Three New Tools to Explore Social Media

The Observatory on Social Media (OSoMe, pronounced “awesome”) is excited to introduce three new tools that will make it easier to study and engage with social media data: NewsBridge, Barney’s Tavern, and OSoMeNet. These tools build on OSoMe’s mission to support public understanding of online information dynamics and to make research more accessible and transparent.

NewsBridge is a browser extension that enhances the Facebook feed by using generative AI to provide additional context for news-related posts. When users scroll through their feed, NewsBridge identifies posts containing links. It uses Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) technology to offer background context and help users better assess what they’re seeing. More than just a fact-checking tool, NewsBridge is designed to encourage constructive engagement. If a post appears to include questionable information, the extension can suggest a thoughtful, non-confrontational comment that users can share to help bridge political divides.

Barney’s Tavern is a powerful new search interface for accessing OSoMe’s archive of 34B social media posts. Currently, access is limited to users with Indiana University credentials, but we welcome collaborations that could expand availability. The tool supports keyword, hashtag, and named entity searches, with filters that allow users to refine results by date, source, or other metadata. Barney replaces Moe, our previous social media data cluster, with a faster and more flexible system designed to support large-scale social media analytics research.

OSoMeNet is a network visualization tool that maps patterns of information sharing and spread on multiple social media platforms. Users can create diffusion graphs showing who amplified what, when, and how often through replies, reposts, mentions, or hashtag connections. The tool supports data from Bluesky, Mastodon, TikTok, and OSoMe’s own historical archive. Interactive features let users zoom into networks and explore nodes, links, and online communities.

All three tools are available on the OSoMe website. They are supported in part by the Knight Foundation, the Civic Health Project, and Indiana University Research.