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From Individuals to Media Systems: How Communication Really Works

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EXPLAINER @jorgebscomm for @empowervmedia Photo: Caleb Oquendo via Pexels · Pexels License A communication outcome can begin in a person, travel through a group, be shaped by an institution and be amplified by a media system. M essages rarely move from sender to audience in a straight line. A short video may be noticed because one person finds it striking, shared because friends are discussing it, packaged according to an organisation's priorities, and amplified by a platform whose recommendation system makes it more visible. Looking only at the person, group, institution or system would capture something real. None would capture the whole process. That is the value of levels of analysis . A 2026 review identified 287 articles using multilevel modelling in communication journals between 1990 and 2024, with studies spanning increasingly diverse subfields. There is no single...

The Liar’s Dividend: How Disinformation Erodes Trust and Shields Deceit

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Produced by @empowervmedia * Edited & fact-checked by @jorgebscomm The liar's dividend lets scandal-plagued politicians and others claim plausible deniability for real actions.   (📷:politicamericana) I n an era of ubiquitous misinformation, a new phenomenon has emerged: the liar’s dividend . In simple terms, the liar’s dividend occurs when bad actors dismiss real news as “fake”, using the very existence of deepfakes and false content to muddy the waters and evade accountability . This means even genuine evidence (videos, audio recordings, or photos) can be shrugged off as forgeries. Researchers warn that as society becomes more aware of sophisticated deepfake and AI-manipulated media, cynical public perceptions may grow, “primed to doubt the authenticity of real audio and video evidence” . In practice, the liar’s dividend is already undermining confidence in media and institutions: by casting doubt on truth itself, it lets scandal-plagued politicians and others claim plausible...