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gruzd.ca
Anatoliy Gruzd
@gruzd.ca
440 followers 99 following 33 posts

Canada Research Chair, Professor at Toronto Metropolitan University & co-director & researcher at @socialmedialab.ca | Social Media and Network Scholar | My opinions are my own

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Communication & Media Studies 32%
Computer science 19%
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · 8d
If you're a scientist or researcher sharing your work online, here are some resources to help you manage the risks of being public. socialmedialab.ca/km-compass/

Pro Tip: Share them with your communications office and encourage them to form a rapid response team, with a plan of action in place.
KM Compass - A Knowledge Mobilization App - Social Media Lab
“Helping You Share What You Know, Where It Matters Most“ At a time when public trust in institutions is fragmented and misinformation spreads faster than evidence, researchers and experts face a criti...
socialmedialab.ca
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd, Michelle Dion

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · 8d
"New KM Compass App From the Social Media Lab Helps Researchers Translate Knowledge Into Real-World Impact" socialmedialab.ca/2025/10/02/n...
New KM Compass App From the Social Media Lab Helps Researchers Translate Knowledge Into Real-World Impact - Social Media Lab
TORONTO, ON – [October 02, 2025] — At a time when public trust in institutions is fragmented and misinformation spreads faster than evidence, researchers and experts face a critical challenge: how to ...
socialmedialab.ca
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd, Salla-Maaria Laaksonen

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · 12d
Q: Can soft moderation techniques (such as footnotes and blur screens) decrease engagement with misinformation on social media?

A: Yes, yes, they can.
socialmedialab.ca/2024/09/11/n...
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · 14d
To put it another way, social media is good at showing what people are talking about (the trending direction of public attention or sentiment), but it doesn’t reliably convey how many people feel that way (intensity) or how strongly they feel it (speed/force of change).
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · 14d
In some way, social media is like a weather vane in a storm: it spins quickly to show where the wind’s blowing, but you can’t tell how fierce the storm really is.
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd, Nathan P. Kalmoe

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · 14d
The Cracker Barrel story should serve as a reminder that "What a journalist can discern from publicly available social media data is not exactly what is typically thought of as 'public opinion.'”

We & our colleagues outlined this problem back in 2018. policyoptions.irpp.org/2018/09/when...
When journalists report social media as public opinion
As digital data about people grows, journalists are increasingly turning to social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook to find information. One trend in journalism, particularly in political ...
policyoptions.irpp.org
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd, Michael Zimmer, Timothy Graham

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · 14d
"Cracker Barrel Outrage Was Almost Certainly Driven by Bots, Researchers Say" gizmodo.com/cracker-barr...
Cracker Barrel Outrage Was Almost Certainly Driven by Bots, Researchers Say
Doesn't that make more sense than lots of people caring about Cracker Barrel?
gizmodo.com
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · 16d
Is Finland a model for Canada to counter disinformation? But how practical is the hope that Finland can be a beacon for other democracies? www.hilltimes.com/story/2025/0...
According to @lageneralista.ca from the Carnegie Endowment Information Environment Project, "Ecologically speaking, not very."
Is Finland a model for Canada to counter disinformation?
The reported absence of significant attacks will likely continue to fuel the belief in democratic policy circles that Finland is a shining example other countries should follow in the fight against di...
www.hilltimes.com
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · 16d
"Facebook video of CN Tower on fire should have AI-generated content label, experts say. No fire happened and video is a deepfake, CN Tower says." www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
A video of the CN Tower on fire went viral on Facebook. The problem? It's fake | CBC News
A fake video of the CN Tower on fire went viral on Facebook this week and experts say it's another example of why social media platforms need to clearly mark AI-generated content.
www.cbc.ca
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd, Fabio Giglietto

Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · 16d
The West have long been a target of the Kremlin’s disinformation campaigns. Since the annexation of Crimea in 2014, Russia has used a variety of information warfare tactics to destabilize the Ukrainian government & undermine the legitimacy of democratic governments. socialmedialab.ca/2024/03/12/n...
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · 16d
From Russia with love ❤️:
- "Grassroots movement focused on separating Alberta from Canada"
- Webpage capture: archive.is/JbKUV
- TikTok screenshot: archive.is/xB1Mc

So, yes, Russia remains very interested in Canada.
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · 17d
Without a shared commitment to legal order and enforcement, no algorithm, platform safeguard, or innovation can prevent the slow decay of civic trust, and America becomes another low-trust failed state.
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · 17d
Why it matters: In Canada, "...one-third of Canadian adults have a TikTok account, but that 65 per cent of adults aged 18 to 24 and 59 per cent of those aged 25 to 34 use the app" (census-blanced survey/n=1,500).

Download our free full report here: socialmedialab.ca/2025/05/05/n...
[New Report] The State of Social Media in Canada 2025. - Social Media Lab
Social media use among Canadians has largely rebounded. X (formerly Twitter) stands out as the lone decliner. TORONTO — May 2025 — After a post‑pandemic dip in 2022, social media account ownership and...
socialmedialab.ca
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · 17d
An investigation by Canada's Privacy Commissioner found that while TikTok is not intended for people under 13, "hundreds of thousands of Canadian children access TikTok’s platform each year – and that TikTok has been collecting and using their personal information." www.priv.gc.ca/en/opc-news/...
News release: Joint investigation into TikTok highlights privacy concerns related to the collection and use of children’s personal information - Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada
Even though the company has stated that its platform is not intended for people under the age of 13, the investigation found that hundreds of thousands of Canadian children access TikTok’s platform each year – and that TikTok has been collecting and using their personal information.
www.priv.gc.ca
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · 18d
Here's a peek at who has been trying to sway Americans on Facebook and Instagram over the past seven days. app.polidashboard.org/meta_ads?cou...
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · 21d
Science is not about saying something is right but that it has not proven to be wrong yet. #ScienceNotCertainty
#AlwaysTesting
#ScienceInProgress
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · 24d
🧵 1/ The most effective disinformation campaigns rarely invent ideas out of thin air. Instead, they take preexisting facts, emotions, and grievances, then distort or exaggerate them in ways that deepen division, heighten resentment, and make falsehoods feel more credible.
Foreign disinformation about Charlie Kirk's killing seeks to widen US divisions
Russia moved quickly to exploit conservative activist Charlie Kirk's shooting death at a Utah college, with groups linked to the Kremlin spreading false and misleading claims that experts say are desi...
apnews.com
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · 24d
"Oracle, Andreessen Horowitz consortium will control 80% of TikTok in U.S.: Report" www.fastcompany.com/91405633/tik...
Oracle, Andreessen Horowitz consortium will control 80% of TikTok in U.S.: Report
Current users of the app will be asked to shift to a new app, which TikTok has built and is testing.
www.fastcompany.com
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · 24d
Younger adults on social media are much more likely than older users to say social media is important for finding like-minded people and getting involved. pewrsr.ch/41Rz37x
42% of social media users say the sites are important for them getting involved with political, social issues
Younger adults on social media are much more likely than older users to say social media is important for finding like-minded people and getting involved.
pewrsr.ch
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · Sep 10
"If Poland is willing to intercept drones over its territory, then Poland and NATO should offer to extend that protection to the Western part of Ukraine. It is technically feasible, and the decision is one of political will." www.rusi.org/in-the-news/...
Ed Arnold comments on the consequence of Russian drones violating Polish airspace
This incursion is a far more serious violation of Polish airspace from Russia than what has happened previously.
www.rusi.org
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · Sep 10
Poland closes Warsaw International Airport due to "unplanned military activity"
#RussianDrones
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · Sep 5
Our NoteTracker app now contains data on over 1.5 million Community Notes from around the world.

The app allows journalists, regulators and the public to see proposed notes in near real-time before they are available on X. notetracker.socialmediadata.org
NoteTracker Dashboard
App for Discovering and Analyzing X Posts with Community Notes
notetracker.socialmediadata.org
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd, Sebastian Karcher, Josh Pasek

Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · Aug 6
After Rome came the Dark Ages: "This Is What the End of the Liberal World Order Looks Like. Sudan’s devastating civil war shows what will replace the liberal order: anarchy and greed." www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...
This Is What the End of the Liberal World Order Looks Like
In a post-American world, greed and nihilism are destroying Sudan.
www.theatlantic.com
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · Aug 6
Meta just gave advertisers wider access to "Meta’s Value Rules," a new tool to let advertiser fine-tune and target nich audience who are likely to buy their products. (Note: product can also be a social issue or policy position.) www.socialmediatoday.com/news/meta-ad...
A Look at Meta’s ‘Value Rules’ for Specific Ad-Targeting Approaches
You may have noticed “Value Rules” appear as a new option in your Meta ads setup.
www.socialmediatoday.com
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · Jul 29
@PoliDashboard.org Launches Major Update to Advance Transparency in Political Advertising on Facebook & Instagram.
- AI-Generated Ad Summaries
- Semantic Ad Search
- Advanced Data Filtering
- Enhanced Demographics Visualization w/ Interactive Demographic Drilldowns
socialmedialab.ca/2025/07/29/p...
PoliDashboard Launches Major Update to Advance Transparency in Political Advertising On Facebook and Instagram - Social Media Lab
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEJuly 25, 2025 Toronto, ON — The Social Media Lab at Toronto Metropolitan University is pleased to announce a major update to PoliDashboard.org, a free public web app that enhances...
socialmedialab.ca
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · Jul 7
Most people outside of academia do not know how fragile ecosystems of talent, infrastructure, and momentum really are. Once the funding, people, and institutional memory are gone, it’s incredibly hard to rebuild.

You'll lose a generation of researchers because the rent is due.
a man is standing in front of a door that says restroom
ALT: a man is standing in front of a door that says restroom
media.tenor.com
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · Jul 7
The bigger tragedy is that many researchers will be forced to forgo a research career entirely. Think of all the innovations and cures that will be lost to the world.
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Reposted by Anatoliy Gruzd

socialmedialab.ca
Social Media Lab @socialmedialab.ca · Jul 7
"A Lost Generation of Researchers
Cuts to the nation’s science funding are forcing future scholars to delay graduate study, continue it abroad, or forgo it entirely." www.chronicle.com/article/a-lo...
How Trump’s Cuts to Science Funding Are Derailing Young Scholars’ Careers
Budding academics are delaying their graduate studies, continuing them abroad, or forgoing them entirely.
www.chronicle.com
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