Press Releases

LOWELL, MA – Yesterday, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy released an advisory – the first of his tenure – highlighting the dangers of health misinformation, including the spread of disinformation that threatens to undermine COVID-19 vaccination efforts, and recommending several steps to take action against this spread.

In the “What Technology Platforms Can Do” section of the advisory, the Surgeon General echoes Congresswoman Lori Trahan’s (MA-03) call for researchers to have access to critical data currently controlled by social media companies so they can understand and publish analyses of the effects of misinformation.

“Give researchers access to useful data to properly analyze the spread and impact of misinformation,” the Surgeon General wrote. “Researchers need data on what people see and hear, not just what they engage with, and what content is moderated (e.g., labeled, removed, downranked), including data on automated accounts that spread misinformation. To protect user privacy, data can be anonymized and provided with user consent.”

Despite the Surgeon General’s recommendation, recent reporting by the New York Times indicates that dominant social media platforms like Facebook are moving in the opposite direction. The platform is reportedly considering scaling back or completely eliminating CrowdTangle, their data tool that provided researchers with some data that has been helpful in understanding the rise in right wing extremism among some users.

In May, Trahan introduced the Social Media Disclosure and Transparency of Advertisements (DATA) Act, which would require that large platforms utilizing digital advertising maintain an accessible database for academic researchers and set uniform standards for the types of data that must be included. It also would establish and authorize funding for a working group overseen by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) responsible for ensuring that research conducted with confidential data is consistent with consumers’ rights to privacy.

Since the legislation’s introduction, support continues to build for Trahan’s Social Media DATA Act from lawmakers and key stakeholders. Representatives Jennifer Wexton (VA-10), Anna G. Eshoo (CA-18), Mark DeSaulnier (CA-11), and Jamie Raskin (MD-08) have joined Representative Kathy Castor (FL-18) as cosponsors of the legislation. The list of outside support for the bill has grown as well, including Joshua Tucker, Co-Director of the New York University research team whose access to Facebook data was shut down last year, as well as the Center for Countering Digital Hate and Avaaz.

“While research on social media’s impact on society has made admirable strides in the last decade, our work has often been hampered by a lack of platform transparency and access to the necessary data. These challenges have limited academic research investigating the relationship between our democracy and the evolving digital information environment — research on urgent topics ranging from the effects of online advertisements on elections to the diffusion of misinformation and hate speech. Congresswomen Trahan's Social Media DATA Act is an important first step in helping to ensure that scholars can produce research that benefits the public, enables evidence-based policymaking, and supports our democratic institutions,” said Joshua Tucker, Professor of Politics and Co-Director, Center for Social Media and Politics, New York University.

“Researchers know all too well that social media companies’ lack of transparency is just as egregious as their lack of accountability. This bill is indispensable to independent researchers who recognize that disinformation and online hate are some of the most serious threats we face, and that transparency is an essential tool in this fight,” said Imran Ahmed, CEO, Center for Countering Digital Hate.

“Avaaz applauds Representative Trahan’s efforts to enhance transparency of social media platforms through The Social Media Disclosure and Transparency of Advertisements Act of 2021. Our information ecosystem is dominated by online platforms that influence our lives, our culture, and our politics while operating behind a veil of secrecy. That makes this the right moment for comprehensive social media transparency and accountability legislation. By requiring transparency on advertising and catalyzing stronger action from the Federal Trade Commission to hold platforms accountable, The Social Media DATA Act is an important step in the direction of comprehensive regulation of social media platforms,” said Kevin Brown, Senior Advisor at Avaaz.

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