Emerging hybrid networks of verification, accountability, and institutional resilience: the U.S. Capitol Riot and the work of open-source investigation

Abstract

The violent spectacle of the January 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol riot provides a case study of how online open-source investigation helped identify members of the mob and provide deeper understanding of the day’s events. Considering this form of investigation as an emerging network for the hybrid institution of journalism, an assemblage extending beyond the newsroom, this study takes a mixed-method, networked ethnography approach to map out this open-source space. Using a network analysis of open-source investigators based on Twitter data shows that the recently emerged Bellingcat organization and similar open-source groups serve a liaison function, bridging professional journalists and largely anonymous citizen “sleuthers.” Using this network as a guide, depth interviews were conducted with key participants, showing that the community was organized around an accountability ethos and a methodology of verification. We argue that this interlocking network has potential to strengthen the resilience of the journalistic institution, build citizen trust and resist politicized historical revisionism.