FibVID: Comprehensive fake news diffusion dataset during the COVID-19 period

As the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic has run rampant worldwide, the dissemination of misinformation has sown confusion on a global scale. Thus, understanding the propagation of fake news and implementing countermeasures has become exceedingly important to the well-being of society. To assist this cause, we produce a valuable dataset called FibVID (Fake news information-broadcasting dataset of COVID-19), which addresses COVID-19 and non-COVID news from three key angles. First, we provide truth and falsehood (T/F) indicators of news items, as labeled and validated by several fact-checking platforms (e.g., Snopes and Politifact). Second, we collect spurious-claim-related tweets and retweets from Twitter, one of the world’s largest social networks. Third, we provide basic user information, including the terms and characteristics of “heavy fake news” user to present a better understanding of T/F claims in consideration of COVID-19. FibVID provides several significant contributions. It helps to uncover propagation patterns of news items and themes related to identifying their authenticity. It further helps catalog and identify the traits of users who engage in fake news diffusion. We also provide suggestions for future applications of FibVID with a few exploratory analyses to examine the effectiveness of the approaches used.     

Do social media literacy skills help in combating fake news spread? Modelling the moderating role of social media literacy skills in the relationship between rational choice factors and fake news sharing behaviour

This study modelled the rational factors that predict fake news sharing behaviour. It also tested the moderating role of social media literacy skills. The focus was on social media users in Nigeria. An online survey was conducted to gather the responses from participants across Nigerian geopolitical zones. Structural equation modelling (SEM) Smart PLS 3.6 was used to analyse the data. We found that information sharing, the news finds me perception, trust in social media and status-seeking lead to fake news sharing among social media users in Nigeria. Specifically, trust in social media and status-seeking had a greater effect on fake news sharing behaviour. We also found that social media literacy skills significantly moderate the relationship between information sharing, status-seeking, the news finds me perception, trust in social media and fake news sharing in such a way that the effects/relationships are stronger among those with low social media literacy skills. This outcome contributes to theory and practice which was highlighted in the concluding aspect of this study.     

The role of online news and social media in preventive action in times of infodemic from a social capital perspective: The case of the COVID-19 pandemic in South Korea

Infodemic, the spread of false information during the COVID-19 pandemic, has been raised as one of the major concerns aggravating the confusion in the global society. In this regard, the role of media as an information channel in delivering the reliable information and motivating the active participation of citizens in complying with government’s preventive actions becomes much more important. In this study, the role of online news and social media on people’s preventive actions considering the role of trust in citizens and government from the perspective of social capital is investigated. For the empirical study, a structural equation modeling is employed by using survey material gathered from South Korea in the early days of the COVID-19 outbreak. South Korea was selected as its COVID-19 prevention strategy focused not only on the provision of medical support, but also on the enhancement of social trust through active engagement with people through media channels. Our results reveal that the perceived characteristics of online news and social media influence preventive actions through the trust in citizens or in government. In addition, while online news media enhances trust in both the citizens and the government, social media only influences trust in citizens. Based on our findings, the role of media in preventing the spread of COVID-19 is dicussed.     

Replacement or complement: A niche analysis of Yahoo news,television news,and electronic news

This study adopted the theory of the niche to investigate the competitive relationship between three news media—Yahoo news, television news, and electronic newspapers. Two research methods, intensive interviews and a nationwide telephone survey, were employed to collect data for this study. The telephone survey resulted in 1002 valid telephone calls. This study found that Yahoo news did not produce its own news, but it was perceived by the respondents to be equivalent to television news and that the respondents perceived the strengths of Yahoo news and television news to be very different. Therefore, this study predicts that the two media would be able to coexist in Taiwan’s news media market. Furthermore, the data from the niche analysis show that Yahoo news and television news were generalists, while electronic newspapers were specialists.     

Understanding individual psychological and behavioral responses during COVID-19: Application of stimulus-organism-response model

To comprehend the nature, implications, risks and consequences of the events of the COVID-19 crisis, individuals largely relied on various online information sources. The features of online information exchange (e.g., conducted on a massive scale, with an abundance of information and unverified sources) led to various behavioral and psychological responses that are not fully understood. This study therefore investigated the relationship between exposure to online information sources and how individuals sought, forwarded, and provided COVID-19 related information. Anchored in the stimulus-organism-response model, cognitive load theory, and the theory of fear appeal, this study examined the link between the online consumption of COVID-19-related information and psychological and behavioral responses. In the theory development process, we hypothesized the moderating role of levels of fear. The research model included six hypotheses and was empirically verified on self-reported data (N = 425), which was collected in early 2021. The results indicate that continuous exposure to online information sources led to perceived information overload, which further heightened the psychological state of cyberchondria. Moreover, the act of seeking and providing COVID-19 information was significantly predicted by perceived cyberchondria. The results also suggest that higher levels of fear led to increased levels of seeking and providing COVID-19-related information. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are presented, along with promising areas for future research.     

Why do people access news with mobile devices? Exploring the role of suitability perception and motives on mobile news use

Using self-reported survey data (N = 281), the present study explores the structural relationships among mobile users’ perceptions of the suitability of two types of mobile news (political feature news and entertainment news), users’ motivations for mobile news usage, and their behavioral patterns. Our findings show that two types of perceived suitability for mobile news, particularly for political feature news, are strongly associated with all dimensions of motivations for mobile news usage. Furthermore, as predicted, our findings show that the information-seeking motive is the very factor that determines mobile news usage. The results also reveal that the accessibility motive mediates the relationship between the perceived suitability of obtaining news via a mobile device and users’ mobile news behavior. However, contrary to our expectation, the social utility motive does not mediate the relationship between users’ perceptions of the suitability of mobile devices for this purpose and their mobile news usage. Finally, the information-seeking and accessibility motives each have an indirect effect on the association between perceived suitability and mobile news usage. The implications of the study and recommendations for future research are also discussed.     

A study of repetitive news display and news consumption in Korea

The shift to online news consumption has weakened the direct relationship between readers and news publishers. News publishers now depend on the number of clicks and comments on their news to increase their revenues. Repetitive news display or news abusing is used extensively by Korean news publishers to draw consumers’ attention to their content. This study examines the factors causing news abusing in Korea. We analyze the factors that affect both news abusing frequency and intensity, and examine how they vary in both intra-media and inter-media contexts. We empirically test the relationship between the number of clicks (comments on the news posted) and the abusing frequency of the news article (abusing intensity of the news article). Finally, we try to identify the differences in the relationships between the effects of news abusing and the number of clicks and comments based on news abusing patterns and news article types.     

Participatory or deliberative democracy? Exploring the mediation effects of perceived online deliberation and online interactive activities on social outcomes

Using the structural equation modeling method (N = 811), this study explores the structural relationships among online news consumption, political participation and social trust, with a focus on the mediating effects of online users’ deliberative perceptions and news-related online interactive activities. The analysis confirms that users’ perceptions of online deliberation exert a significant mediating effect on users’ levels of news consumption, political participation, and social trust. Users’ interactive civic messaging behaviors, on the other hand, solely enhance participatory intentions. The findings also show that the consumption of political news and the consumption of entertainment news have different effects on users’ perceptions of online deliberation, social trust, and political participation. Specifically, while political news has a direct and relatively strong influence on participation, entertainment news has a limited and indirect effect on participation. Online interactive activities are negatively associated with users’ perceived competency for online deliberation. Further implications of the study are also discussed.     

How does Facebook news use lead to actions in South Korea? The role of Facebook discussion network heterogeneity,political interest,and conflict avoidance in predicting political participation

Employing survey data collected in South Korea (N?=?470), this study investigated whether and how Facebook users’ news use promotes their offline political participation. Results showed that Facebook news use indirectly influenced political participation through discussion network heterogeneity. This indirect relationship was conditional on Facebook users’ political interest and conflict avoidance. For people who are highly interested in politics but less conflict avoidant, the frequency of Facebook news use is more likely to boost political discussions with heterogeneous others, which contributes to facilitating their participation in offline political activities. The implications of these results were discussed.     

评价融媒体格局下的新闻资源共享

随着社会经济的飞速发展,我国迎来了融媒体时代,从而彻底改变了传统媒体传播新闻资讯的主导地位,基于此,大量新型媒体应运而生,并在新闻信息上将自身具备的优势充分地体现了出来。因此,在当前的新格局下,传统新闻媒体既应该实现新闻信息资源方面的共享,同时还要充分利用新闻信息资源。基于此,重点分析了融媒体格局下的新闻资源共享,以期为日后的相关研究提供科学的参考依据。     

Seek and You Shall Find? How Need for Orientation Moderates Knowledge Gain from Twitter Use

A Web‐based survey (N = 306) examined if Twitter use enhances individuals' news knowledge, and if so, how such effects might vary depending on their need for orientation (NFO) and the type of news (hard vs. soft). The duration of Twitter use positively predicted hard news knowledge, but only for those higher in NFO. In contrast, daily Twitter use had negative influence on high NFOs' soft news knowledge, with no corresponding effect for lows. Although high NFOs were more likely to use Twitter for information‐seeking than their less surveillance‐driven counterparts, such motivation did not facilitate knowledge gain. Systematic processing of public affairs information and selective avoidance were discussed as potential explanations for differential knowledge gain by high and low NFOs.     

Sec-Eliminating the SARS-CoV-2 by AlGaN Based High Power Deep Ultraviolet Light Source

The world-wide spreading of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has greatly shaken human society, thus effective and fast-speed methods of non-daily-life-disturbance sterilization have become extremely significant. In this work, by fully benefitting from high-quality AlN template (with threading dislocation density as low as ≈6×10⁸ cm⁻²) as well as outstanding deep ultraviolet (UVC-less than 280 nm) light-emitting diodes (LEDs) structure design and epitaxy optimization, high power UVC LEDs and ultra-high-power sterilization irradiation source are achieved. Moreover, for the first time, a result in which a fast and complete elimination of SARS-CoV-2 (the virus causes COVID-19) within only 1 s is achieved by the nearly whole industry-chain-covered product. These results advance the promising potential in UVC-LED disinfection particularly in the shadow of COVID-19.     

浅谈融媒体背景下新闻采编工作的新要求

融媒体背景下新闻采编工作受到更高要求的压力,但是也有更多技术、渠道的支持。作为新时代的新闻采编人才,要有专业的职业新闻采编人员素养,同时也需要吸收新技术、新思想,提升整体的新闻采编制作能力,甚至要有后期新闻走向的防控能力,避免信息内容引发不良社会影响。     

浅析新媒体时代广播电视新闻写作新诉求

新媒体时代的发展,改变了人们传统阅读、接受信息的习惯,并对广播电视新闻带来很大的影响。广播电视需要顺应社会变化进行调整发展战略,在多变的信息时代立足。本文基于新媒体发展的时代下,对广播电视新闻写作的新诉求进行简单的探讨。     

Two-layered structure for optimally essential secret image sharing scheme

This paper presents a two-layered structure for optimally sharing a secret image among s essential and n − s non-essential shared shadows using the (t, s, k, n) essential thresholds, that t essential shared shadows and totally k shared shadows are needed to recover the secret image. The presented two-layered structure includes one user-defined parameter m to determine different kinds of optimal results. m = 1 leads to minimum size of total shared shadows (ST) and size of an essential shared shadow is close to size of a non-essential shared shadow. On the other hand, m = t leads to size of an essential shared shadow being twice of size of a non-essential shared shadow to signify the importance of an essential shared shadow. Moreover, the proposed structure overcomes the threshold fulfillment problem in Chen’s scheme (Chen, 2016). Theoretical analyses and experimental results show that the proposed scheme exhibits secure with optimal sharing ratios among related works.     

Political disagreement and ambivalence in new information environment: Exploring conditional indirect effects of partisan news use and heterogeneous discussion networks on SNSs on political participation

This study investigates the (de)mobilizing influences of political (dis)agreement in the news and in political discussion on political attitudes and participation in new information environments. Results demonstrate the mediating functions of political ambivalence in that exposure to proattitudinal news reduces ambivalence and thereby promotes political participation, whereas exposure to counter-attitudinal news increases ambivalence and thereby discourages participation. Importantly, the effect of exposure to counter-attitudinal news on ambivalence was moderated by heterogeneous discussion networks on social network sites, such that the combination of exposure to counter-attitudinal news and to heterogeneous discussion networks amplifies ambivalence additively, and thereby augments the tendency toward demobilization. These results are interpreted as suggesting that changing media contexts may lead to complex roles of news and political discussion.     

COVID-19 discrimination framework for X-ray images by considering radiomics,selective information,feature ranking,and a novel hybrid classifier

In medical imaging procedures for the detection of coronavirus, apart from medical tests, approval of diagnosis has special significance. Imaging procedures are also useful for detecting the damage caused by COVID-19. Chest X-ray imaging is frequently used to diagnose COVID-19 and different pneumonias. This paper presents a task-specific framework to detect coronavirus in X-ray images. Binary classification of three different labels (healthy, bacterial pneumonia, and COVID-19) was performed on two differentiated data sets in which corona is stated as positive. First-order statistics, gray level co-occurrence matrix, gray level run length matrix, and gray level size zone matrix were analyzed to form fifteen sub-data sets and to ascertain the necessary radiomics. Two normalization methods are compared to make the data meaningful. Furthermore, five feature ranking approaches (Bhattacharyya, entropy, Roc, t-test, and Wilcoxon) are mentioned to provide necessary information to a state-of-the-art classifier based on Gauss-map-based chaotic particle swarm optimization and neural networks. The proposed framework was designed according to the analyses about radiomics, normalization approaches, and filter-based feature ranking methods. In experiments, seven metrics were evaluated to objectively determine the results: accuracy, area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, sensitivity, specificity, g-mean, precision, and f-measure. The proposed framework showed promising scores on two X-ray-based data sets, especially with the accuracy and area under the ROC curve rates exceeding 99% for the classification of coronavirus vs. others.     

基于传播意图特征的虚假新闻检测方法综述

虚假新闻的传播会对个人、社会和国家产生巨大的负面影响,因此虚假新闻的检测始终都是研究的热点问题。虚假新闻检测实质上是一种信息分类问题,旨在验证由文本,图像和视频等多媒体信息构成的新闻的真实性。本文对虚假新闻检测问题和当前的主流方法展开了比较系统的研究,并揭示了虚假新闻的一个本质,即与报道真实事件的真实新闻不同,假新闻通常是有意为之,有特定的传播意图如误导公众等。基于这一特性,本文首先将虚假新闻的传播意图大致分为三类,并根据对应的相关特征对当前的研究方法作了分析,旨在能让读者从一个全新的角度理解虚假新闻检测领域。本文还介绍了虚假新闻检测的问题定义、基本范式、常用数据集和指标,并给出了该领域的未来的一些发展方向。      

Fewer people,more flames: How pre-existing beliefs and volume of negative comments impact online news readers’ verbal aggression

In recent years, scholars have documented an increase in flaming behavior, which refers to a strong and hostile expression of emotions and feelings online. In order to identify the mechanism and specific circumstances of flaming, this study employed emotional contagion as the main theoretical framework and conducted a 2 (argument presented in a news article: support gun control vs. against gun control) × 2 (volume of negative comments: small vs. large) × 2 (news readers’ pre-existing beliefs: support gun control vs. against gun control) between-subjects experiment. Participants were asked to read an online news article about a gun-related topic as well as negative reader comments before they wrote a comment of their own. The experimental results showed that participants were more likely to use swear words in their comments when their viewpoint was diametrically opposed to the argument presented in the news article and when the article was accompanied by a low volume of negative comments. This interaction effect was mediated by negative emotions that participants experienced when reading the article and its associated comments. These findings have theoretical implications for future research pertaining to the identification of online circumstances and causes that could help mitigate the occurrence of flaming.     

Knowledge Acquisition Following Exposure to Cancer News Articles: A Test of the Cognitive Mediation Model

To test the cognitive mediation model (CMM), a virtual lab study was carried out where participants (N = 602) read 1 of 5 cancer news articles and completed a knowledge posttest (assessing recognition and comprehension). Results were consistent with the CMM and past news learning research, as (a) news surveillance motivation was positively related to story comprehension (but not recognition of specific facts), (b) elaboration mediated the relationship between surveillance and comprehension, and (c) attention to health news moderated the size of the indirect relationships. The results support and extend the CMM as well as validate past research suggesting a connection between attention and cancer information gain.