What comes to mind when you hear deepfake? For some, it means political disinformation, sexual harassment, or online fraud; For others, creative uses such as films, educational projects, or artistic expression. The reality is that a shared understanding of deepfakes does not yet exist. As with many emerging technologies, even scholars and policymakers still debate how exactly deepfakes should be defined. This uncertainty is reflected, often even more strongly, in public discourse, where the technology is interpreted in multiple, sometimes conflicting ways.

“In this paper, I examine how online communities collectively make sense of deepfakes. Focusing on Reddit, I investigate how technological frames emerge and circulate across a network of communities over time, potentially leading to the gradual formation of shared interpretations of the technology. In particular, I analyze how the valence of different frames spreads through the network. Preliminary findings suggest that technological frames diffuse between communities through overlapping membership structures. Importantly, positive visions of deepfakes appear to spread more easily across communities than more critical or negative interpretations.”

This talk invites us to think about online communities not as isolated entities, but as parts of a larger interconnected network in which meanings around new technologies are collectively constructed.

About the speaker: 

Marilù Miotto is a PhD candidate at the Department of Technology and Operations Management at Erasmus University Rotterdam (The Netherlands), where she has conducted her doctoral research since September 2023. Her research focuses on deepfakes as user-generated content, investigating their diffusion online and potential strategies to prevent or mitigate harmful uses.