“Spreader of conspiracies”: How major U.S. newspapers differentiate them from Facebook

Abstract

This study examined how major U.S. newspapers differentiated themselves from social networking website Facebook through their coverage of misinformation and conspiracy theories. A combination of qualitative and computational analysis of newspaper articles (N = 441) published between 2008 and 2021 revealed five major themes. Facebook was often portrayed as a vehicle for dissemination of conspiracies and misinformation. The computational analysis revealed major events, topics, and actors that generated newspaper articles regarding Facebook’s role in spreading misinformation.