The new special issue of the scientific journal Communication & Society, entitled “From Fact-Checking to Community Notes: Structural Changes in the Fight Against Disinformation on Social Media”, is now available. This special edition is one of the outcomes of the IBERIFIER Plus project, and the full issue can already be accessed and read in Open Access.
The special issue, published as Volume 39 (Issue 1, June 2026), has been guest-edited by Professors Ramón Salaverría (University of Navarra), Lucas Graves (Carlos III University of Madrid), and Raquel Recuero (Federal University of Pelotas and Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul). Through a collection of international studies, the issue examines the profound paradigm shift in content moderation strategies adopted by major platforms, which have increasingly moved away from third-party fact-checking models in favour of user-driven processes.
A new era for digital platforms
The special issue explores how platforms such as X and Meta have begun to move away from third-party fact-checking programmes and toward user-driven approaches such as Community Notes. This shift is taking place in a complex geopolitical environment, marked by legal pressure on TikTok over risks of foreign interference and by new moderation strategies introduced following the beginning of Donald Trump’s second presidential term in January 2025.
Through seven scientific articles, the issue provides a global and multidisciplinary perspective on this phenomenon:
• Algorithmic Truthfulness, Community Notes, and Trust in Greenwashing Claims: Evidence from Aspirational Fashion and Sustainable Luxury Brands
Aitor Gil-García and África Presol-Herrero examine how Community Notes shape consumer trust in environmentally themed messages generated by Artificial Intelligence. The study concludes that these notes function as epistemic signals that trigger critical judgments when users encounter opaque or inconsistent brand communications.
• Meta Governance: Content Moderation Policies and Their Impact in Latin America (2018–2025)
Ana Bizberge and Nadia-Sabrina Koziner examine Meta’s moderation policies in Latin America (2018–2025), warning that increasing automation and the transfer of responsibilities to users pose risks to the integrity of electoral processes across the region.
• Crowdsourced Fact-checking on X: from professional fact-checking to Community Notes
Javier Cantón-Correa and Mariola Moreno-Calvo analyse the evolution of Community Notes in Spain, revealing that although the system is growing steadily, the design of its consensus algorithm delays approvals, limiting its ability to curb misinformation in real time.
• Comparing Fact-checking Efforts across Five Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa: The Case of UNDP’s iVerify
Katerina Tsetsura, Kehinde Adesina, and Adegbemi Aderemi compare the United Nations Development Programme’s verification efforts across five Sub-Saharan African countries between 2021 and 2025. Their research identifies the challenges of implementing transnational data-monitoring systems that depend on global support for local execution.
• Shadows and lights on fact-checking research: trends, methodologies, and empirical approaches
João-Pedro Baptista, Rubén Rivas-de-Roca, Fábio Ribeiro, and Daniele Battista present a systematic review of more than 100 academic articles. Their analysis highlights Spain’s leadership in research on journalistic practices while warning of the lack of studies measuring the actual effectiveness of fact-checking initiatives.
• Emotional Atyachar (Trauma): Professional Identity Performance and Emotional Labour of Fact-checkers in India
A study conducted in India by Anumita Goswami, Anne Soronen, and Kaarina Nikunen explores the trauma and emotional labour experienced by fact-checking professionals as they strive to maintain an identity of absolute neutrality under the pressure of social media environments.
• «Grok, is this true?»: Patterns of AI chatbot Use in Online Political Discourse on X during the 2025 Portuguese Elections
After analysing the 2025 Portuguese elections, Miguel Paisana, Paulo Couraceiro, António Vasconcelos, and Gustavo Cardoso conclude that citizens use the AI chatbot Grok more as a rhetorical resource for humour or political disparagement than as a genuine fact-checking tool.
Through this initiative led by IBERIFIER, the journal provides a critical resource for understanding how emerging AI technologies and new platform policies are reshaping public discourse and social trust. All articles are freely available through the digital platform of Communication & Society.
