Authoritarian Communications.

Publications:

“Content camouflage: How diversified posting patterns influence human detection of AI-enabled social bots” - with Saucier, C. J., Linvill, D., Okoronkwo, A., Tatineni, G., & Sezgin, A.

Drawing on real AI-enabled bot profiles that mixed sports content with political messaging during the 2024 U.S. election, researchers conducted two experiments finding that while content diversification (or camouflage) didn’t directly improve bot detection, it reliably increased perceived trustworthiness. This in turn made users more likely to classify bot accounts as human-operated, with this effect moderated by political ideology.

“Old Despots, New Tricks - An AI-Empowered Pro-Kagame/RPF Coordinated Influence Network on X” - with Darren Linvill and Patrick Warren

Following the release of several reports related to Rwanda’s targeting of journalists by Forbidden Stories, we track the use of large language models (LLMs) and generative AI (GAI) by a coordinated network aimed at discrediting the reporting and distracting from the wider narrative.

Under Review:

“To the Loser Goes the Spoils? Elections as Signals of Opposition Support” (Under Review) - with Nicolas Wittstock

This project uses a survey distributed through Facebook and SurveyCTO to assess whether and when illegitimate elections can serve as a signal of popular support within a citizenry. Evidence was collected in the weeks prior to and after Nicaragua’s 2021 General Election.

Papers and Reports:

“Prosecuting a president is divisive and sometimes destabilizing - here’s why many countries do it anyway” (The Conversation, 2022) - with James Long and Victor Menaldo

This piece updates our older piece to focus more directly on the situation surrounding former President Donald Trump in the aftermath of the FBI’s raid of his Florida residence. Media Coverage: The New York Times.

“Prosecuting ex-presidents for corruption is trending worldwide – but it’s not always great for democracy” (The Conversation, 2021) - with James Long and Victor Menaldo

This article details what has happened historically when states have both attempted to prosecute former leaders as well as when they have been granted immunity.