This roundtable convenes experts to discuss the evolving landscape of social media research data access under the EU's Digital Services Act (DSA). Focusing on Article 40.12, which mandates access to "publicly available data," the discussion will examine early implementation experiences, challenges, and best practices. The DSA's impact extends beyond the EU, as platforms develop new APIs and data access mechanisms to comply with these regulations, impacting research globally.

The DSA represents a pivotal moment for platform transparency and research access, yet the initial year of implementation has revealed significant variation in how platforms are interpreting and fulfilling their obligations. Researchers face inconsistent application processes, data quality issues, technical barriers, and restrictive terms of service. This roundtable will foster dialogue and collaboration among experienced researchers to address these challenges and shape more effective data access frameworks. It also includes discussions of how the DSA-compliant APIs have affected research approaches to studying platform data as well as the larger question of emerging alternatives.

This roundtable will feature brief introductory presentations by the organizers to set the stage for an interactive discussion. The session will not include paper presentations but will focus on facilitating dialogue and interaction among delegates.

Organizers and Initial Participants

Fabio Giglietto, University of Urbino [organizer]

Axel Bruns, Queensland University of Technology

Josephine Lukito & Kayo Mimizuka, University of Texas at Austin

Jessica Robinson, University of Oslo

Richard Rogers, University of Amsterdam