First-generation Asians make up one of the fastest growing immigrant groups in the United States.  Many in this group face linguistic and cultural barriers, making them particularly vulnerable to misinformation and disinformation online. 

In a new report, University of Michigan School of Information assistant professor Matthew Bui investigates the complex ways cultural, linguistic and generational factors shape how Asian Americans experience and respond to misinformation and disinformation online. 

“Beyond Language Translation: Asian Americans, News and Information Seeking, and the Circulation of Problematic Narratives Online” was published in collaboration with Asian Americans Advancing Justice | AAJC and comes at a time when online spaces are increasingly riddled with deepfakes, artificial intelligence and volatile online discourse. 

“There’s growing acknowledgment that the internet can be a toxic and harmful space,” Bui says. “Organizations like Asian Americans Advancing Justice are leading the charge in showing that these harms are not distributed evenly. In fact, communities of color are often more severely affected, in similar and divergent ways.” 

Key findings in the report highlight the diverse news interests among Asian Americans, varying trust in information sources, differing perceptions of political misinformation, challenges in digital literacy and the impact of digital divides on access to critical resources, especially for elderly, low-income and non-English speaking communities.

The report reveals that while all Asian American groups face misinformation online, elderly, low-income and non-English speaking communities are particularly vulnerable, highlighting the need for culturally and contextually informed interventions that go beyond language translation to address deeper geopolitical, sociohistorical and structural factors shaping their digital information experiences.

“People are consuming news that's translated into their native languages, but often, that news isn't fact-checked or critically and culturally translated in a way that makes it fully legible or meaningful,” Bui says. “That opens the door to misinformation.”

For example, Bui notes that the Detroit focus group, which included South Asian Muslims, stressed the importance of cultural and historical translation, which is why they often prefer sources like Al Jazeera or news from their countries of origin because U.S. outlets, even when translated, miss the nuanced complexities of Asian and Muslim geopolitical issues.

“Yes, we need to translate key information from English, but it’s not just about translating words, it’s about making context-accessible,” he says. “People need culturally relevant, historically grounded translations that help them not only understand what’s being said, but also why it matters and how it fits into broader patterns of race, power and media in the U.S.”

The study includes 101 youth and adults across 12 focus groups in the Bay Area, Southeast Michigan region, and Greater Washington D.C. area, and attempts to capture the full breadth and depth of the Asian American community. 

“Often, there’s an East Asian-centric lens when it comes to understanding trends, but how do we unpack that?” Bui asks. “How do we think critically about ethnic differences within the Asian American umbrella, while also considering factors like religion and political diversity?”

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Read “Beyond Language Translation: Asian Americans, News and Information Seeking, and the Circulation of Problematic Narratives Online” at Asian Americans Advancing Justice. 

Learn more about UMSI assistant professor Matt Bui by visiting his UMSI faculty profile.