About the series:
Empirical research on online disinformation and current toolkits for accessing platform data
As the European policy response to disinformation has increasingly recognized the fundamental role to be played by independent scientific research in the field, with the push towards transparency in regulatory instruments comes an increased opportunity for independent research to take on the role of fostering accountability and public scrutiny. The EDMO training series aims to support researchers to be able to fulfil this role, by facilitating a number of sessions with invited speakers from the VLOPs to present currently available resources and datasets for researchers. In the 2022 Strengthened Code of Practice on Online Disinformation many online platforms explicitly committed to provide access, wherever safe and practicable, to “continuous, real-time or near real-time, searchable stable access to non-personal data and anonymised, aggregated, or manifestly-made public data for research purposes on Disinformation through automated means such as APIs or other open and accessible technical solutions allowing the analysis of said data.” This is a rapidly changing space, with a number of new tools being developed by platforms especially through researcher specific APIs to allow access to researchers to real time data under Commitment 26, also to meet the requirements of relevant provisions under the DSA (in particular Art. 40.12). EDMO aims to support researchers navigate this landscape and equip them to be aware and make use of the current platform offer of data for researchers.
Target audience
The training series is open to research organisations conducting independent research in the public interest.
Session 3: 17 April 2024 Time: 17:00-18:30 [CEST] Introduction to the TikTok Research API and Transparency Approach
The third session of EDMO’s training series on conducting empirical research on online disinformation will provide an introduction to TikTok’s current data and tools to support independent academic research, with a focus on the TikTok Research API.
Length: 90 Mins
Topics covered: The TikTok team will share an overview of TikTok’s transparency investments, with a focus on research. The presentation on the TikTok Research API will include a walkthrough of its various endpoints, such as running queries via Postman and Jupyter Notebook. Time will also be reserved for Q&A.
Meet your Trainers
Kathryn is a Policy Transparency Manager for TikTok’s global Trust & Safety team. In this role she focuses on research collaboration and data sharing. Prior to TikTok, Kathryn spent two years on Facebook’s Content Policy Research team; her earlier career was spent in public service in the US at the White House, National Security Council, and Department of Energy. She received a BA in Government and Legal Studies from Bowdoin College and an MA in Global Security Studies from Johns Hopkins University.
Dr Nikki Soo is a digital safety and well-being subject matter expert within TikTok’s EU Public Policy Team. She leads and engages in a wide range of industry safety issues such as including mis/disinformation, hateful behaviour and digital well-being. Prior to joining TikTok, Nikki worked in academia across the last 10 years, specialising in the effects of digital technology on society, media and culture.
Zhanna Terechshenko is a researcher at TikTok Science Lab. She holds a PhD in Political Science and Social Data Analytics from The Pennsylvania State University and was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Center for Social Media and Politics at New York University.
I am a Product Manager at TikTok with a focus on building product features to allow external research of TikTok’s platform content.
Applications for session 3 are now closed
Find here more information about past sessions of the series.