This study examines how Meta as a company of various social media platforms communicates the disinformation crisis. Social media platforms are seen as a breeding ground for disinformation, and companies like Meta risk not only suffering reputational damage but also being further regulated by national and international legislation. We consider in this paper the news stories that Meta posted on the topic of disinformation on its own website between 2016 and 2022 as crisis communication, and build on insights from this (...) domain that discuss some key response strategies. In this way, we conclude that Meta’s communication can be seen as crisis communication, and that it uses strategies such as addressing different stakeholders, sticking to key messages when discussing the interventions, and holding itself responsible for finding a solution rather than for the problem of disinformation itself. These insights contribute to understanding how Meta seeks to validate its legitimacy during this ongoing crisis, and how it engages in self-regulation. (shrink)

Results of an online survey reveal that, in contrast with the general belief, college students do not at all seem to be heavy users of online news media and online news features. A cluster analysis shows that the use of online news media and interactive features differs among the students, a majority of them being traditional users and some, non-users. Logistic regressions demonstrate that the level of digital skills is a better predictor of news media and interactive features use than (...) demographics. This article invites scholars in online journalism to emphasize on students’ differences rather than on similarities when it comes to measuring the impact of online news use. Our results suggest that online skills as a prerequisite for using online news media and features should be centrally taken into account in future research. (shrink)