University of Urbino
Department of Communication Sciences, Humanities and International Studies
Fabio Giglietto, PhD, is Full Professor of Internet Studies at the Department of Communication Sciences, Humanities and International Studies at the University of Urbino Carlo Bo. He explores the intricate relationships between social systems, media, and digital technologies, focusing on the theory of information, communication, and society. His work has appeared in several journals, including the Journal of Communication, Information, Communication & Society, and Social Media + Society. According to Google Scholar, his publications have been cited over 2200 times.
Professor Giglietto's current research interests include coordinated behavior detection, multimodal narratives, and the challenges of social media data access. He leads the Mapping Italian News Research Program (MINE), which investigates Italian news media coverage and the impact of social media on Italian elections. He is also involved in the EU-funded Horizon Europe project VERAAI, developing AI-based tools to assist journalists and fact-checkers in verifying multimedia content and combating disinformation, with a focus on detecting coordinated behavior and inauthentic networks spreading misleading content. Additionally, he contributes to the EU-funded PROMPT initiative, addressing disinformation narratives across Europe. His recent research includes an analysis of Meta's political content reduction policy and its impact on the reach of Italian Members of Parliament on Facebook, revealing a significant reduction in visibility for mainstream politicians.
This academic year, Professor Giglietto is teaching courses such as Generative AI and Media and Digital Social Network Analysis. These courses reflect his engagement with contemporary issues in digital communication, including the impact of AI on the media system and methods for analyzing online social networks. He actively participates in professional discussions on platforms like BlueSky (@fabiogiglietto.bsky.social) and Mastodon, addressing topics such as platform policies and research methodologies. His work also examines the transformative effects of the Digital Services Act (DSA) on data access for platform research.
Giglietto, F. (2025). "A Pretty Blunt Approach": Meta's Political Content Reduction Policy and Italian Parliamentarians' Facebook Visibility. Center for Open Science. https://doi.org/10.31235/osf.io/8dqag_v2
Giglietto, F. (2025). The State of Social Media Research APIs & Tools in the Digital Service Act Era. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.16269197
Giglietto, F. (2025). Manipolazione dei media ed influenza digitale. Sfide, tecnologie e risposte. .
Giglietto, F. (2025). Viralità. .
Giglietto, F. (2025). "A Pretty Blunt Approach": Meta's Political Content Reduction Policy and Italian Parliamentarians' Facebook Visibility. Center for Open Science. https://doi.org/10.31235/osf.io/8dqag_v1
An EU-funded Horizon Europe project that developed advanced AI-based tools to assist journalists and fact-checkers in verifying multimedia content and combating disinformation. As Work Package 4 leader, I focused on the detection of coordinated behavior and inauthentic networks spreading misleading content.
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An EU-funded initiative focused on detecting and analyzing disinformation narratives across Europe, addressing sensitive issues including the war in Ukraine, LGBTQI+ rights, and European elections through the development of language models, monitoring dashboards, and educational resources for fact-checkers and journalists.
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A research program investigating Italian news media coverage and the impact of social media on Italian elections, leveraging data from Social Science One and grant funding from the Social Science Research Council (SSRC).
Learn moreAttention is directed to a video analysis that examines flawed decisions in the shooting of Pretti, as reported by *The New York Times*.
Read moreSeveral recently published papers are highlighted, spanning diverse topics within social media and political communication. These include investigations into the impact of climate change misinformation, cross-national evidence of media visibility for radical right parties in the European elections, industry influence in social media research, and the role of social bots. Each paper offers valuable insights into the evolving digital landscape and its societal impact.
Read moreA recent analysis of 2.5 million Facebook posts from Italian Members of Parliament indicates that Meta's political content reduction policy led to a 72% reach reduction for these parliamentarians. The effects were detected 10 months prior to Meta's global rollout, with extremist content gaining reach (+14%) while elected officials experienced a loss. The related research is available as a preprint.
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