Carding Forum
Professional
Meta's decision raises concerns about the future of network transparency.
Meta recently announced the imminent closure of the CrowdTangle data access tool, which was indispensable for independent observers, journalists, and researchers. CrowdTangle's closure comes at a critical time, in the midst of an election year around the world, raising concerns among the research community.
A survey conducted by the Coalition for Independent Technology Research (CITR) in May 2024 found that 88% of respondents are concerned that the closure of CrowdTangle will significantly hinder their work. Many researchers are forced to review or discontinue their projects, and some are even considering stopping their research activities altogether.
Meta offered the Content Library as a replacement for CrowdTangle, but this tool lacks a number of critical features. For example, Content Library does not allow you to track and download posts and interactions with public figures, it has limited data loading capabilities, and is more difficult to use.
In addition, access to the Content Library is severely restricted, and many researchers and journalists cannot access it. The main reason is that Meta decided to give access to this tool only to academic institutions and non-profit organizations,
CrowdTangle, founded in 2011 and acquired by Facebook* in 2016, was originally created to help nonprofits build social networks. Over time, it has evolved into a tool that provides real-time transparency on the platform, allowing users to see which stories are being shared the fastest.
Gradually, CrowdTangle has become an important resource for human rights organizations, journalists, fact checkers and independent researchers, helping to identify sources of misinformation and analyze political rhetoric and trends in social networks.
In March 2024, Meta announced that CrowdTangle would be shut down in mid-August, citing the outdated nature of the platform and a shift in focus to new products such as Content Library. This news provoked a significant reaction from the research community and beyond. Open letters from Mozilla and other organizations urged Meta to reconsider its decision.
The European Commission has even launched formal proceedings over Meta's compliance with the Digital Services Act, and a bipartisan group of US lawmakers has demanded that Meta extend CrowdTangle's operation for at least six months.
The researchers expressed disappointment with the insufficient replacement offered by Meta. While the Content Library has the potential for in-depth academic research, it lacks many of the important features of CrowdTangle. The researchers highlighted the inability to track individual public profiles, upload data, and lack of up-to-date real-time data as the main drawbacks.
In addition, limited access to the Content Library is a significant obstacle. While CrowdTangle had almost 100,000 registered users, Content Library only had a few hundred, mostly academic institutions and non-profit organizations. The process of applying for access to the Content Library is complex and time-consuming, and many of those eligible for access have experienced a lack of responses from Meta.
The closure is expected to have far-reaching consequences, as researchers will not be able to continue working on important projects. For example, the Hashtag Generation organization in Sri Lanka uses CrowdTangle to track misinformation and hate speech against minorities. Without access to CrowdTangle, their ability to track malicious content and support regulatory measures will be severely limited.
Meta's decision to restrict access to the Content Library for journalists also drew criticism. Journalists play an important role in reporting on the impact of technology on society, and excluding commercial news outlets from the Content Library is seen as a deliberate attempt to limit their ability to critically evaluate Meta platforms.
The CITR survey highlights the urgent need to review the Meta decision. The research community relies on access to data to track and counter disinformation, hate speech, and real threats to health and safety, especially during elections in the United States and elsewhere.
CITR experts believe that Meta should allocate resources to maintain CrowdTangle and improve the Content Library until the latter becomes a fully functional and accessible tool. This process should include improving Content Library features, simplifying the application process, and ensuring that all current CrowdTangle users, including news outlets, can access the new platform.
Source
Meta recently announced the imminent closure of the CrowdTangle data access tool, which was indispensable for independent observers, journalists, and researchers. CrowdTangle's closure comes at a critical time, in the midst of an election year around the world, raising concerns among the research community.
A survey conducted by the Coalition for Independent Technology Research (CITR) in May 2024 found that 88% of respondents are concerned that the closure of CrowdTangle will significantly hinder their work. Many researchers are forced to review or discontinue their projects, and some are even considering stopping their research activities altogether.
Meta offered the Content Library as a replacement for CrowdTangle, but this tool lacks a number of critical features. For example, Content Library does not allow you to track and download posts and interactions with public figures, it has limited data loading capabilities, and is more difficult to use.
In addition, access to the Content Library is severely restricted, and many researchers and journalists cannot access it. The main reason is that Meta decided to give access to this tool only to academic institutions and non-profit organizations,
CrowdTangle, founded in 2011 and acquired by Facebook* in 2016, was originally created to help nonprofits build social networks. Over time, it has evolved into a tool that provides real-time transparency on the platform, allowing users to see which stories are being shared the fastest.
Gradually, CrowdTangle has become an important resource for human rights organizations, journalists, fact checkers and independent researchers, helping to identify sources of misinformation and analyze political rhetoric and trends in social networks.
In March 2024, Meta announced that CrowdTangle would be shut down in mid-August, citing the outdated nature of the platform and a shift in focus to new products such as Content Library. This news provoked a significant reaction from the research community and beyond. Open letters from Mozilla and other organizations urged Meta to reconsider its decision.
The European Commission has even launched formal proceedings over Meta's compliance with the Digital Services Act, and a bipartisan group of US lawmakers has demanded that Meta extend CrowdTangle's operation for at least six months.
The researchers expressed disappointment with the insufficient replacement offered by Meta. While the Content Library has the potential for in-depth academic research, it lacks many of the important features of CrowdTangle. The researchers highlighted the inability to track individual public profiles, upload data, and lack of up-to-date real-time data as the main drawbacks.
In addition, limited access to the Content Library is a significant obstacle. While CrowdTangle had almost 100,000 registered users, Content Library only had a few hundred, mostly academic institutions and non-profit organizations. The process of applying for access to the Content Library is complex and time-consuming, and many of those eligible for access have experienced a lack of responses from Meta.
The closure is expected to have far-reaching consequences, as researchers will not be able to continue working on important projects. For example, the Hashtag Generation organization in Sri Lanka uses CrowdTangle to track misinformation and hate speech against minorities. Without access to CrowdTangle, their ability to track malicious content and support regulatory measures will be severely limited.
Meta's decision to restrict access to the Content Library for journalists also drew criticism. Journalists play an important role in reporting on the impact of technology on society, and excluding commercial news outlets from the Content Library is seen as a deliberate attempt to limit their ability to critically evaluate Meta platforms.
The CITR survey highlights the urgent need to review the Meta decision. The research community relies on access to data to track and counter disinformation, hate speech, and real threats to health and safety, especially during elections in the United States and elsewhere.
CITR experts believe that Meta should allocate resources to maintain CrowdTangle and improve the Content Library until the latter becomes a fully functional and accessible tool. This process should include improving Content Library features, simplifying the application process, and ensuring that all current CrowdTangle users, including news outlets, can access the new platform.
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