Fact-Checking Methodologies Professors and Supervisors in Belgium

Abied Alsulaimanمشاهده پروفایل

دانشیار

KU LeuvenBelgium

Abied Alsulaiman is an Associate Professor at KU Leuven 's Faculty of Arts , specializing in Arabic Studies . He co-founded the Arabic Translators International (ATI) and co-edits its publication series. His teaching focuses on history of Arabic culture, legal translation, business translation, and interpreting. Research Interests : Translation studies, legal terminology (Arab states, Belgium, Netherlands), Arabic linguistics, Islamic studies, Judeo-Arabic literature, and Semitic languages. Projects : Functional equivalence in legal terminology, translation's role in Saudi students' historical awareness, OCR solutions for Arabic/Persian scripts, and diplomatic terms in Saudi Arabia. Publications : Recent works include co-edited handbooks on terminology, legal translation analysis of the US Constitution, and studies on Qur'anic lexicography and Islamic traditions.

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Brahim Zaroualiمشاهده پروفایل

استادیار

KU LeuvenBelgium

Brahim Zarouali serves as Assistant Professor at KU Leuven's Faculty of Social Sciences, conducting research through the Media, Information & Persuasion Lab. His work focuses on digital society challenges including disinformation, algorithmic influence, and human-machine communication. Current institutional roles include membership in the Faculty Council, Diversity Team FSS, and POC Communicatiewetenschappen Curriculum Committee. Research interests center on disinformation susceptibility , political microtargeting , and social media effects on adolescents. Key projects examine online harmful discourse (2025-2029), social media addiction among teens (2025-2029), and disinformation countermeasures in Flanders (2024-2028). His work employs longitudinal designs, machine learning approaches, and experimental methods to analyze cognitive and behavioral impacts of digital environments. Publication trends reveal strong focus on Disinformation mechanisms in election contexts Platform interventions against social bots Adolescent privacy behaviors on TikTok Metaverse adoption drivers with methodologies spanning computational communication, survey experiments, and AI-driven analysis. As promotor or co-promotor, Zarouali leads eight major research initiatives totaling over €2.5M in funding, including Flemish-Dutch disinformation monitoring collaboration and migration conflict resolution through communication. His lab (Parkstraat 45, room 04.149) develops digital tools for data collection via conversational agents while addressing ethical challenges in digital society research.

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Rubén Arcosمشاهده پروفایل

استاد

College of EuropeBelgium

Rubén Arcos is a Professor at the University Rey Juan Carlos (URJC) in Madrid, Spain, where he serves as Director of International Programs and leads research in the Ciberimaginario group on Digital Culture and Communication. He holds a visiting role at the College of Europe (Bruges) in the EU International Relations department. Key Affiliations: Chair of Intelligence Studies Section, International Studies Association (ISA) Co-founder of the International Online Intelligence Hub (IntelHub) Member of NATO STO Research Task Groups (SAS-189, SAS-ET-FG, SAS-114) Editorial Board Member, International Journal of Intelligence and Counterintelligence Research Focus: Hybrid Threats, Disinformation, Strategic Communication, EU Security Policy, Intelligence Analysis, and Digital Culture. His work bridges academia and practice through projects like the EU-HYBNET network and the DOMINOES Erasmus+. Recent publications explore disinformation's impact on democracies and climate policy. Recent Projects: Co-PI of EU-HYBNET (Pan-European Hybrid Threat Network) Lead of the MOOC Strategic Communication to Counter Security Threats (ITU Prize Winner) Contributor to NATO/STO initiatives on predictive intelligence and uncertainty communication Awards: 2023 ITU WSIS Prize for Digital Innovation in Security Education NATO SAS Excellence Award for Project SAS-114 Academic Leadership: Directed Spain's first MA in Intelligence Analysis (2010–2018) Co-organized major conferences like StratComES and NATO's Hybrid Threat workshop Teaches courses on strategic communication, intelligence analysis, and EU security across 15+ countries

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Marie Verstappenمشاهده پروفایل

پژوهشگر ارشد

KU LeuvenBelgium

Marie Verstappen is a Research Fellow at KU Leuven within the Faculty of Arts, affiliated with the Lab for Media, Information & Influence. She maintains offices at both the Antwerp campus (St. Jacobsmarkt 49-51) and Leuven campus (Parkstraat 45), actively contributing to research and teaching in media communication through courses Y03370 (Mediacommunicatie) and Y03527 (Medialandschap). Her research centers on social media's transformative impact on journalism, with deep investigation into editorial decision-making processes on TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram. She examines how news organizations influence platform-specific content creation, the psychological effects of anticipated audience backlash on fact-checkers, and the complex remediation of traditional news formats for digital consumption. This work bridges communication theory with urgent practical challenges in contemporary news ecosystems. Analysis of her 2024-2025 publications reveals consistent focus on platform-native journalism practices, particularly the evolving role of social media editors as gatekeepers. Key trends include comparative studies of news remediation across platforms, methodological innovation through participant observation, and critical examination of audience-editor dynamics in hostile online environments. Scientific Awards: No awards were documented in the provided information. Advising and Grants: The available materials contain no references to student supervision or grant funding activities. Labs and Teams: Verstappen is integral to the Lab for Media, Information & Influence while holding significant governance roles: Faculty Council of Arts (representing AAP-BAP-OP1-OP2) POC Applied Linguistics Antwerp Campus Council of the Faculty of Arts, Antwerp Artesraad Her ORCID profile (0000-0002-5712-4341) provides persistent access to her scholarly contributions.

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Michaël Opgenhaffenمشاهده پروفایل

مدرس ارشد

KU LeuvenBelgium

Michaël Opgenhaffen is a Senior Lecturer at the KU Leuven , affiliated with the Faculty of Social Sciences and the Lab for Media, Information & Influence (OG) . He contributes to research and teaching in digital media, journalism, and misinformation, and is a member of the KU Leuven Institute for Digital Society (DigiSoc) and the Interdisciplinary Language Institute (LILI). Current projects explore digital news consumption , fact-checking , and social media management . His research addresses political knowledge in the digital age , platform-specific editorial dynamics , and parental mediation of scary news . He lectures on journalistic research , digital storytelling , and social media strategy . Michaël’s recent publications focus on multi-platform verification , fact-check headline framing , and user engagement with misinformation mitigation. His work is presented at leading conferences like the International Communication Association (ICA) and Etmaal van de Communicatiewetenschap.

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Ike Piconeمشاهده پروفایل

دانشیار

Vrije Universiteit BrusselBelgium

Dr. Ike Picone is an Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Communication Sciences at Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB). He leads the News: Uses, Strategies & Engagements unit within imec-SMIT (Studies on Media, Innovation, and Technology) and directs the Flemish Knowledge Centre for Media Research. His research focuses on evolutions in news consumption, digital media environments, and qualitative user research methods like digital ethnography. He actively contributes to the annual Reuters Institute’s Digital News Report . Key roles include membership in the Journalism Council and the Scientific Advisory Board of the Hannah Arendt Institute . External positions include advisory roles at Roskilde University, KU Leuven, and the Belgian government’s Expert Group on Fake News . His research spans projects like ReMed (resilient media for democracy) and SHALGO (algorithmic systems research). Research interests highlight media use patterns, digital disinformation, and the intersection of technology with journalism and democracy. Recent studies explore news avoidance during the pandemic, LGBTQ+ digital inclusivity, and the role of media finances in combating fake news. Awarded the Junior Researcher Award (2007) , Picone has authored over 100 publications, including peer-reviewed articles and chapters. Supervised over 120 theses, such as studies on media repertoires and platform governance. Active in policy briefs on media clusters and public broadcasting trust, his work bridges academic research with real-world media challenges.

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Nadia Vissersمشاهده پروفایل

مدرس

AP University College AntwerpBelgium

Nadia Vissers is a senior academic and administrator at Artesis Plantijn University College Antwerp, where she has held roles including Coordinator of Internationalisation in Journalism and Communication programmes, Head of the international Journalism, Advertising and Public Relations programme, and Work Placement Coordinator for over 20 years. She currently serves as Director of the European Journalism Training Association (EJTA), uniting 75+ European journalism institutions, and General Coordinator of EUfactcheck, a student-led fact-checking initiative. Her expertise spans journalism education internationalization, media literacy, and practical teaching in interviewing techniques and constructive news reporting. She maintains an extensive network of global journalism educators and has lectured internationally. Key projects include the News4You(th) research (2019-2023) analyzing Flemish youth news consumption patterns and multiple KA107 EU-funded mobility projects linking students/staff from Israel, Georgia, Peru, Ukraine and other nations (2019-2024). Her professional trajectory combines 20+ years of university administration with ongoing teaching and international collaboration in journalism training programs. Projects demonstrate strong focus on cross-border educational partnerships and innovative journalism practices.

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Cato Waeterloosمشاهده پروفایل

پژوهشگر

KU LeuvenBelgium

Cato Waeterloos is a postdoctoral researcher at the Institute for Media Studies (IMS) of KU Leuven , focusing on the intersection of new media and democratic participation. Her work examines how social media reshapes political engagement, news consumption, and citizenship literacy. Education: Master's in Communication Sciences (2018, Ghent University) PhD in Communication Sciences (2022, Ghent University) Research Interests: Waeterloos investigates political socialization in digital environments, analyzing how social media platforms influence civic literacy, news consumption patterns, and non-traditional participation forms. Her work bridges theoretical frameworks with empirical studies on youth political engagement. Project Involvement: She led a 4-year BOF-funded project on social media's role in political participation and contributed to Ghent University's 'Municipality Without a Town Hall' initiative. Currently, she explores influencer-driven political knowledge development in the iBOF POLKNOW project. Key Trends in Publications: Her recent work spans political knowledge acquisition, fact-checking dynamics, and platform-specific participation mechanisms. Collaborative studies with Ghent University teams emphasize cross-generational and cross-platform analysis, particularly focusing on digital-native youth. Labs & Collaborations: Based at the Lab for Media, Information & Influence , she collaborates with Prof. Dr. Michaël Opgenhaffen and Prof. Dr. Desiree Schmuck on EU-funded research, integrating digital tools for enhanced civic participation.

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Heidi Vandeboschمشاهده پروفایل

استاد

University of AntwerpBelgium

Heidi Vandebosch is a Professor at the Department of Communication Studies, University of Antwerp. Her research focuses on cyberbullying, online aggression, adolescent psychology, and media psychology, with a particular emphasis on evidence-based interventions and sociocognitive determinants like empathy and moral disengagement. Active projects: Friendly ATTAC (digital anti-cyberbullying games), Cyber-shoc (emotional reactions in bullying contexts) Key methodologies: Structural equation modeling, mixed-design ANOVA, content analysis, Delphi method Her work spans interdisciplinary collaborations, addressing topics such as celebrity bashing , slut-shaming , and digital disconnection . She has contributed to policy frameworks in Belgium and Europe, particularly through COST action IS0801. Scientific awards include membership in Academia Europaea and leadership roles in academic integrity committees. Recent publications explore the intersection of health promotion , gamification , and social media dynamics . She has published in journals like Computers in Human Behavior , Journal of Media Psychology , and Cyberpsychology , with a focus on adolescent behavior , digital interventions , and media representation . Her research often combines ICT and developmental psychology to design solutions for cyberbullying and online harassment.

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