Knight Foundation funding studies on media and democracy

NEW YORK (AP) — A foundation that specializes in journalism is pledging nearly $50 million for research in how social media and technology impacts democracy.

The grants announced Monday by the Knight Foundation partly respond to the manipulation of tech giants like Facebook and Twitter during the 2016 election. Eleven universities and research institutions are recipients.

Besides trying to get a bead on social media’s impact on election campaigns, the grants include projects on the spread of disinformation and how newsrooms can address polarization in society. The foundation says it is time for society to understand the issues through data and not emotion.

Grants will go to New York University, Carnegie Mellon, George Washington, North Carolina, the University of Washington, Indiana, Stanford, Texas, Wisconsin, Yale and the Data & Society Research Institute.