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Misinformation, Disinformation and Authenticity - IJOC Special Issue
by Alberto Lusoli 21 Jul '26

21 Jul '26

Dear colleagues, I am pleased to share the publication of a new special issue in the International Journal of Communication titled "Beyond Verification: Misinformation, Disinformation, and the Artifices of Authenticity <https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/20-sec-beyond-verification>." The special issue is the result of a multi-year project led by the Digital Democracies Institute <https://digitaldemocracies.org/> at Simon Fraser University. This Special Issue explores the stakes of authenticity (and its artifices) in the post-truth era. The papers included in this Special Section show how authenticity is the result of the complex processes of technical infrastructures, intensities of engagement, user experiences, and cultural practices. It addresses the orchestration of mis/disinformation through techno-cultural and techno-affective flows that combine network trackers with emotional bursts, algorithmic recommendations with national fantasies, and collective wounds and trauma with a desire for belonging. It investigates the distinction between veracity and authenticity, revealing where fact-checking fails and how dis/misinformation spreads through data and its networked infrastructures, by deploying methodologies from digital methods to media theory, and from large-scale content analysis to speculative and participatory methods. The Special Section highlights how a diversity of approaches to affect and authenticity furthers the study of mis- and disinformation by highlighting the various intersections between perceptions, communities, and disclosures. It also stresses how different methods can approach these questions while existing in tension with each other, from quantitative and mixed-methods approaches to theoretical examinations. You can read it here (Open Access): https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/20-sec-beyond-verification Best, -- Alberto Lusoli (he/him) Assistant Professor Creative Industries <https://www.torontomu.ca/creativeindustries/> The Creative School <https://www.torontomu.ca/the-creative-school/> Toronto Metropolitan University

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[CFP:Survey] Survey on Knowledge Graph enrichment
by Oğuzhan MENEMENCİOĞLU 21 Jul '26

21 Jul '26

Apologies for cross-posting. Dear Colleague, We kindly invite you to share your experience on knowledge graph enrichment by completing this survey: <https://forms.gle/tyW9M42nQc8fciLV6> https://forms.gle/tyW9M42nQc8fciLV6 We are especially interested in the meaning and boundaries of the KG enrichment task, best practices and pitfalls, and suggested methods for KG enrichment. Form completion can take 5 to 10 minutes. Your insights will contribute to a public deliverable on best practices and practical guidelines for KG enrichment. We appreciate your time and input. Please feel free to forward this invitation to your colleagues. Best regards, the Chairs of <https://goblin-cost.eu/working-group-1-knowledge-graphs-engineering/> GOBLIN Task 1.4<https://goblin-cost.eu/working-group-1-knowledge-graphs-engineering/> Dr. Oğuzhan MENEMENCİOĞLU ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- http://oguzhan.menemencioglu.info<http://oguzhan.menemencioglu.info/> Assistant Professor Karabük University, Department of Computer Engineering, Office 159, Iron and Steel Campus, 78050, Karabük, Turkey.

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Internet Law: Cases and Problems (16th edition)
by James Grimmelmann 20 Jul '26

20 Jul '26

The latest edition of my "casebook" (the legal-academic term for a textbook. as it consists substantially of edited excerpts from judicial opinions) Internet Law: Cases and Problems is now available. It includes recent legal developments including U.S. v. Chatrie on geofence warrants, Section 230 and algorithmic recommendations, and social-media addiction lawsuits. Although the book is primarily used by law students, I have written it to be broadly accessible and it is used in a number of computer-science, public policy, and information courses. The teacher's manual, available upon request, includes sample syllabi and teaching suggestions for non-law courses. The book is sold as a DRM-free PDF on a pay-what-you-want basis; we suggest $30 but allow users to pay any amount, even nothing. It's also available as a print-on-demand paperback for $75.10. More information: http://internetcasebook.com/ Digital download: https://semaphorepress.com/InternetLaw_overview.html Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1943689245 best wishes, James

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Invitation to RAT Webinar on Thursday, August 13, 2026
by Lewandowski, Dirk 20 Jul '26

20 Jul '26

Dear colleagues, We would like to highlight the upcoming RAT Webinar in August 2026: What is RAT? The Result Assessment Tool (RAT) is the free open-source research toolbox for collecting, analyzing and evaluating search results, developed by the Search Studies research group at the Hamburg University of Applied Sciences. Join our next RAT Webinar and discover the various features and capabilities of RAT, and how to effectively utilize the tool for your use cases. In this webinar, you will learn the following topics: • Define: Identify relevant search queries and use them for the next steps. • Collect: Automatically gather search results that match your queries from various search systems. • Evaluate: Evaluate the search results with jurors – for relevance or usability, for example. • Analyze: Perform automatic analyses, including Result Overlap as well as SEO and Readability Scorings for various study types. Date: Thursday, August 13, 2026 | Time: 5 - 6 pm (CET) (Find your time here) For registration please visit: http://bit.ly/4oPrM2o We are looking forward to your participation! Best, Oliver Koop Research Associate T +49 40 219 04 3453 oliver.koop(a)haw-hamburg.de HAMBURG UNIVERSITY OF APPLIED SCIENCES Faculty of Computer Science and Digital Society / Search Studies research group Finkenau 35 / Room 270 / 22081 Hamburg / Germany www.haw-hamburg.de / www.searchstudies.org Privacy notice: Information on how we process personal data and your corresponding rights at: www.haw-hamburg.de/datenverarbeitung -- Prof. Dr. Dirk Lewandowski Professor (Information Research & Information Retrieval) Hamburg University of Applied Sciences T +49 40 219042197 dirk.lewandowski(a)haw-hamburg.de HOCHSCHULE FÜR ANGEWANDTE WISSENSCHAFTEN HAMBURG Faculty of Computer Science and Digital Society Finkenau 35 / 22081 Hamburg / Germany https://www.searchstudies.org/dirk Book a meeting: https://app.usemotion.com/meet/dirk-lewandowski/besprechung Search Engines and Society Network (SEASON): https://searchenginesandsociety.net

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Call for Chapters Internet Studies: A Multidisciplinary Approach
by etalmud＠univ.haifa.ac.il 19 Jul '26

19 Jul '26

Call for Chapters Internet Studies: A Multidisciplinary Approach We invite chapter proposals for an edited volume to be published by Edward Elgar Publishing. This interdisciplinary collection will provide a timely synthesis of Internet Studies amid rapid technological and societal transformations, with a strong focus on the convergence of platforms and artificial intelligence. About the Book In the last decade, the digital landscape has been profoundly reshaped by dominant platforms, generative and agentic AI, intensifying geopolitical contests over digital sovereignty, widespread datafication, and new forms of algorithmic governance. This volume examines how these developments are reconfiguring power relations, economic structures, social inequalities, cultural practices, and global governance. The book adopts an explicitly interdisciplinary and pluralistic approach, drawing on sociology, science and technology studies (STS), political science, law, communication and media studies, political economy, anthropology, education, and computational social science. Comparative, global, and Global South perspectives are particularly welcome. It seeks to bridge classic Internet Studies concerns with the urgent realities of the post-2025 AI era, offering new theoretical frameworks, methodological innovations, and forward-looking visions. The volume is structured in five parts: - Part I: Foundations and Theorizing Internet Studies - Part II: Platforms, Data, and Economic Transformations - Part III: Society, Culture, Identities, and Inequalities - Part IV: Governance, Regulation, Ethics, and Rights - Part V: Methods and Future Directions A detailed table of contents with chapter abstracts is available upon request. We Welcome Contributions On (but not limited to): - Theorizing the shift from Web 2.0/network societies to agentic AI ecologies and sociotechnical systems - Materiality of internet infrastructures (cloud, cables, data centers) and contested global imaginaries - Platform capitalism, monopoly power, value extraction, and AI expansion - Datafication, algorithmic governance, and behavioral steering of everyday life - Global platform labor, gig economies, precarity, and emerging solidarities - Generative and agentic AI: impacts on creativity, attention economies, cultural production, authorship, and labor - Digital inequalities and the emerging AI divide (beyond access to capability gaps) - Intersectionality (race, gender, class, etc.) and identity performance in algorithmic environments - Fractured digital publics: communities, misinformation, polarization, and epistemic crises - Global internet governance, digital sovereignty, and geopolitical fragmentation - Comparative platform and AI regulation (e.g., EU DSA/AI Act, US, China, Global South) - Ethics, privacy, cybersecurity, surveillance, and human rights in the AI age - Hybrid and computational methodologies for studying fast-evolving digital phenomena - Sustainable digital futures: AI literacy, environmental costs, human-centered design, and speculative approaches Submission Guidelines Please submit to: Ilan Talmud, University of Haifa, talmud(a)soc.haifa.ac.il - A chapter abstract of 300–500 words (excluding references) - A provisional chapter title - Author name(s), affiliation(s), and a short bio (approx. 100 words per author) - Indication of which part of the book the proposed chapter best fits Deadline for abstracts: 30 September 2026 Final chapters should be approximately 8,000–10,000 words (including footnotes, references, and any tables/figures) and will undergo peer review. Timeline - Abstract submission deadline: 30 September 2026 - Notification of acceptance: Late October 2026 - Full chapter submission: May 2027 - Revised chapters due: September 2027 - Manuscript delivery to publisher: Spring 2028 https://drive.google.com/file/d/1sSn46lDQNhIsMhtQPhI0TuXFeKgLsN6h/view?usp=… Prof. Ilan Talmud, Ph.D. ايلان تلمود Pronouns: He / Him / His Department of Sociology, University of Haifa https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8642-9582 https://sites.google.com/soc.haifa.ac.il/profilantalmud/home Office phone: 972-4-8240992 Secretaries: 972-4-8240995 04- 8249643/048249645 FAX: 972-4-8240819

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Call for Participation - Winter School "Hallucinate, unbox, restart" (Naples, 27-29 October 2026)
by Camilla Volpe 17 Jul '26

17 Jul '26

Dear AoIR list, As Game of Tech<https://www.gameoftech.eu/>, following last year's edition we are happy to share the call for participation for the winter school "Hallucinate, unbox, restart: a winter school for slowing down inside the synthetic everyday", taking place in Naples, Italy, from 27 to 29 October 2026. In brief: the winter school offers a three-day path to critically engage with the "black box" imaginary of generative AI, combining autoethnography and art-based research to explore uses, counter-uses, and practices of appropriation of generative technologies. It welcomes PhD students, early-career researchers, artists, independent scholars, and anyone interested in the topic, from both humanistic and technical/ICT perspectives. Participation is free (limited to 20 places), though travel and accommodation costs are not covered. Application deadline: 31 August 2026. Full call below and here<https://www.gameoftech.eu/eventi/winterschool2026/>. The recent proliferation of generative AI systems has been accompanied by the entrenchment of a particular imaginary – one that frames and accept AI as a black box. This has a twofold implication. On one hand, it legitimates the design of AI structures, codes, and networks as hyper-opaque, restricting full comprehension of its operations and naturalizing this failure. On the other hand, this embedded opacity also makes it harder to look into another fundamental dimension of generative AI, stemming from the appreciation of the latter as a sociotechnical assemblage: its uses and counter-uses, practices of appropriation, deviation and renegotiation. The black box operates as a powerful narrative that erodes human agency. If machines are somehow shaping the future in ways that elude our understanding, no space is left to resist this trajectory. In such a framing, any possibility of unpredictable more-than-human interactions instantly collapses, along with any desertion from intended prescriptions and shared assumptions. And yet people keep engaging with AI in ways its producers never anticipated: pushing back, resisting, appropriating, redesigning, dismantling. Along with tangible uses, everyday habits and practical adaptations, what is at stake is the construction of imaginaries and the very possibility of trusting one own’s perception, senses and impressions. In the cities we inhabit, through our mobiles and the countless screens colonizing intimacy, offices, universities, public spaces and homes, we are relentlessly overexposed to an endless stream of synthetic images and fabricated worlds – a condition unevenly distributed, yet structurally intertwined across geographies. The explosion of generative AI, with its alleged democratizing power over content production, adds yet another layer to this saturation, blurring truths and hallucinations, probability and actuality, warping reality and gradually reshaping the very perceptive structures of the real. Two questions hold this framing together: * How can we engage with technologies whose authority rests on the claim of being inherently unknowable and that produces unstableness of sensed and perceived reality itself? * How do we navigate an increasingly opaque, enshittified and hallucinatory digital environment without losing sight of the material reality of its infrastructure and of its asymmetries? Our winter school sets out to pause on these questions: not to offer solutions, but to immerse ourselves in the contradictions, speculations, and alternatives such pause generates. We do so through a deliberate slowing-down: a collective pause in which observing our own gestures becomes a way of observing the world, and decomposing the everyday becomes a way of deconstructing the systems that frame it. To do so, it engages in a two-sided methodological intervention. Two modes of unboxing The school advances this exploration along two intertwined methodological lines: auto-ethnography and art-based research. First, we propose autoethnography as one mode of unboxing: a chance to slowly inhabit the ephemeral nature of using, interacting with, fighting against, and making kin with, generative AI. With autoethnography we will retrace our daily practices and mediated behaviours, reflecting on our positionality with intelligent (?) machines, and investigating our embodied, tangible, material experience in the so-called cloud. Second, to bring out the thickness of sociotechnical assemblages and engagements, we then propose to draw on art-based research: sound-works, multimedia installations, performances, speculative design iterations and narrative provocations are a way to voice, spatialize and process our affective interactions with AI. Unlocking the black box should therefore not be understood as a merely technical gesture. We conceive it instead as a process of deconstructing the standardized paradigm of use, through the exploration of the interstices within human-machine systems – an exploration that encompasses the appreciation of minute, granular, more-than-human interactions, as well as the grand picture that lies behind them. Eventually, this inquiry could become the generative site for redesigning both. We invite PhD students, early-career researchers, artists, independent scholars both from Humanities and ICTs, technology’s (un)enthusiasts, tech workers, hackers, and anyone curious to explore these concerns and to engage with such resources to apply for our winter school. The winter school will take place in Naples, Italy, from 27 to 29 October 2026. Over these three days, we will bring together seminars with scholars and artists, autoethnographic sessions and art-based workshops, and artistic re-enactments in a collective, convivial (some would say: fun) moment: * Situated and post-disciplinary approaches to digital inquiry * Artistic, speculative, and collaborative methodologies * Humanistic approach to technological affordances * ICT approach to social impacts of technology * Collectively hacking the code(s) Camilla Volpe Postdoctoral Researcher University of Milan Department of Social and Political Sciences Via Conservatorio 7, 20122 Milan, Italy Thinking about platforms, AI, and power – with Game of Tech<https://www.gameoftech.eu/> collective Siamo nati per chiederci perché. Il tuo 5xmille all'Università degli Studi di Milano Codice fiscale 80012650158 [https://sites.unimi.it/loghi/5x1000/5x1000.png]

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Postdoc opportunity at University of Amsterdam (deadline: 24 July)
by Jef Ausloos 17 Jul '26

17 Jul '26

Postdoc in geopolitics and governance of chip security value chains Apply: https://werkenbij.uva.nl/en/vacancies/postdoc-in-geopolitics-and-governance… This postdoc position is part of an interdisciplinary project exploring chip-security in globalised value chains. The security of devices has gradually become more “infrastructural,” as it intertwines and relies upon cryptographic components and circuitry that are implemented in end devices. Moreover, soft/hardware design, production, assembly, and security evaluation happen across global supply chains, and regional differences in security certification schemes. This raises numerous legal, social, and political economy questions, complicating power dynamics over digital infrastructures, blurring the web of liabilities and responsibilities, all amidst growing geopolitical volatility. Against this background, how does security evaluation fit practically and legally into global supply chains? How does it interact with dominant actors and forces in the semiconductor and electronics industry, with states, national, regional, and/or international organizations? The postdoc is expected to leverage a (law and) political economy lens to map and analyse key actors and vulnerabilities across global value chains, and expose broader regulatory, societal, and political-economic power dynamics. We welcome candidates who are willing to challenge dominant frameworks, centre questions of equity and self-determination, and bring a justice-oriented lens to their research. The postdoc should be committed to critical, reflexive research that interrogates how laws, standards, and supply chains can reinforce asymmetric power relations such as imperialist logics, colonial continuities, and economic domination. What You Will Do This is a research position, allowing you to conduct in-depth, critical and empirical research, publish, and travel for workshops and conferences. You will be given substantial freedom to develop your own research agenda, under guidance of project co-lead Jef Ausloos. You will be embedded in the Institute for Information Law (IViR) and periodically liaise with project partners at the Institute for Informatics (IVI). Your tasks include: * Conduct interdisciplinary and empirical research into the governance and political economy of global security chip value chains; * Produce high quality academic output; * Attend and present your work at relevant workshops and conferences; * Organise team meetings with project partners; * Organise and host a workshop around your research; * Contribute to new grant applications. What We Expect from You * A completed PhD degree in political science, media studies, science and technology studies, law & technology, or any other (sub)field relevant to the project as briefly outlined above; * Excellent (empirical) research skills and an affinity with critical theory; * Curiosity and interest to go beyond one’s scholarly comfort zone, and actively engage across disciplines, using different methods; * Experience with research in globalised technology governance ecosystems; * Strong communication skills and an ability to engage with formal and bureaucratic (international) organisations for empirical research; * Collegial attitude and capacity to work both independently and in teams; * Experience with organising workshops, lecture series, or other professional events; * Excellent language skills in English; * You recognise that academic work is inherently political and approach your research with an ethic of accountability to communities disproportionately affected by digital infrastructure governance. If the vacancy appeals to you, but you are doubting whether you might be THE person we are looking for, please do apply. We particularly welcome applications from candidates from underrepresented backgrounds. What We Offer You The Postdoctoral Researcher will be appointed at the University of Amsterdam, starting in November 2026. The employment contract will be for 24 months, 38 hours a week, with a probationary period of two months for new appointments. The salary, depending on relevant experience before the beginning of the employment contract, will vary between be € 4.728 to € 6.433 (scale 11) gross per month. This is exclusive 8% holiday and 8.3% end-of-year bonus. The starting salary will be based on qualifications, expertise and relevant experience. A favourable tax agreement, the ‘30% ruling’, may apply to non-Dutch applicants. The Collective Labour Agreement of Dutch Universities is applicable. If you are applying from outside the EU, the UvA can also assist in the necessary visa application procedures. Your Workplace The Institute for Information Law<https://www.ivir.nl/> (IViR), officially established in 1989, is one of the largest research centers in the field of information law in Europe, and one of the largest of its kind in the world. The Institute employs over 45 people working across disciplines and topics related to the regulation and governance of the information society. We offer * excellent possibilities for further professional development and education; * the opportunity to collaborate with leading researchers at the University of Amsterdam and beyond; * opportunity to contribute to teaching and educational activities. The Amsterdam Law School has an international and interdisciplinary orientation, reflected in both its research and educational activities. The Amsterdam Law School offers three Bachelor’s programs, including the interdisciplinary English-language Bachelor Politics, Psychology, Law and Economics (PPLE) in cooperation with two other faculties, as well as a variety of Master's programs, several of which are taught exclusively in English (i.e. Technology Governance, International and European Law, European Private Law, etc.). Curious about our organization? Learn more about working at the University of Amsterdam here<https://www.uva.nl/over-de-uva/werken-bij-de-uva/werken-bij-de-uva>. Your Application and Contact Information If you recognize yourself in this profile and are interested in the role, we look forward to receiving your motivation letter (max. 700 words), and CV. Please explicitly confirm whether you have or have not used generative AI tools in any part of the process of drafting your application, and if you have please explain how (max. 100 words). We value your honesty in this regard. You can apply via the red button until 23 July 2026. Interviews will take place in September. A Note on the use of Generative AI We do not believe in the inevitability of generative AI and will not use AI to evaluate your application. While there might be certain individual benefits to using generative AI, there are also significant biases, structural harm and exploitation involved with its development and use. We do not prohibit the use of generative AI tools altogether but ask you to be very mindful of how you use these tools, if you decide to use them at all. Importantly, we value honesty and authenticity over polished and generic letters. Apply via https://werkenbij.uva.nl/en/vacancies/postdoc-in-geopolitics-and-governance…

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Re: Air-L Digest, Vol 266, Issue 4
by Antonius Schönberg 17 Jul '26

17 Jul '26

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Opportunity at the Datasphere Initiative – Policy Research Analyst (Latin America and the Caribbean)
by Thiago Moraes 17 Jul '26

17 Jul '26

[EN; Español abajo] Dear AoIR colleagues, I would like to share an exciting opportunity that may be of interest to members of this community. The *Datasphere Initiative* is currently recruiting a *Policy Research Analyst (Latin America and the Caribbean)* to join its growing team. The Datasphere Initiative is a non-profit organization dedicated to fostering trustworthy and innovative data governance. Its work spans AI governance, (regulatory) sandboxes, cross-border data flows, and other agile governance approaches, bringing together governments, academia, civil society, and the private sector to develop practical governance solutions for emerging technologies. If you are interested in AI governance, digital policy, or data governance - and especially if you have experience in the Latin American and Caribbean region - I strongly encourage you to consider applying. It is also a wonderful opportunity to become part of an exceptionally diverse and collaborative international team. More information about the position is available here: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/we-are-hiring-the-datasphere-initiative-shar… Feel free to share this opportunity with colleagues who might be interested. Best regards, Thiago Moraes ------------------------------ Estimadas y estimados colegas de AoIR, Quisiera compartir una oportunidad que puede ser de interés para esta comunidad. La *Datasphere Initiative* está buscando un/a *Policy Research Analyst (Latin America and the Caribbean)* para incorporarse a su equipo. La Datasphere Initiative es una organización sin fines de lucro dedicada a promover una gobernanza de datos confiable e innovadora. Su trabajo abarca gobernanza de la IA, sandboxes, flujos transfronterizos de datos y otros enfoques de gobernanza ágil, reuniendo a gobiernos, academia, sociedad civil y sector privado para desarrollar soluciones prácticas frente a los desafíos de las tecnologías emergentes. Si trabajan o tienen interés en gobernanza de la IA, políticas digitales o gobernanza de datos, especialmente en América Latina y el Caribe, les animo a postular. También es una excelente oportunidad para formar parte de un equipo internacional muy diverso, colaborativo y comprometido. Más información sobre la vacante: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/we-are-hiring-the-datasphere-initiative-shar… No duden en compartir esta convocatoria con otras personas que puedan estar interesadas. Un cordial saludo, Thiago Moraes

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Re: Air-L Digest, Vol 266, Issue 2
by Antonius Schönberg 16 Jul '26

16 Jul '26

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