This book focuses on developments and trends pertaining to online falsehoods and mobile instant messaging services (MIMS), the impact of online falsehoods transmitted via MIMS, and practice and intervention. As the reliance on mobile devices for news seeking and information sharing continues to grow, the spread of online falsehoods on MIMS is a problem that confounds academics, practitioners, and policymakers. Recent developments in countries such as Brazil and India demonstrate how MIMS facilitate the spread of online falsehoods. Given that a number of non-academic and non-governmental institutions in the region are doing important work in countering the influence of online falsehoods, this book also includes contributions by practitioners who design initiatives and programmes in this area. The book is a timely contribution in addressing the distinct issues of online falsehoods in a large, technophilic region such as Asia, grappling with problems of online falsehoods on so many fronts, including ideological extremism, political opportunism, cyberscams, political activism, digitalised learning, geopolitical tensions, and more. Relevant to researchers and policymakers, this book provides a timely and critical analysis of both research and practice conducted in the Asian context by scholars hailing from a range of disciplines such media studies, political communication, cultural studies, and cognitive science.
1 Complexities in Falsehoods Management and Implications for Research
and Practice.- Section A:Trends in the Proliferation of Online Falsehoods and
MIMS.- 2 COVID-19 Falsehoods on WhatsApp: Challenges and Opportunities in
Indonesia.- 3 The Unbelieving Minority: Singapores Anti-Falsehood Law and
Vaccine Skepticism.- 4 Orders of Discourse and the Ecosystem of Rumor
Management on WeChat.- 5 Understanding the Flow of Online Information and
Misinformation in the Australian Chinese Diaspora.- 6 The Battle Between the
Thai Government and Thai Netizens Over Mis/dis-information During COVID-19.-
Section B:Impact of Online Falsehoods Transmitted via MIMS.- 7 Users,
Technologies, and Regulations: A Sociotechnical Analysis of False Information
on MIMS in Asia.- 8 No Me in Misinformation: The Role of Social Groups in
the Spread of, and Fight Against, Fake News.
Dr Carol Soon heads the Society and Culture Department at the Institute of Policy Studies at the National University of Singapore. She has published her research on digital participation, media regulation, and deliberative practices in several books and peer-reviewed journals. Carol is an associate director of the Asia Journalism Fellowship and the vice chair of Singapores Media Literacy Council. She was the 2015 recipient of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy Research Excellence Award and the 2012 recipient of the Australian Endeavour Award.
