Technology doesn’t operate in a vacuum. Neither does our research.

We research the intersection of technology platforms and democratic society. We analyze how social differences shape unequal dynamics in our information systems and prioritize questions of power. And that work produces insights that inform a digital future rooted in equality and justice.

Media and January 6th

"Media and January 6th" features short, provocative, and accessible contributions from a range of diverse scholars, edited by Khadijah Costley White, Daniel Kreiss, Shannon C. McGregor, and Rebekah Tromble.

 

"The images cast across screens across the country on January 6, 2021, laid bare the fragility of American democracy as the steps and halls of the US Capitol were inundated by a violent band of insurrectionists. Fed by blatant lies, political anger, and racial animus, they sought to halt a procedure enshrined in the US Constitution and to overturn a freely and fairly run election. Meanwhile, efforts to obstruct, avoid, and misrepresent the subsequent investigation of the January 6th attack have continued apace.

 

With a relative dearth of work that centers historical and contemporary racial, ethnic, and power dynamics in the context of media, our interdisciplinary field was caught flat-footed, unprepared to respond to those who actively seek to undermine American democracy. This edited volume is a first step toward remedying that situation. Media and January 6th brings together a diverse group of leading scholars to help us more clearly understand the relationship between media and the attempted coup. The volume examines why and how January 6th came to be and the centrality of media to the event. It is organized around three key questions: How should we understand January 6, 2021? What should research look like after January 6, 2021? And how can we prevent another event like this?"

The Latest From CITAP

News

Snapshots of #ICA2024

July 16, 2024

On June 20th, CITAP and CITAP-affiliated researchers traveled to the Gold Coast, Australia for the start of ICA 2024.

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Francesca Tripodi on Prager U

December 18, 2023

“They provide this nostalgia for a past that never really existed.”

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Tressie McMillan Cottom honored with Brandeis’s Gittler Prize on October 27th

November 1, 2023

Tressie also visited classes and engaged with the Brandeis community for 3 days as part of her residency.

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CITAP is Hiring!

September 18, 2023

We are seeking 2 Postdoctoral Research Associates to join us at CITAP.

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CITAP is hiring!

August 23, 2023

We are seeking a dynamic, motivated Executive Director to provide innovative and visionary leadership for CITAP.

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Announcing the 2023-24 affiliate community

August 4, 2023

We’re pleased to welcome our 2023-2024 cohort of affiliates.

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Summer 2023 personnel announcements

July 14, 2023

This summer, CITAP is celebrating big moves across our team.

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Francesca Tripodi wins 2023 CIP Award for Impact and Excellence

June 23, 2023

The award recognizes Tripodi’s research contributions to strengthening democracy against disinformation.

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Publications

Children Online Safety Legislation (COSL) – A Primer

June 5, 2024

An analysis of the legislation to protect child safety online, driven by moral panic rather than evidence, argues that it is ineffective and harms privacy and free expression.

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Preventing Tech-Fueled Political Violence: What online platforms can do to ensure they do not contribute to election-related violence

May 22, 2024

With extremist militias mobilizing ahead of the 2024 election, platforms must urgently address electoral threats to ensure a peaceful conduct of elections and the holding and transfer of power. 

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Patrons of commerce: asymmetrical reciprocity and moral economies of platform power

May 21, 2024

Aaron Shapiro, Courtlyn Pippert, Jacob Smith & Zari A. Taylor investigate what platforms owe their users and vice versa, using asymmetrical reciprocity to critique platform power and showing through vignettes how users push back against exploitative policies.

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Safeguarding the Peaceful Transfer of Power: Pro-Democracy Electoral Frames and Journalist Coverage of Election Deniers During the 2022 U.S. Midterm Elections

May 7, 2024

Hesoo Jang and Daniel Kreiss find that journalists repeatedly fail to direct public attention to how election denial undermines the legitimacy of the electoral process.

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“You Could Hear a Hair Pin Drop”: Queer Utopianism and Informal Knowledge Production in the Gaylor Closeting Conspiracy Theory

May 7, 2024

Yvonne Eadon analyzes TikTok videos to understand how Gaylor community members parse evidence and collectively develop community lore.

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Strategically Hijacking Victimhood: A Political Communication Strategy in the Discourse of Viktor Orbán and Donald Trump

April 3, 2024

The concept of “hijacked victimhood” illustrates how politicians and others in elite positions craft narratives strategically portraying dominant groups as victims

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Presidential Authority and the Legitimation of Far-Right News

March 28, 2024

How did Trump use the power of the presidency to contribute to the rise of far-right news outlets among Republican legislators and mainstream American media?

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Ms. Categorized: Gender, notability, and inequality on Wikipedia

March 14, 2024

Francesca Tripodi writes to understand how inequalities in whose biographies are flagged as potentially non-notable itself entrenches gender inequality—and perpetuates a culture where women’s accomplishments are systematically devalued and rendered invisible

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Events

Marie Heřmanová: Experience vs. Expertise

Join CITAP and Marie Heřmanová as she examines how social media creators balance authenticity and authority in political discourse, influenced by gender dynamics.

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Racialized Disinformation: Elections Past, Present, and Future

This panel brings together our principal researchers to discuss the long history of electoral disinformation in the United States and the ways that racialized disinformation is targeted at communities of color to suppress their political power.

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Media Coverage of the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election: The View from Germany and the United States

Join us for a Fireside Chat, “Media Coverage of the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election: The View from Germany and the United States.”

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Threats to Democracies

This event brings together renowned experts to discuss the critical challenges to democracies in the U.S. and Europe, with a particular focus on media, technology, and election dynamics.

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Media and January 6th

Join us for “Media and January 6th,” an event where we will bring together a diverse group of leading scholars to help us more clearly understand the relationship between media and the attempted coup.

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Forrest Stuart

Please join us for Forrest Stuart’s talk, “Institutional Decision-Making in the Digital Age: The Case of Social Media Data in Criminal Courts.”

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TJ Billard: Voices for Transgender Equality

TJ Billard offers an insider’s view into transgender activism during the first two years of the Trump administration.

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Symposium on Religion, Media, and Public Life

Addressing the intersection of technology, American religion, and politics with particular attention to race and power.

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