Clubhouse, an emerging social networking platform born during coronavirus-driven blockchains, has given users the opportunity to connect through intimate audio conversations with virtual strangers, even isolated at home.
But as the platform continues to grow, the same model that has allowed users to connect while physically separated raises concerns about how the app will handle the spread of misinformation.
Unlike traditional social networking platforms, where a user’s footprint is more permanent, Clubhouse chat room conversations are not recorded by the app, so it’s “essentially impossible” to discern the spread of false information or harassment, Emerson Brooking, a senior member living in the Atlantic Council digital forensic research lab, told The Hill.
“Because your words don’t follow you the same way they do with a Twitter account, you feel more relaxed and that means the app works properly. But of course, it means it also poses particular dangers.” added Brooking.
Brooking said the Clubhouse model allows users to feel inclined to speak freely, without necessarily contemplating whether they share accurate information or the consequences of spreading misinformation.
Clubhouse is designed to allow users to enter and exit chat rooms focused on a wide variety of topics. A listener can choose to participate by practically raising their hand and a moderator allows them to become a speaker in the room.
Moderators or the user initiating the Clubhouse can also add or remove other speakers, allowing them to guide the conversation.
Clubhouse has provided a platform for people to host informal panels in a wide range of fields, while traditional conferences and events have been canceled due to the pandemic.
But the informal nature of the application has already led to reports of the spread of misinformation, including the spread of false claims about coronavirus and coronavirus vaccine, as Vice reported earlier this month. These false claims have also continued to affect traditional social media platforms, even when Twitter and Facebook pledged to crack down on content.
“It’s a big concern right now that this could be an ideal meeting place for members of the anti-vaccine community, as it gives people the opportunity to convene friendly casals that talk and raise anti-vaccine content. of the conversation so that no other voices are heard, “Brooking said.
Clubhouse rules for users prohibit the dissemination of “false information or spam,” as well as abuse and harassment. And while Clubhouse doesn’t usually record its sessions, the platform’s guidelines state that it has a temporary audio recording in order to support incident investigation. If a user reports an incident in real time, the platform is asked to keep the temporary recording.
But if a user reports an incident once the room is over, the platform will not have access to the room audio to support the investigation, according to the guidelines.
As the application continues to grow, so could the problem of misinformation.
The platform was first launched with a smaller group of users in March last year, around the time the global blockades began. While still in an invitation-only phase, Clubhouse has grown rapidly in popularity, surpassing 10 million installations worldwide as of Friday, according to data analysis analytics company Sensor Tower.
A Clubhouse spokesman did not respond to any comments to confirm how many active users there are so far on the platform, but in a January 24 blog post, Clubhouse estimated it had approximately 2 million users that week.
Since then, the number of facilities has increased. In the three weeks between Jan. 25 and Feb. 14, Clubhouse saw nearly 6 million installations worldwide, 400 percent more than the previous three weeks, according to Sensor Tower data.
People who download the app and are not yet invited can enter their information to receive an invitation to join through a mutual connection that is already a member, or receive a notification when the app is open to the general public.
The app has already captured high profile users since Elon Musk
Elon Reeve MuskSpaceX built a real business line for fun, profits and a good cause The oldest bank in the United States, BNY Mellon, will keep Bitcoin for Mastercard customers to support cryptocurrencies MORE to Lindsay Lohan, driving the platform.
“I think it’s the new place it’s at, at a time when you have nowhere to be,” said Jennifer Grygiel, an assistant professor of communications at Syracuse University.
“It simply came to our notice then. They were even trapped at home during this pandemic, ”Grygiel added.
According to experts, Clubhouse may have an advantage in terms of mitigating the spread of viral misinformation compared to its traditional social media counterparts.
Unlike almost all other platforms, including Twitter and Facebook, there is no “reblog” feature that allows users to share other people’s posts, which are often disseminated to a wide audience, including misinformation.
“If there’s one thing that really sets it apart, it’s the decrease in virality capacity built into the platform itself,” said Aram Sinnreich, a professor at the American University School of Communication.
While some have raised concerns that misinformation may spread more freely because conversations disappear after a chat room is over, Sinnreich downplayed that concern. Users likely to have a wide audience would distrust conversations that are archived or examined from an external source, he said.
“I think anyone in the business of being influential – a public figure, a celebrity, a professional disseminator of propaganda or misinformation, a political organizer – anyone with this kind of work will be unaware of the limited security and surveillance capability. and file at Clubhouse and they will act accordingly, ”Sinnreich said.
“And anyone who isn’t aware of it and feels more free to express themselves than they would on Facebook or Twitter, is an ignoramus who doesn’t understand social media and therefore has a limited ability to include other people.” , added.
Although as more people join the platform, and if it opens up to the public, the changing user base could change the culture of the app and potentially carry additional risks of misinformation spread, they warned the experts.
“There’s a future a few years ahead, if Clubhouse followed in Facebook’s footsteps, a demographic group over 65 would start massively joining the platform,” Brooking said, noting that Facebook was launched as a site reserved for university students only.
“And instead of being a place for Silicon Valley elites to have high-tech conversations, it would basically become the future of talk radio,” he added. “And if we followed that path, the dangers of misinformation and misinformation would be much more pronounced.”