We need better software, informed by both social and computer science
research, to help researchers,
journalists, and activists keep up with the
challenges posed by the modern disinformation threat. Tools could include
high-powered data intelligence platforms, that make use of bots in parsing
large sets of relevant data, usable by these groups worldwide. They ought to
exploit recent advances in graph databases and machine learning and cheap,
massive computation to dramatically accelerate investigations. The target
should be to accelerate civil society in identifying patterns of activity that
would help to root out entities backing disinformation campaigns, in addition
to uncovering a great deal about when and where these campaigns are
occurring.

Longitudinal work can help establish more solid metrics for tracking
information ﬂows – but also effects – related to the use of political bots,

https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108890960 Published online by Cambridge University Press

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