Master Thesis Online
American Democracy Under Threat: Misinformation and Disinformation on Social Media. A case study of Donald Trump's mis- and disinformation tweets in the context of the 2021 Capitol siege
*TFE * VAN RICKSTAL Cécile *2020-21.pdf
Van Rickstal, Cécile 
Promotor(s) :
Herbillon, Marie
Date of defense : 14-Jun-2021/24-Jun-2021 • Permalink : http://hdl.handle.net/2268.2/12157
Details
| Title : | American Democracy Under Threat: Misinformation and Disinformation on Social Media. A case study of Donald Trump's mis- and disinformation tweets in the context of the 2021 Capitol siege |
| Translated title : | [fr] La démocratie américaine menacée : "misinformation" et "disinformation" sur les réseaux sociaux. Une étude de cas des tweets de "misinformation" et de "disinformation" de Donald Trump dans le contexte de l'assaut du Capitole. |
| Author : | Van Rickstal, Cécile
|
| Date of defense : | 14-Jun-2021/24-Jun-2021 |
| Advisor(s) : | Herbillon, Marie
|
| Committee's member(s) : | Geuens, Geoffrey
Hamers, Jérémy
|
| Language : | English |
| Number of pages : | 110 |
| Keywords : | [en] disinformation [en] misinformation [en] Social media [fr] Donald Trump |
| Discipline(s) : | Social & behavioral sciences, psychology > Communication & mass media |
| Institution(s) : | Université de Liège, Liège, Belgique |
| Degree: | Master en communication multilingue, à finalité spécialisée en communication économique et sociale |
| Faculty: | Master thesis of the Faculté de Philosophie et Lettres |
Abstract
[en] Since Donald Trump came to power in 2017, the debate about the consequences of mis- and disinformation on social media has continued to grow. This thesis aims to discuss the impact of online mis- and disinformation on American democracy with the help of a case study of Donald Trump’s tweets between 3 November 2020, which was the day of the election, and 6 January 2021, which was the day of the Capitol storming. This thesis presents four mechanisms that show how Trump’s mis- and disinformation tweets contributed to the assault on the U.S. Capitol. First, online polarisation, second, the spread of mis- and disinformation on Twitter, third, Donald Trump core supporters’ news ecosystem, finally, Trump’s rhetoric on Twitter. The findings contribute to the building of the theory according to which mis- and disinformation represent a threat to democracy.
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Cite this master thesis
APA
Van Rickstal, C. (2021). American Democracy Under Threat: Misinformation and Disinformation on Social Media. A case study of Donald Trump's mis- and disinformation tweets in the context of the 2021 Capitol siege. (Unpublished master's thesis). Université de Liège, Liège, Belgique. Retrieved from https://matheo.uliege.be/handle/2268.2/12157
Chicago
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