Sullivan, News 4 Nashville, October 24, 2020.
- "Facebook, NYU researchers tussle over political ads on the social network," Edward Moyer, CNET, October 26, 2020.
- “Facebook demands academics disable ad-targeting data tool,” AP, October 24, 2020
- “Facebook is trying to prevent NYU from examining its political ad-targeting. Researchers say they have no intention of stopping their work,” Business Insider, October 24, 2020.
- Facebook Seeks Shutdown of NYU Research Project Into Political Ad Targeting
- “Facebook wants the NYU Ad Observer to quit collecting data about its ad targeting,” The Verge, October 23, 2020.
- “Facebook tries to block tool aimed at promoting transparency around political ads,” Politico, October 23, 2020.
- “Facebook fights NYU political ad research project, argues it violates the site's data collection policies,” The Hill, October 23, 2020.
- "Facebook Promised To Label Political Ads, But Ads For Biden, The Daily Wire, And Interest Groups Are Slipping Through,” October 22, 2020.
- "Seeing a lot of political ads on Facebook? Here’s who’s putting them there,” NJ.com, October 22, 2020.
- "How to tell who’s behind political messages flooding screens in Colorado ahead of the 2020 election," October 21, 2020.
- “Trumpcare” Does Not Exist. Nevertheless Facebook and Google Cash In on Misleading Ads for “Garbage” Health Insurance,” October 20, 2020.
- Social media ads another battleground to reach voters in Missouri governor’s race,” Missouri Independent, October 20, 2020.
- "Pro-Trump and pro-Biden PACs spread debunked Facebook ads in Wisconsin," Wisconsin Watch, October 17, 2020.
- "We need universal digital ad transparency now" Laura Edelson, Jason Chuang, and Erika Franklin Fowler, TechCrunch, October 16, 2020. (opinion)
- “After recent surge, Trump is outpacing Biden on Facebook ad buys in battleground states,” October 13, 2020.
- “KSL Investigates: Who is behind the millions in Facebook political ads targeting Utah?”October 9, 2020.
- "Since Trump’s COVID-19 Diagnosis, His Campaign Has Spent More Than $500,000 on Facebook Ads About It," Sam Sabin, Morning Consult, October 9, 2020.
- Partisan local websites masquerading as traditional news outlets target Michigan voters, Detroit Free Press, October 7, 2020.
- “As election nears, campaigns spend millions on TV ads, and millions more on Facebook,” ABC11 (North Carolina), September 30 2020.
- “SENATE RACE DATA: Graham, Harrison races spend millions on Facebook ads,” WMBF (South Carolina), September 30, 2020.
- "Website: Trump leads all Facebook ad spending in New Mexico,” AP, September 28, 2020.
- "The technology that powers the 2020 campaigns, explained,” Technology Review, September 28, 2020.
- “Trump's Crime and Carnage Ad Blitz is Going Unanswered on Facebook,” Slate, September 23, 2020.
- "TOOL REVEALS TOP SPENDERS ON FACEBOOK POLITICAL ADS," Karl Greenberg, Futurity, September 23, 2020.
- “Buzz: Ivanka for president, Trump beating Biden on Facebook, another Electoral College win?” Washington Examiner, September 23, 2020.
- “Record-breaking GOP fundraising haul, just in time for final Trump push,” Washington Examiner, September 20, 2020.
- "Election Countdown: RBG's death ups stakes with just 45 days to go,” Palm Beach Post, September 19, 2020.
- “McGrath vs McConnell — who’s spent the most on Facebook?,” Forward Kentucky, September 19, 2021.
- “How much have local congressional candidates spent on Facebook ads?,” Palm Beach Post, September 18, 2020.
- "A new research tool, NYU Ad Observatory, tracks political advertising on Facebook," Karl Greenberg, EurekAlert, September 15, 2020.
- "OpenSecrets unveils new online ads database," Open Secrets, September 3, 2020.
- “Does Facebook still sell discriminatory ads?” August 25, 2020.
- "HOW POLITICAL AD TRANSPARENCY CAN HELP FIX DEMOCRACY’S CYBERSECURITY PROBLEM," Nancy Watzman, Democracy Fund, August 7, 2020.
- “Republicans and Democrats battle over who has better voter data effort,” Roll Call, July 29, 2020.
- “China's hidden targeting of Donald Trump one reason Facebook needs new cybersecurity approach,” Laura Edelson and Sheila Krumholz, USA Today, May 27, 2020. (opinion)