@transparenttech@mastodon.social

Coalition for Independent Tech @transparenttech@mastodon.social

· 7mo ago

Replying to

Under this policy, researchers, students, fact-checkers, trust & safety workers and nonprofit staff can face visa denials, revocations, detentions, and deportations for their work examining social media platforms, AI systems, digital surveillance, and online harms. This is censorship – and this step is already having a chilling effect: Some researchers have shifted the topics of their work, while some others have stopped projects altogether. (2/4)

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Coalition for Independent Tech @transparenttech@mastodon.social

· 7mo ago

Replying to

When digital technologies are rapidly shaping society, censoring this work only serves to keep the public in the dark while powerful companies can avoid scrutiny. The Coalition is bringing this case because this censorship policy is a clear violation of First Amendment rights. We’re asking the court to stop the government from targeting the public-interest research community so that scientists, students, and non-profit workers can continue their work without fear of retaliation. (3/4)

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Coalition for Independent Tech @transparenttech@mastodon.social

· 7mo ago

Replying to

Read more about the case here (4/4) https://independenttechresearch.org/citr-challenges-censorship-policy/

Coalition for Independent Technology Research

CITR Challenges US Government Censorship Policy Threatening Deportation for Work on Social Media Platforms and Online Harms - Coalition for Independent Technology Research

The Coalition for Independent Technology Research filed a lawsuit today in partnership with the Knight First Amendment Institute and Protect Democracy, challenging the US government’s Censorship Policy that unconstitutionally targets noncitizen researchers, fact-checkers, and trust and safety workers for visa denials, revocations, detention, and deportation based on their work researching and reporting on social media … Continue reading CITR Challenges US Government Censorship Policy Thre

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Coalition for Independent Tech @transparenttech@mastodon.social

· 12mo ago

A systematic shutdown of access to platform data has created what researchers call a “data desert.”

Twitter’s free API powered 17K+ studies. CrowdTangle offered rare insight into content virality on Facebook. Today, that infrastructure has disappeared.

How are you navigating the “data desert”?

Read more in our latest report, "The State of Independent Technology Research: Power In Numbers":
https://independenttechresearch.org/citr-report-2025/

Coalition for Independent Technology Research

The State of Independent Technology Research 2025

A report on the struggle to keep public-interest technology research alive—and the growing Coalition working to protect it.

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Coalition for Independent Tech @transparenttech@mastodon.social

· 12mo ago

Our new report – the State of Independent Technology Research: Power In Numbers – maps the threats that public interest tech researchers are navigating across 6 continents. Yet, despite systematic attacks, Coalition members are building systems of protection and care that reflect the power of collective solidarity:

- Filing amicus briefs
- Building legal support systems
- Creating peer-to-peer support networks
- Facilitating information sharing

Read: https://independenttechresearch.org/citr-report-2025/

Coalition for Independent Technology Research

The State of Independent Technology Research 2025

A report on the struggle to keep public-interest technology research alive—and the growing Coalition working to protect it.

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Coalition for Independent Tech @transparenttech@mastodon.social

· 12mo ago

Replying to

As highlighted in our report, The State of Independent Technology Research: Power in Numbers, independent researchers face structural funding barriers - short-term cycles, restrictive grants and limited institutional support ➡️ https://independenttechresearch.org/citr-report-2025/ This conversation offers a timely space to unpack these challenges and explore practical, regionally-grounded ways to support independent research. (2/2)

Coalition for Independent Technology Research

The State of Independent Technology Research 2025

A report on the struggle to keep public-interest technology research alive—and the growing Coalition working to protect it.

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Coalition for Independent Tech @transparenttech@mastodon.social

· 13mo ago

Recent headlines, like reports on Meta and its stance on research related to youth harm, remind us why independent technology research is essential. Without it, risks are downplayed, critical inquiry is suppressed, and the public remains in the dark.

Corporate research alone is insufficient to safeguard public interest. Independent technology research is not optional - it’s critical infrastructure for transparency, safety, and trust in a digital age.

Read: https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2025/09/09/meta-children-safety-privacy-virtual-reality/

washingtonpost.com

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Coalition for Independent Tech @transparenttech@mastodon.social

· 7mo ago

Replying to

Here’s a small glimpse of what’s taking shape in the CITR Tools and Resources Hub: ➡️ Research tools and toolkits that support rigorous, independent inquiry ➡️ Resources for navigating harassment and threats ➡️ Platform archives that help preserve contested or disappearing data ➡️ Guidance on litigation support and evidence gathering ➡️ Materials on transparency and access to data ➡️ Practical guides and shared frameworks drawn from collective practice (2/3)

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Coalition for Independent Tech @transparenttech@mastodon.social

· 7mo ago

Replying to

This kind of work is central to what the Coalition is trying to do – create spaces for collaboration and shared learning around public-interest technology research. If this resonates, we invite you to join the Coalition and be part of these ongoing conversations: https://independenttechresearch.org/join-us/ (3/3)

Coalition for Independent Technology Research

Join Us - Coalition for Independent Technology Research

Become a member at the Coalition for Independent Tech Research today.

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Coalition for Independent Tech @transparenttech@mastodon.social

· 10mo ago

What is digital authoritarianism?

A new book chapter by Coalition member Allison Wun-hui Koh, Anita Gohdes, and Maurice Schumann maps how governments use digital tools to manufacture support, suppress opposition, and preempt future dissent.

A sharp look at evolving tech-enabled repression. ⬇️

https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1515/9783111298559/html#contents

degruyterbrill.com

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Coalition for Independent Tech @transparenttech@mastodon.social

· 11mo ago

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➡️ Academic researchers want to share resources with civil society organizations. ➡️ Senior scholars want to mentor emerging researchers. ➡️ Researchers in well-funded institutions want to support colleagues in resource-constrained environments. Full report: https://independenttechresearch.org/citr-report-2025/ (2/2)

Coalition for Independent Technology Research

The State of Independent Technology Research 2025

A report on the struggle to keep public-interest technology research alive—and the growing Coalition working to protect it.

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Coalition for Independent Tech @transparenttech@mastodon.social

· 11mo ago

Across sectors, public interest technology researchers are facing growing risks – surveillance, censorship, legal uncertainty, and inequitable funding. The conditions are often unequal across regions.

These stories don’t just evidence the crisis – they are calls for solidarity, mutual support, and structural change.

Read the full report: https://independenttechresearch.org/citr-report-2025/

Coalition for Independent Technology Research

The State of Independent Technology Research 2025

A report on the struggle to keep public-interest technology research alive—and the growing Coalition working to protect it.

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Coalition for Independent Tech @transparenttech@mastodon.social

· 12mo ago

Tech companies and other powerful actors create and exploit artificial divisions within the research community: STEM versus non-STEM researchers, academics versus journalists, university-affiliated versus independent, senior scholars versus emerging voices.

These divisions are manufactured. What unites researchers is more powerful than what divides them: the right to conduct research that serves the public interest.

Read the full report! https://independenttechresearch.org/citr-report-2025/

Coalition for Independent Technology Research

The State of Independent Technology Research 2025

A report on the struggle to keep public-interest technology research alive—and the growing Coalition working to protect it.

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Coalition for Independent Tech @transparenttech@mastodon.social

· 13mo ago

The State of Independent Technology Research report maps the funding landscape for public-interest tech research – drawing on experiences from Coalition members across six continents.

How are you navigating funding gaps in your work? 💭

Read the full report!
https://independenttechresearch.org/citr-report-2025/

Coalition for Independent Technology Research

The State of Independent Technology Research 2025

A report on the struggle to keep public-interest technology research alive—and the growing Coalition working to protect it.

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Coalition for Independent Tech @transparenttech@mastodon.social

· 10mo ago

Replying to

This grant supports our ongoing work to strengthen independent tech research as public infrastructure. It helps us continue supporting our membership of independent researchers who are working beyond industry influence to conduct critical inquiries into the societal impact of technology; and sustaining a global, cross-sector community for collaboration, mutual support, and collective capacity building. (2/2)

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Coalition for Independent Tech @transparenttech@mastodon.social

· 6mo ago

Replying to

Chilling effects, like those intended through this policy, are inherently difficult to make visible. They appear in how researchers shift their work, the invitations they decline, the research they stop pursuing, the advocacy work they stop participating in – as people adjust their work in fear of being targeted by the government. (2/3)

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Coalition for Independent Tech @transparenttech@mastodon.social

· 6mo ago

Replying to

Thanks to the brave work of several Coalition members and the partnership of the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University and Protect Democracy, we were able to explain to the court through this motion how researchers are self-censoring because of this policy. Read the motion: https://knightcolumbia.org/documents/4xb9tdw6ax Share the press release: https://knightcolumbia.org/content/technology-researchers-ask-court-to-block-trump-policy-threatening-deportation-for-work-on-social-media-platforms (3/3)

Knight First Amendment Institute

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