SOMAR Newsletter | Spring 2026
What’s New?
We’re excited to share the latest updates from Social Media Archive (SOMAR), your go-to source for social media research data. Stay up-to-date with important announcements, new features, and ways to support your research with social media data.
SOMAR by the Numbers
As we head into spring 2026, we want to take a moment to reflect on the incredible community of researchers we have had the privilege of supporting. We are incredibly proud of the role SOMAR plays in supporting impactful social media research on a global scale, and we thank you for being a part of this community.
Website Accessibility Improvements
As part of our ongoing commitment to making SOMAR resources available to everyone, we have completed a comprehensive accessibility review of our website and public-facing documentation in compliance with the University of Michigan’s updated Americans with Disabilities Act digital accessibility requirements. Updates include an improved heading structure, descriptive alt text, and screen-reader-friendly hyperlink text to ensure our content is fully accessible to users of assistive technology. We encourage you to explore the updated site and reach out to us at [email protected] with any questions or feedback
Meta Content Library (MCL) Update
WhatsApp Now Available in Meta Content Library
Meta Content Library has expanded its data coverage to include WhatsApp. Researchers can now access public content from WhatsApp Channels, opening up a major new data source for social media research.
What’s included:
- WhatsApp Channels that are verified or have a minimum of 100 followers
- All channel updates within eligible channels from the last 30 days
- This is a significant expansion for researchers studying public communication, information spread, and platform behavior across Meta’s ecosystem. To learn more about the full data scope, visit the Meta Content Library page.
Why Choose the SOMAR Virtual Data Enclave?
If you’re applying for Meta Content Library API access, you have a choice of computing platform. Here’s what the SOMAR Virtual Data Enclave offers:
- More tools, more flexibility: Work in R, RStudio, Python, JupyterLab, Jupyter Notebooks, and Stata.
- Export more of your work: SOMAR’s data disclosure review covers code, graphs, figures, charts, tables, and summary statistics.
- Bring your own models: Need a specific machine learning model? Submit a request and SOMAR will review and upload it to your enclave.
- True team collaboration: Your whole research team works inside a shared enclave instance and can share any file.
MCL Application Reminder
As of December 8, 2025, all applications for MCL API access are managed via Meta’s own application portal. Researchers can apply for access through Meta’s Research Tools Manager. For details on the process, please visit the MCL Get Access page or reach out to Meta directly at [email protected].
New SOMAR VDE Fees
SOMAR’s updated cost structure for the Virtual Data Enclave (VDE) is now in effect. Existing users are charged a monthly fee of $371 (USD) for each month of VDE usage, beginning in July 2026. New VDE users onboarded after June 2026 are charged a one-time $1,000 (USD) setup and onboarding fee, in addition to the same monthly charge. These fees support the sustainability and ongoing improvement of SOMAR’s secure research infrastructure, covering computing, storage, security, and staff support. SOMAR will contact existing and new VDE researchers directly with additional information about the updated cost structure and any relevant next steps. For questions or feedback, please reach out to SOMAR Support at [email protected].
Love Data Week Webinar Recap
Earlier this year, SOMAR presented at the ICPSR Data Fair @ Love Data Week (February 9–13, 2026). The webinar, titled “A Reintroduction to the Social Media Archive: New Website, New Features, New Data,” was presented by Didarul Islam, Data Project Assistant with SOMAR at ICPSR. The presentation covered SOMAR’s new website and navigation, the data deposit process, the Virtual Data Enclave, and updates to Meta Content Library (MCL) API access. If you missed it, the recording is now available to watch on YouTube.
SOMAR in Action
From conferences to classrooms, the SOMAR team has been out in the field connecting with researchers, sharing updates, and showcasing what’s possible with social media data.
MPSA Annual Conference | April 2026 | Chicago, IL
SOMAR was represented at the Midwest Political Science Association Annual Conference, where we engaged with the political science research community and shared updates on SOMAR’s evolving infrastructure and data resources.
Guest Lecture: “Social Media Archiving” | February 20, 2026 | UCLA
Angela Schöpke Gonzalez presented a guest lecture for the Graduate School of Education and Information Studies (GSEIS) course on Systems and Infrastructures. Students were invited to explore the SOMAR dataset Not With a Bang But a Tweet: Democracy, Culture Wars, and the Memeification of T.S. Eliot, a great example of the kind of unique research SOMAR data makes possible.
Talk: “Developing and Implementing an Ethics Framework for Social Media Data Archives” | February 2, 2026 | UC Irvine
Angela Schöpke Gonzalez presented at the Steckler Center for Responsible, Ethical, and Accessible Technology, using SOMAR as a case study to discuss ongoing work on ethics frameworks for social media data archives, a conversation that shapes how we think about responsible data stewardship at SOMAR.
Upcoming Conferences
Will you be attending any of the following conferences? Come say hi to the SOMAR team!
- International Conference on Social Media & Society (#SMSociety) | July 13-15, 2026 | Glasgow, Scotland
- Association of Internet Researchers (AoIR) Conference | October 14-17, 2026 | Mexico City
New Data Deposits
New Data Deposits Are in Progress. Stay tuned for upcoming releases.
Event Hosting
Interested in hosting an event using the SOMAR datasets? Email us at [email protected].
Interested in Depositing Data?
SOMAR accepts research data from and about social media platforms. Submit datasets with descriptive metadata, documentation files, and data files (up to 30GB). For larger files or restricted data, contact [email protected].
Stay Updated
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