Les téléphones mobiles, un outil de désinformation ? La circulation des informations peu fiables dans Twitter lors de la campagne présidentielle française de 2017

Abstract

This research analyses the spread of unreliable information on Twitter during the 2017 French presidential campaign, focusing on the effects of mobile phones of participation in the exchange of ideas and content. It shows that the Twitter application discriminates against the sharing of articles published by the mainstream press in favor of information produced by alternative sources, in particular blogs or activists’ websites. As these sources relay more disinformation, users of mobile phones appear to promote the spread of unreliable information. The effects of this information-sharing behavior are particularly salient within political communities that also organize their debates around a larger number of unreliable sources, such as the far right.

Keywords

• social media
• mobile phone
• press
• misinformation
• political participation