The section titled “Sources of Information,” which makes up the bulk of the
chapter, provides a broader review of the current empirical literature and likely
sources of future information. First, we discuss disclosures from platforms and
other participants in content moderation, such as users and governments.
Second, we discuss independent research from third parties such as academics
and journalists, including data analysis, interviews, and surveys. Finally, before
concluding the chapter, we will list speciﬁc questions and areas for future
empirical research.

Debates about proposed new laws ranging from the EU’s Terrorist
Content Regulation to Singapore’s “fake news” law should be informed
by empirically grounded assessments of platforms’ capacity to comply and
the potential unintended consequences of their compliance efforts. Without
better information about platforms’
true strengths and weaknesses as
speech regulators, we should not expect to see well-designed laws.
Social_Media_and_Democracy