Network segregation and the propagation of misinformation

Abstract

How does the ideological segregation of online networks impact the spread of misinformation? Past studies have found that homophily generally increases diffusion, suggesting that partisan news, whether true or false, will spread farther in ideologically segregated networks. We argue that network segregation disproportionately aids messages that are otherwise too implausible to diffuse, thus favoring false over true news. To test this argument, we seeded true and false informational messages in experimental networks in which subjects were either ideologically integrated or segregated, yielding 512 controlled propagation histories in 16 independent information systems. Experimental results reveal that the fraction of false information circulating was systematically greater in ideologically segregated networks. Agent-based models show robustness of this finding across different network topologies and sizes. We conclude that partisan sorting undermines the veracity of information circulating on the Internet by increasing exposure to content that would otherwise not manage to diffuse.