Kate Starbird
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katestarbird.bsky.social
Kate Starbird
@katestarbird.bsky.social
90K followers 2.9K following 4.2K posts

Researcher of online rumors & disinformation. Former basketball player. Prof at University of Washington, HCDE. Co-founder of the UW Center for an Informed Public. Personal account: Views may not reflect those of my employer. #RageAgainstTheBullshitMachine .. more

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Catherine Evelyn Starbird is an American computer scientist and former women's professional basketball player.

Source: Wikipedia
Communication & Media Studies 30%
Sociology 18%
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katestarbird.bsky.social
Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · Mar 27
On Feb 24, I gave a lecture at UW explaining what my team's decade-plus research on online rumors during crises reveals about the right wing "bullshit machine." Fittingly, a lightning strike impacted the original audio. Here's a fixed version w/ the full transcript: www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjiG...
A Spotlight on Rumors
YouTube video by UW (University of Washington)
www.youtube.com

katestarbird.bsky.social
Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · 2h
Younes sat across from me during the 1st hour a 6-hour interview in DC w/ Jim Jordan’s “weaponization of government” committee where she tried to find evidence for a bunch of asinine conspiracy theories, ran into brick walls (they were false), & then got subbed out for another lawyer b/c she sucked.

Reposted by Elizabeth Sharrow, Trevon D. Logan, Robert C. Richards , and 1 more

nbedera.bsky.social
Nicole Bedera @nbedera.bsky.social · 6h
I can’t emphasize enough how shocked my out of state friends and family are when I tell them what has happened in Minneapolis since Renee Good’s murder.

Without reliable media, most not-chronically-online people are completely in the dark. If you want to help Minnesota, tell people what you know.

katestarbird.bsky.social
Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · 7h
Emmett’s thread offers a very succinct summary of our team’s recent “frameworks” paper, which describes our motivation and methodological approach for supporting collective sensemaking thru rapid research in a university setting. We’re planning another full deployment for the 2026 U.S. election.
emmettoconnell.bsky.social Emmett O'Connell @emmettoconnell.bsky.social · 1d
Last week I wrote about how these rumor disasters happen and a little comms advice on how to prep and respond. But the @cip.uw.edu recently wrote a approach that could be expanded to inoculate communities by covering in real time how rumors spread. 🧵

/1
emmettoconnell.bsky.social Emmett O'Connell @emmettoconnell.bsky.social · 11d
1/ Ever wonder how a rumor in MN becomes a physical confrontation in WA in 72 hours? It’s a new model: Participatory Disinformation. WA's digital ecosystem is perfectly primed for these outbreaks. 🧵

katestarbird.bsky.social
Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · 15h
* and right wing political bias.

Reposted by Scott L. Greer, Catherine D’Ignazio

katestarbird.bsky.social
Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · 15h
Great thread from a rock star researcher. TLDR: Grokipedia articles about living people are long, detailed, and full of bullshit.
cfiesler.bsky.social Dr. Casey Fiesler @cfiesler.bsky.social · 16h
There is a Grokipedia article about me (and I assume anyone else who has a Wikipedia page about them) and well that was quite an interesting read (over 5,000 words).

Let's fact check it, shall we...

Reposted by Scott L. Greer, Kate Starbird, Daxton R. Stewart

cfiesler.bsky.social
Dr. Casey Fiesler @cfiesler.bsky.social · 16h
There is a Grokipedia article about me (and I assume anyone else who has a Wikipedia page about them) and well that was quite an interesting read (over 5,000 words).

Let's fact check it, shall we...

Reposted by Lisa W. Fazio, Timothy Graham

katestarbird.bsky.social
Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · 17h
Good thread about how data has been locked down and researchers locked out of social media platforms, and how the current U.S. government protects Musk, X, and others from transparency regulations passed by other countries and the EU. Our team is definitely feeling the pain of lost data access.
wikisteff.bsky.social Stef "inclusion is a human right" Christensen @wikisteff.bsky.social · 19h
The disinformation promulgated by X is so essential for the global polycoup that the US, an already-compromised state, will blackmail any government that threatens to ban or discipline it.
nikitagill.bsky.social Nikita Gill @nikitagill.bsky.social · 23h
Barely anyone is going to see this, but if you’ve ever asked why X isn’t banned in the UK yet despite creating CSAM, it’s because the US government has enforced a worldwide policy of blackmail protecting the American tech oligarchy. It’s why TikTok can be banned but X cannot.

Reposted by Kate Starbird

wikisteff.bsky.social
Stef "inclusion is a human right" Christensen @wikisteff.bsky.social · 19h
The disinformation promulgated by X is so essential for the global polycoup that the US, an already-compromised state, will blackmail any government that threatens to ban or discipline it.
nikitagill.bsky.social Nikita Gill @nikitagill.bsky.social · 23h
Barely anyone is going to see this, but if you’ve ever asked why X isn’t banned in the UK yet despite creating CSAM, it’s because the US government has enforced a worldwide policy of blackmail protecting the American tech oligarchy. It’s why TikTok can be banned but X cannot.
nikitagill.bsky.social Nikita Gill @nikitagill.bsky.social · 23h
“Why can’t we have any regulations for US tech in Britain?”

Because the US trade rep has gone to every country including Britain and said if we regulate tech in a way that favours our people, industries and national interests, the US will bury us in tariffs and ruin our economy.

katestarbird.bsky.social
Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · 1d
That’s what I’m afraid of.

katestarbird.bsky.social
Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · 1d
Not even close, I fear. We’re just in the defecting phase as everyone else tries to figure out what the heck they’re going to do. They haven’t even thrown out the old rules yet. They’re just looking at them and pointing as he blows through them and saying… does everybody see THIS?

katestarbird.bsky.social
Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · 1d
Asking for a nervous friend… haven’t thought a lot about game theory since first encountering it as a PhD student.

katestarbird.bsky.social
Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · 1d
Doesn’t game theory suggest that in a stable, cooperative system where powerful agents play by a set of established rules, someone who “defects” & stops playing by the rules wins big for awhile, but then the system gets destabilized, chaos rules, & eventually a new system gets rebuilt on the ruins?

Reposted by Bessma Momani, Kate Starbird

pbsnews.org
PBS News @pbsnews.org · 1d
Tonight marked the last broadcast of PBS News Weekend for the foreseeable future. As the show signs off the air, anchor John Yang looks back at some of our top stories and highlights over the years. https://to.pbs.org/4pxYe7W
Highlights from PBS News Weekend as show goes off the air
This Sunday is the final broadcast of PBS News Weekend, at least for the foreseeable future. PBS cancelled the show due to the loss of federal funding for public media. As our team signs off the air, anchor John Yang looks back at some of our top storie...
to.pbs.org

katestarbird.bsky.social
Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · 1d
Cue conspiracy theorist online discourse from ~2015, hashtag end the fed, hashtag dissolve NATO.

Reposted by Will Jennings, David R. Miller, Scott A. Imberman , and 3 more

prchovanec.bsky.social
Patrick Chovanec @prchovanec.bsky.social · 1d
Wow, talk about unprecedented.
The Fed Chairman makes official statement that the President is using criminal charges to threaten him over monetary policy.

Reposted by Anne Applebaum, Stephen M. Walt, Kori Schake , and 88 more

federalreserve.gov
Federal Reserve @federalreserve.gov · 1d
Video message from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=KckG...
www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/s...
Statement by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell
YouTube video by Federal Reserve
www.youtube.com

Reposted by Rosemary A. Joyce, David R. Miller, Kate Starbird

davidgura.bsky.social
David Gura @davidgura.bsky.social · 1d
“The U.S. attorney’s office in the District of Columbia has opened a criminal investigation into Jerome H. Powell, the Federal Reserve chair, over the central bank’s renovation of its Washington headquarters and whether Mr. Powell lied to Congress about the scope of the project…”
Federal Prosecutors Are Said to Have Opened Inquiry Into Fed Chair Powell
www.nytimes.com

Reposted by Anna O. Law, Will Jennings, Brendan Nyhan , and 13 more

jakemgrumbach.bsky.social
Jake Grumbach @jakemgrumbach.bsky.social · 1d
I see this take around from time to time and totally disagree. ICE just murdered a woman standing up to them. No Kings is among the largest protests in history.

The complacency is coming from elites in media, business, universities, and the Democratic leadership
Nicholas Kristof @NickKristof X.com I'm struck by the contrast between the passion for democracy shown by Iranians willing to die for it and the complacency with which many Americans have accepted an authoritarian slide. Americans should cheer for Iran's democrats--and also learn from their determination.

katestarbird.bsky.social
Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · 1d
Yes. Summer academic terms typically don’t take the full summer. They are often split it two, an A & B term, or they end with 3 weeks or so prior to the Fall term. Student athletes should be able to take classes for part of the summer (if needed) and travel during a time when they aren’t in class.

katestarbird.bsky.social
Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · 1d
Oh yeah, that too. And the right to create and publish AI-generated CSAM.

Reposted by Kate Starbird

emmettoconnell.bsky.social
Emmett O'Connell @emmettoconnell.bsky.social · 1d
The UW Center for an Informed Public just released a framework for “rapid research.” It’s pitched as academic. But read closely, and it’s a manual for reporting on how rumors disrupt real communities.

uw.pressbooks.pub/rapidresearc...

/3
Being Sensemakers: A Framework for University-Based Rapid Research of Elections, Crisis Events, and Beyond
A framework for university-based rapid research of elections, crisis events, and beyond
uw.pressbooks.pub

Reposted by Kate Starbird

emmettoconnell.bsky.social
Emmett O'Connell @emmettoconnell.bsky.social · 1d
Last week I wrote about how these rumor disasters happen and a little comms advice on how to prep and respond. But the @cip.uw.edu recently wrote a approach that could be expanded to inoculate communities by covering in real time how rumors spread. 🧵

/1
emmettoconnell.bsky.social Emmett O'Connell @emmettoconnell.bsky.social · 11d
1/ Ever wonder how a rumor in MN becomes a physical confrontation in WA in 72 hours? It’s a new model: Participatory Disinformation. WA's digital ecosystem is perfectly primed for these outbreaks. 🧵

katestarbird.bsky.social
Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · 1d
I’m confused. I was told that the First Amendment was purely about preserving the right be showered in attention for shitposting online.

Reposted by Stephan Lewandowsky, Brendan Nyhan, Aaron Sojourner , and 5 more

ninajankowicz.com
Nina Jankowicz @ninajankowicz.com · 1d
I can't say this loudly enough: THEY ARE TRYING TO NORMALIZE THE KILLING OF CIVILIANS FOR PARTICIPATING IN FIRST AMENDMENT PROTECTED PROTEST ACTIVITIES.
atrupar.com Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 1d
Homan: "We gotta stop the hateful rhetoric. Saying this officer is a murderer is dangerous. It's just ridiculous. It's gonna infuriate people more which means there's gonna be more incidents like this."

Reposted by Anna O. Law, Adrian Daub, Sarah Roberts , and 3 more

brennancenter.org
Brennan Center @brennancenter.org · 2d
Social media monitoring systems, cellphone location tracking, facial recognition, remote hacking tools — now being turned on Americans by ICE to target protesters. bit.ly/3Kq348R
ICE Wants to Go After Dissenters as well as Immigrants
The Trump administration is being open about its plans to violate Americans’ First and Fourth Amendment rights.
www.brennancenter.org

katestarbird.bsky.social
Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · 2d
True and good point. Maybe better to add that the goal would be to understand it as an influence campaign and help people resist and counteract it. This is why my team has moved from purely post hoc research to doing “rapid” research that supports sensemaking around emergent events.

Reposted by Greg Linden

katestarbird.bsky.social
Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · 2d
Also, the influence operations working to justify and pave the way for Trump's takeover of Greenland are fascinating. I don't have capacity to make this a case study, but if anyone is looking for a Master's project on networked propaganda in the geopolitical sphere, this could be a productive case.

katestarbird.bsky.social
Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · 2d
Our WA State AG, Nick Brown, is doing some REAL WORK on the democracy front. Kudos to him and his team.

katestarbird.bsky.social
Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · 2d
It is going to be more important that ever to help people (including voters, journalists, election officials, legal professionals, etc.) navigate information spaces to ensure that elgible voters are able to effectivey cast their votes and that every vote is counted.

katestarbird.bsky.social
Kate Starbird @katestarbird.bsky.social · 2d
The right (Trump and supporters) have infrastructure in place to surface, promote, & mobilize on top of false claims about elections — thru lawsuits, executive orders, etc. — in ways that could make it harder to vote & add to confusion about where/when/how to vote in ways that disenfranchise voters.