GCRI · Società e sviluppo umano

Media e sistemi informativi

In a crisis, what people know depends on news media, social platforms, messaging apps, authority channels and word of mouth. These sistemi can save lives by spreading accurate warnings and guidance, or spread rumours and false information that cost them. This page sets out how information systems work in crises and over time, how information quality and access are measured, and what evidence serves the authorities, media and civil society involved.

02La domanda

Media and information systems: how the risk develops.

Media and public information as social sistemi. The dossier below sets out how the risk develops, what is measured, where the data come from, how it is modelled and who decides.

Meccanismo

Local news is shrinking

Loss of local journalism leaves communities with fewer trusted sources and less scrutiny of local institutions.

Meccanismo

Messaging apps carry crisis information

Private messaging groups spread information quickly, including rumours, and are hard for authorities to monitor or correct.

Meccanismo

Platforms amplify what engages

Recommendation systems favour content that draws attention, which can amplify fear, outrage and false claims in a crisis.

Meccanismo

Trusted messengers matter

People act on information from sources they trust, such as community leaders, health workers and local media, more than on distant authorities.

03Monitoraggio

Social protection and cohesion.

La schermata che un gruppo utilizzerebbe per seguire questo tema: misure, stati e decisioni. I nomi sono esempi e i valori sono illustrativi.

Social protection and cohesion

Media and information systems · Urban ward 9 · Year 2

Survey wave closedGCRI · Società e sviluppo umano

Coverage by quintile

050100share of households receiving supportQ1Q2Q3Q4Q5

Cohesion survey

Trust in neighbours6351▲ 2
Trust in local authority4852▲ 1
Reported discrimination911▲ 2
Social protection and cohesion: the screen’s structure, terms and states for Media and information systems.Nomi di esempio e valori illustrativi; un progetto, non un registro né un sistema attivo.
04Tra i domini

Information systems carry risk messages for every domain.

05Metodi ed evidenze

How media and information systems is modelled, measured and tested.

Il modello, le sue ipotesi, i suoi dati e la sua incertezza, nella forma in cui uno scienziato o un ingegnere li verificherebbe. Le strutture seguono metodi pubblicati. I valori rappresentati sono illustrativi, non risultati.

Modello di sistema

The couplings between the systems in media and information systems: signs of influence, a reinforcing and a balancing loop, and cross-links where stress jumps.

++−+SocietàInformazioneComunitàEconomiaR di rinforzoB bilanciamento
Causal loop diagram from the page’s systems; signs show the direction of influence. Illustrative structure for a system dynamics or network model, not estimated couplings.
Principi guida FAIR · GO FAIR e FORCE11W3C PROV · World Wide Web ConsortiumGuidance on consistent treatment of uncertainties · IPCCCEOS Analysis Ready Data · Comitato sui satelliti per l'osservazione della Terra
06Indicatori

Cosa viene misurato e con quale accuratezza.

Ogni indicatore riporta la sua unità, la sua cadenza, il tipo di fonte su cui si basa e l'etichetta di evidenza che un valore riporterebbe. Non sono mostrati valori: un programma li fornisce sotto la propria autorità.

IndicatoreUnitàCadenzaTipo di fonteEtichetta
Trust in newspercent trusting most news most of the timeannualeNews consumption surveysRIPORTATO
Main source of news by typepercentuale di intervistatiannualeNews consumption surveysRIPORTATO
Journalists killed or imprisonedconteggioannualePress freedom monitorsRIPORTATO
Local news outletscount per regionper valutazioneMedia mapping studiesSTIMATO
Rumours tracked in crisis responsecount by themeper eventoCommunity feedback sistemiRIPORTATO
Population reached by authority crisis messagespercentper eventoPost-event surveysRIPORTATO
07Fonti

Da dove provengono le evidenze.

Set di dati pubblici e registri istituzionali specifici, ciascuno con la sua classe di licenza. Le fonti soggette ad accordo sono utilizzate solo alle relative condizioni e mai ripubblicate.

FonteCosa fornisceClasse di licenza
Reuters Institute Digital News ReportNews use and trust across countriesPublic report, terms per publisher
UNESCO Observatory of Killed Journalists and World Trends in Freedom of ExpressionSafety of journalists and media freedomPublic, UNESCO terms
Committee to Protect Journalists dataJournalists killed and imprisonedPublic, terms to check
WHO infodemic management resourcesMethods for managing information in health emergenciesPublic, WHO terms of use
IFRC and partner community feedback and rumour tracking guidanceMethods for listening to communities in crisesPublic, IFRC terms (to check)
08Decisioni

Chi decide, e a cosa servono le evidenze.

Society and Human Development prepares evidence. The decisions below are taken by the authorities named, under their own rules, and never by the platform.

Chi decideLa domandaEvidenze fornite da questa pagina
Public health and emergency authoritiesHow to reach people with accurate information in crisesEcosystem assessments; trust profiles
Media organisations and regulatorsHow to support local journalism and information qualityMedia mapping and freedom evidence
Humanitarian agenciesHow to listen to and respond to community concernsRumour tracking evidence

Output prodotti da questo argomento

  • Information ecosystem assessments for crisis communication
  • Rumour tracking and community feedback methods
  • Media access and trust profiles
  • Evidence notes for risk communication
09Questioni centrali

Le domande che si pongono gli esperti.

  • How is the information ecosystem structured, and who controls its key channels?
  • What happens to public knowledge when local news declines?
  • How do information flows behave during crises, and where do they break?
  • Which communities are poorly served by mainstream channels?
  • How do economic models of media affect the quality of risk information?
10Meccanismi

The ecosystem and its fragilities.

Information ecosystems combine professional media, platforms, messaging apps, community channels and authority sources. The decline of local journalism in many places has reduced coverage of local government, hazards and public health. Platforms have become major gatekeepers, and their ranking and moderation choices shape exposure to information. Encrypted messaging networks carry both community support and rumour, and are hard to observe.

During crises, demand for information surges while normal channels may fail through power and network outages. Rumours fill gaps when authority information is slow or distrusted. Language, literacy, disability and connectivity determine who receives timely information. Concentration of ownership and dependence on advertising revenue influence what is covered and how.

Resilient information sistemi share some features: diverse sources, trusted local intermediaries, channels that work without the internet such as radio, information in the languages people speak, and authority communicators who are open about uncertainty and correct themselves quickly. These features can be studied, compared and strengthened.

Public service and community media often play an outsized role in crises because they reach people without internet access and are locally trusted. Their funding and independence are therefore part of a society’s risk infrastructure, a point the field documents with comparative evidence across countries.

11Metodi e dati

Methods and limits.

Mapping

Ecosystem mapping

Mapping outlets, audiences and flows of information in a place.

Contenuto

Content analysis

Systematic analysis of coverage and narratives; large-scale methods need careful validation.

Audience

Audience research

Surveys and qualitative work on how people find and judge information.

Limits: platform data access is restricted, private messaging is largely unobservable, and rapidly changing technology dates findings quickly.

12Metodi

Come viene studiato, e cosa i metodi non possono dire.

  1. Scienze sociali e comportamentaliProgettazione di indagini per gruppi difficili da raggiungere · Ricerca qualitativa e partecipativaApplicato qui
  2. Inferenza causale e valutazione d'impattoValutazione dei trasferimenti monetari · Effetti dei disastri sulle famiglie · Valutazione dei programmi di istruzioneApplicato qui
  3. Statistica spaziale e geostatisticaStima della povertà per piccole aree · Sovrapposizione di vulnerabilità e pericoloApplicato qui
13Where this page’s references

Where this page’s references lead.

Gli organismi e i documenti alla luce dei quali si legge questa pagina. Stato ed edizioni cambiano; ogni link porta all'organismo emittente.

14Domande

Domande e risposte.

What is an infodemic?
An overabundance of information, including false or misleading information, during a health emergency, in WHO usage.
Why does local journalism matter in a crisis?
Because local outlets provide specific, trusted information about what is happening nearby and hold local institutions to account.
What is rumour tracking?
Systematically collecting and analysing rumours and questions from communities so responders can address concerns and correct false information.
Does the platform rate media outlets?
No. It studies information systems and their effects on public outcomes.
How is this different from the chapter?
The chapter organises a community of researchers around the subject; this topic page sets out the science.
Is GCRI a media regulator?
No. GCRI does not regulate, certify, license or approve.
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Rapporti is the Consortium’s quarterly publication. What you know about this subject can become evidence, a case or a correction in the next edition, credited to you and published under CC BY 4.0 where it is your own work.

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