This model contains three types of agent breeds: elites, regulars, and influencers. These features are out of the scope of this model and are not represented in the simulation. The original real-world particpiatory disinformation phenomenon also contains other dynamics that are not included in this model, such as the audience building a sense of collective grievance, and political elites mobilizing their agrieved audiences into collective action. Upon adoption, the elites spread the new rumors back to the audiences.The new rumors are further communmicated by influencers within the audience in an attempt to get them adopted by the elites.The audience members sporadically generate new rumors and communicate them with each other.Audience members who adopt rumors from these elites and from their peers in a social network.Specific unique rumors spread by political elites in a top-down manner to their audiences.

This NetLogo model focuses on a particular scope of the problem, specifically: Finally the political elites echo these new rumors back to the audiences who originally created them, reinforcing the frame of the disinformation story. These new rumors are then 'traded-up' the media chain by connected social media influencers in an attempt to reach the ear of the political elites. In short, participatory disinformation describes the feedback loop by which disinformation about a particular topic or 'frame' is dissimenated in a top-down fashion by political elites to their audiences, who then produce their own false/misleading rumors about the topic in a bottom-up participatory manner. This is based on the work of researchers at the University of Washington Center for an Informed Public, et al, in the context of disinformation about the 2020 United States presidential election. ) for a description of the real-world phenomenon.

The purpose of this model is to simulate the top-down/bottom-up dynamics of what has come to be known as 'participatory disinformation.' Do you have questions or comments about this model?

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