Researchers developed a browser extension, paired with a large language model, that classifies posts on an X feed for antidemocratic language and partisan animosity—for example, calls for violence or jailing political opponents—and then reorders the feed so such posts appear lower or higher. The tool changes the ranking in seconds and does not delete any content or require direct cooperation from the platform.
In experiments, about 1,200 volunteers used the tool over ten days during the 2024 election. Separate seven-day trials tested groups that saw the targeted content downranked, upranked, or left in the original order as a control. Before and after the tests, participants answered surveys on a 1-to-100 scale; those who saw negative content downranked improved on average by two points, a change researchers said is similar to an estimated shift in the U.S. population over three years.
The project brought together information science, computer science, psychology and communication. The researchers used prior sociology work to define harmful content categories, including:
- rejection of bipartisan cooperation
- skepticism of facts that favor the other party
- willingness to forgo democratic principles to help a party
Co-lead authors said the tool lets external researchers study algorithm design, and the team released the code so others can build independent ranking systems. The work received support from the National Science Foundation, the Swiss National Science Foundation, and a Hoffman‑Yee grant from the Stanford Institute for Human‑Centered Artificial Intelligence, and includes additional coauthors from Northeastern and Stanford.
Difficult words
- extension — small program added to a web browserbrowser extension
- classify — assign to categories based on contentclassifies
- antidemocratic — opposed to democratic principles or institutions
- animosity — strong dislike or active hostility between groupspartisan animosity
- downrank — move something lower in a ranking orderdownranked
- control — a comparison group that stays unchanged during tests
- cooperation — working together toward a common goal
Tip: hover, focus or tap highlighted words in the article to see quick definitions while you read or listen.
Discussion questions
- Do you think tools that reorder social feeds without deleting content are a good way to reduce harmful speech? Why or why not?
- What are the possible benefits and risks of outside researchers designing or testing ranking systems for social media?
- The researchers compared a two-point survey improvement to a three-year population shift. What does that comparison suggest about the tool's potential real-world impact?
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