Media & Jornalismo

Astroturfing in Social Media: A Literature Review from a Communication Sciences Perspective

Tanase Tasente

Astroturfing, the practice of fabricating grassroots support while concealing sponsorship, is increasingly prevalent in online environments. This review synthesizes definitions, historical roots, and contemporary cases, drawing from digital communication, political science, and public relations research. Astroturfing exploits social media’s network structures and viral engagement to manipulate public perception. Its scope spans authoritarian regimes using troll factories to democracies deploying bots and paid influencers. Despite evolving detection methods, the blending of automated and human actors complicates oversight. Astroturfing undermines trust, authentic dialogue, and transparency, raising ethical and regulatory challenges. Solutions proposed include digital literacy, collaborative detection, and stricter transparency for sponsored content. This review emphasizes the need for theoretical models and interventions to counteract astroturfing’s impact on democratic discourse.

Framing Artificial Intelligence in Iraqi Online Journalism: A Quantitative Content Analysis of Al-Zaman and Al-Sabah

Jamal Sarhad

This study examines how Iraqi online newspapers describe artificial intelligence (AI) in their stories; Al-Zaman and Al-Sabah are the cases in point. The scholars provide quantitative content analysis of AI-related articles published between 2022 and 2024 by identifying themes via framing orientations and AI placements. The news coverage of AI topics that are political (35%) and economic (25%) dominates, while education, law, and culture remain overlooked. Positive framing (55%) dominates neutral (30%) and negative (15%) tones, reflecting an optimistic view of AI in development. Most stories about AI appear in general or economic sections, hardly ever on front pages. Grounded in functionalism, technological determinism, and uses-and-gratifications theory, this research presents a global and applicable discussion of AI journalism in transitional media systems and recommendations for more moderate, ethically responsible reporting.

Tena Fernández, R., Silva, S. R., & Soto Vázquez, J. (Coords.). (2025). Censura y educación en la LIJ durante las dictaduras de Franco y Salazar / Censura e educação na literatura infantojuvenil durante as ditaduras de Franco e Salazar.

Daniel Laliena

[Reseña crítica] Tena Fernández, R., Silva, S. R., & Soto Vázquez, J. (Coords.). (2025). Censura y educación en la LIJ durante las dictaduras de Franco y Salazar / Censura e educação na literatura infantojuvenil durante as ditaduras de Franco e Salazar. Ediciones de la Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha (Colección Arcadia).

Uma análise comparativa da cobertura jornalística e da recepção pública das regravações de Taylor Swift

Kerolyn Machado Silveira, Cristiano Max Pereira Pinheiro, Thomás Czrnhak

This paper analyzes the journalistic coverage of the re-recordings of singer Taylor Swift’s albums, considering the impacts of this practice on the contemporary music industry and the construction of media narratives. The research investigates how media outlets approach the artist’s re-release strategies, as well as the audience’s reception on social media, with an emphasis on platform X. This paper adopts a qualitative approach and an exploratory character, using bibliographic research, documentary analysis, and content analysis, with tweets and news articles as the data corpus. It also discusses copyright issues in the recording industry, the historical role of re-recordings in music, and the influence of cultural journalism in mediating the relationship between artist and audience. The results show that Taylor Swift’s re-recordings have become a media and symbolic phenomenon, whose coverage reflects disputes over artistic autonomy, critical recognition, and audience engagement.

Social Protests in Cuba During 2022: Coverage in State Media, Independent Media, and Their Representation in Public Opinion

Yánder Castillo Salina

This study examines media coverage and public opinion regarding the 2022 protests in Cuba. Through analysis of 12 media outlets (6 state-affiliated and 6 independent) and a survey of 391 Cuban residents, the research reveals stark contrasts in protest representation. Independent media provided extensive coverage, legitimizing the protests and denouncing state repression, while state media minimized coverage and framed protests as vandalism. Citizens perceived the protests as largely ineffective in addressing national issues. Using the Cuban case, this study provides empirical evidence about the social construction of protests in authoritarian contexts.