platform governance | SPARTA at UIowa

what is platform governance?

Platform governance refers to the set of rules, policies, and practices that govern the behavior, content, and interactions taking place on online platforms. It involves the establishment of guidelines and regulations by platform operators to ensure the proper functioning, safety, and fairness of their platforms. Online platforms, such as social media platforms, search engines, e-commerce sites, and sharing economy platforms, have become powerful intermediaries that connect users, facilitate transactions, and enable the exchange of information. Given their influential role and the potential for misuse or harm, platform governance has become a crucial aspect of managing these digital spaces.

At the SPARTA lab, we're interested in developing policies and technological solutions to improve the governance of online social media platforms. Our current work is focused on understanding how online community moderation can be improved through technological and economic interventions.

researchers

Rishab Nithyanand

Head Honcho (2018 - )

Computer Science

Hussam Habib

Computer Science
Ph.D. student (2019 - )

Social Computing

2023 UIowa Post-Comp Fellow
2022 Dare to Discover Feature

Sarmad Chandio

Computer Science
Ph.D. student (2021 - )

Social Computing

research output

Peruse the following publications from our lab to learn about our related research and findings.

Paying Attention to the Algorithm Behind the Curtain: Bringing Transparency to YouTube’s Demonetization Algorithms

Arun Dunna, Katherine Keith, Ethan Zuckerman, Narseo Vallina-Rodriguez, Brendan O’Connor, and Rishab Nithyanand

ACM Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW), 2022

Bib PDF

@article{cscw-2022-1,
  author = {Dunna, Arun and Keith, Katherine and Zuckerman, Ethan and Vallina-Rodriguez, Narseo and O'Connor, Brendan and Nithyanand, Rishab},
  title = {Paying Attention to the Algorithm Behind the Curtain: Bringing
      Transparency to YouTube's Demonetization Algorithms},
  journal = {ACM Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW)},
  year = {2022},
}

Exploring the Magnitude and Effects of Media Influence on Reddit

Hussam Habib, and Rishab Nithyanand

International AAAI Conference on Web and Social Media (ICWSM), 2022

Bib PDF

@article{icwsm-2022-2,
  title = {Exploring the Magnitude and Effects of Media Influence on Reddit},
  author = {Habib, Hussam and Nithyanand, Rishab},
  journal = {International AAAI Conference on Web and Social Media (ICWSM)},
  year = {2022},
}

Are Proactive Interventions for Reddit Communities Feasible?

Hussam Habib, Maaz Bin Musa, Fareed Zaffar, and Rishab Nithyanand

International AAAI Conference on Web and Social Media (ICWSM), 2022

Bib PDF

@article{icwsm-2022-1,
  author = {Habib, Hussam and Musa, Maaz Bin and Zaffar, Fareed and Nithyanand, Rishab},
  title = {Are Proactive Interventions for Reddit Communities Feasible?},
  journal = {International AAAI Conference on Web and Social Media (ICWSM)},
  year = {2022},
}