SIR Model for Fake News Spreading through WhatsApp
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3166095
This papers analyzes the spread of fake news through WhatsApp using the SIR model. This paper analyzes WhatsApp for two particular reasons. Primarily, Whatsapp’s encryption of its messages prohibits governments from being able to take action as the platform lacks a manner to view the information spread using the service. Secondly WhatsApp is analyzed due to the designation that the app is given by individuals: Facebook and Twitter are considered to be social networks whereas Whatsapp or Snapchat are viewed as social media platforms. These combinations allow the authors to investigate a subject that has largely been overlooked through thought due to its likely less impact that a platform such as Facebook, but it is still an important factor in the spread of fake news as the app has over 900 million users. The authors then estimate the amounts of susceptible, infected and recovered individuals of fake news as well as the transmission. probability and number of contacts. They then model the situation and conclude that society takes steps to cull the spread of fake news.
This paper has a strong connection to the class and society at large. The SIR model is something that we recently discussed and went over in class, and its effects are seen anywhere that there is an ability to spread and idea or disease between connected individuals. Since Donald Trump’s first foray into the Republican primary back in 2015, and 2016 the idea of “fake news” became minted largely due to Trump’s pushback against critical coverage of his character and campaign. However, following Trump’s initial coining of the phrase the term took a whole new meaning with the breaking of the Cambridge Analytica scandal which involved the deliberate use of personal data from FaceBook and fake news to alter individual’s political knowledge and, in the end, presidential vote. Following this, the idea of fake news took whole meaning as individuals became aware of the dangerous issues with a social media network allowing anyone to upload, advertise, and share information. A particular feature of fake news is the fervent belief it instills in its authors and supporters that borders on (and in some cases displays) irrationality. The idea that vaccines cause autism, for instance, is a particular example of this. Because of these factors, this paper displays a mathematical picture that helps contextualize the problems of fake news in a digitized world, beyond the narrow blinders of American society.