What is in a rumour: Combined visual analysis of rumour flow and user activity

Due to the rapid propagation of rumours in Online Social Networks (OSNs), identifying and understanding character-istic patterns, evolution and user behaviours behind this ac-tivity is ebential. Yet, there are few tools that can support analysing rumours and activities of players in their propa-gation. In this paper we propose a visual analysis approach to explore rumour components and life cycles as well as their abociation with user actions. The approach is real-ized by the implementation of a prototype system, called RumourFlow. Our framework designs, adopts and imple-ments multiple visualizations and modeling tools that are integrated to reveal rumour contents and participants' activ-ity, both within a rumour and acrob different rumours. The approach supports analysts in drawing hypotheses regard-ing rumour propagation. This paper presents the various models, algorithms and visualizations employed for rumour strength, rumour contents, user participation, as well as the core role of the visualizations in studying this phenomenon. The effectiveneb of the approach is illustrated by a use case highlighting relevant insight into rumour spreading, most of which could not otherwise be observed.