INVESTIGATIONS

On Depop, Sellers Are Pushing Shady Secondhand Pills

I for months tracked and documented the sale of second-hand health supplements and illegally listed products on Depop, the ecommerce app predominantly used by teens. Listings included harmful skin-whitening products, used fertility treatments and diet pills. Legally treated as foods in the UK, health supplements are subject to regulatory standards. There was no evidence the sellers were properly registered to sell such items. Published by WIRED.

Facebook says it’s taking on Covid disinformation. So what’s all this?

For WIRED, my colleague Carlotta Dotto and I used data analysis methods to investigate the prevalence of false Covid-19 vaccine claims still circulating on Facebook despite its ban on such content. We found the misleading posts attracted at least 142,049 likes, shares and comments from users.

Coronavirus: How pro-mask posts boost the anti-mask movement

In another collaboration with my colleague Carlotta Dotto, we investigated misleading content within the “no mask” Twitter trend, finding mask supporters amplifying misinformation and anti-mask rhetoric. The piece uncovered how the Trending algorithm overlooked context and was shortlisted for the British Journalism Awards 2020 in Technology Journalism.

How fringe candidates use misinformation to gain outsized online influence

Ahead of London’s 2021 Mayor Election, we tracked the online influence of fringe candidates using misinformation to gain status. While they reached large audiences online through Covid-19 falsehoods and anti-lockdown rhetoric, they failed to garner real-life support in the vote.