Boston University Climate Disinformation Initiative
Major climate disinformation initiative at Boston University—how climate lies spread, who they mislead, and how to stop them
To further understand the critical role of communication in shaping public opinion on climate in the United States, the Boston University Climate Disinformation Initiative analyzes the nature, origins, spread, and impacts of climate change mis- and disinformation, as well as the possibilities of mitigating misinformed beliefs.
The initiative launched in 2022/2023 with a year-long study: Data and Misinformation in an Era of Sustainability and Climate Change Crises, jointly funded by the Institute for Global Sustainability and the Rafik B. Hariri Institute for Computing and Computational Science & Engineering.
Key Findings
Learn more about emerging research insights from the initiative’s three research themes (May 2023):
- How climate disinformation spreads through social media sites, primarily Twitter and Reddit
- How native advertising, a deceptive form of paid content that mimics news articles, is employed for corporate communications campaigns
- What influence disinformation has on public attitudes, including which intervention strategies effectively dispel misperceptions about climate change
Related News Coverage
- Tweets, Ads, and Lies: Researchers Are Fighting against Climate Misinformation (The Brink, May 23, 2023)
- That “News Story” on Climate Change You’re Reading Might Be a Greenwashing Ad Instead: COM-led study seeks effective counters to disinformation about planetary warming (BU Today, February 6, 2023)
- How Do I Talk to a Climate Change Denier? (BU Today, September 26, 2022)
- Combating Misinformation In The Age of Technology (BU Experts, July 29, 2022)
Taking on Climate Lies Symposium
- Research presentation slides: misinformation on Twitter and Reddit, native advertising and climate disinformation, misinformation-susceptible publics
Research Team Leaders
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Chris Wells
Affiliated Faculty, IGS
Associate Professor, Department of Journalism, Division of Emerging Media Studies, College of Communication -
Irena Vodenska
Affiliated Faculty, IGS
Professor and Director, MET Finance Programs, Metropolitan College -
Sarah Finnie
Senior Fellow, IGS
Founding Director, The 51 Percent Project
Team Champions
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Arunima Krishna
Associate Director, IGS
Associate Professor, Department of Mass Communication, Advertising, and Public Relations, College of Communication -
Gianluca Stringhini
Assistant Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, College of Engineering
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Hyunuk Kim
Assistant Professor, Department of Administrative Sciences, Metropolitan College
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Michelle Amazeen
Core Faculty, IGS
Associate Professor of Mass Communication, College of Communication