@inproceedings{951fe4f1e6dd4e39a1ef88e0c8986509,
title = "Spreading the Word: Exploring a Network of Mobilizing Messages in a Telegram Conspiracy Group",
abstract = "Telegram's design prioritizes user security and minimal content moderation, making it appealing for communities banned from mainstream platforms, such as conspiracy influencers or far-right movements. We examine the bi-directional behavior of users in a conspiratorial Telegram group chat during the COVID-19 pandemic from 2020-2023. We find that the network structure of this community evolved throughout the pandemic, where the network grew both in the number of active users, as well as in the number of interactions. This increased interconnectivity coincided with surges in planning discussions for associated offline protests.",
keywords = "collective action, conspiracy theories, social network analysis, Telegram",
author = "Darja Wischerath and Emily Godwin and Desislava Bocheva and Olivia Brown and Roscoe, {Jonathan Francis} and Davidson, {Brittany I.}",
year = "2024",
month = may,
day = "11",
doi = "10.1145/3613905.3651888",
language = "English",
series = "Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems - Proceedings",
publisher = "Association for Computing Machinery",
booktitle = "CHI 2024 - Extended Abstracts of the 2024 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Sytems",
address = "USA United States",
note = "2024 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Sytems, CHI EA 2024 ; Conference date: 11-05-2024 Through 16-05-2024",
}