Echo Chambers and Information Brokers on Truth Social: A Study of Network Dynamics and Political Discourse

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Hughes, Emelia May, Weninger, Tim
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Hughes, Emelia May
Weninger, Tim
author_facet Hughes, Emelia May
Weninger, Tim
contents This study examines the structural dynamics of Truth Social, a politically aligned social media platform, during two major political events: the U.S. Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade and the FBI's search of Mar-a-Lago. Using a large-scale dataset of user interactions based on re-truths (platform-native reposts), we analyze how the network evolves in relation to fragmentation, polarization, and user influence. Our findings reveal a segmented and ideologically homogenous structure dominated by a small number of central figures. Political events prompt temporary consolidation around shared narratives, followed by rapid returns to fragmented, echo-chambered clusters. Centrality metrics highlight the disproportionate role of key influencers, particularly @realDonaldTrump, in shaping visibility and directing discourse. These results contribute to research on alternative platforms, political communication, and online network behavior, demonstrating how infrastructure and community dynamics together reinforce ideological boundaries and limit cross-cutting engagement.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2509_08676
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Echo Chambers and Information Brokers on Truth Social: A Study of Network Dynamics and Political Discourse
Hughes, Emelia May
Weninger, Tim
Social and Information Networks
Human-Computer Interaction
This study examines the structural dynamics of Truth Social, a politically aligned social media platform, during two major political events: the U.S. Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade and the FBI's search of Mar-a-Lago. Using a large-scale dataset of user interactions based on re-truths (platform-native reposts), we analyze how the network evolves in relation to fragmentation, polarization, and user influence. Our findings reveal a segmented and ideologically homogenous structure dominated by a small number of central figures. Political events prompt temporary consolidation around shared narratives, followed by rapid returns to fragmented, echo-chambered clusters. Centrality metrics highlight the disproportionate role of key influencers, particularly @realDonaldTrump, in shaping visibility and directing discourse. These results contribute to research on alternative platforms, political communication, and online network behavior, demonstrating how infrastructure and community dynamics together reinforce ideological boundaries and limit cross-cutting engagement.
title Echo Chambers and Information Brokers on Truth Social: A Study of Network Dynamics and Political Discourse
topic Social and Information Networks
Human-Computer Interaction
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2509.08676