The WHAT-IF Project is a pioneering initiative aimed at combating the escalating challenges of disinformation, hate speech, and polarized information environments that threaten democratic societies. By developing a digital twin of the political information landscape, WHAT-IF enables the testing of various interventions to promote healthier democratic discourse.

Project Objectives

Central to WHAT-IF’s mission is the creation of an empirically grounded simulation of the digital political information environment. This involves:

Developing a Digital Twin: Constructing a comprehensive model of the political information ecosystem to simulate real-world dynamics.

Testing Interventions: Evaluating the impact of social media content, algorithms, and platform features through immersive field experiments.

Informing Policy: Providing evidence-based insights to shape policies and regulations that enhance media quality and democratic resilience.

To achieve these objectives, WHAT-IF employs a multifaceted approach:

Data Collection and Processing: Gathering fine-grained data via surveys and digital trace donations from citizens across four European countries. This data is meticulously processed to inform simulations and analyses.

Agent-Based Modeling and Simulation: Integrating Agent-Based Models (ABMs) with Large Language Models (LLMs) to replicate human behavior and media interactions within the digital twin.

Immersive Field Experiments: Designing and implementing experiments to assess the effects of disinformation, uncivil discourse, and selective exposure on democratic engagement.

EAVI plays a key role in the WHAT-IF Project, particularly within the Engagement and Dissemination, where it contributes to communication, dissemination, and stakeholder engagement. EAVI facilitates connections with policymakers, NGOs, and the public, ensuring that project findings inform effective interventions against disinformation and hate speech.

Additionally, EAVI is actively involved in policy engagement, media literacy promotion, and public outreach efforts, helping to translate research into actionable strategies for democratic resilience. Its contributions extend to anticipatory media policy, where it aids in developing theoretical frameworks and regulatory simulations, as well as individual interventions, where it participates in testing media literacy and misinformation countermeasures​.