How the Dawson commentaries project integrates public posts

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This page explains how the Michelle Dawson posts analysis project integrates public posts from @autismcrisis, reconstructs cited links when possible, and identifies scientific references or study registration records mentioned through those links.

Scope of the project

The project focuses on public posts by Michelle Dawson (@autismcrisis) about autism science, scientific publications and related debates. It covers two public sources: Twitter/X as a historical archive, from 10 Oct 2009 through 12 Oct 2023, and Bluesky for current monitoring from 13 Oct 2023 onward.

The two sources are handled separately because their technical and legal conditions differ. Bluesky offers an open public API that supports regular synchronization. Twitter/X is a closed platform with a paid API, so AutiHub treats the Twitter/X material as an archive rather than as a continuously synchronized source.

Bluesky

For Bluesky, AutiHub synchronizes the public posts from @autismcrisis.bsky.social and checks whether Michelle Dawson has added direct replies to her own posts. These replies are integrated with the original post when they function as continuations or additional notes.

During synchronization, AutiHub also checks recent posts already stored locally. If a post has been deleted on Bluesky, it is removed from AutiHub during a later synchronization, so empty embeds do not remain visible. For new Bluesky posts, cited links are inspected so that scientific resources can be attached to the post when possible.

Twitter/X

For Twitter/X, the work is archival. Public posts from @autismcrisis were integrated through the X API for the period before the move to Bluesky. The archive also includes direct replies written by the same account when they extend one of the integrated posts.

The raw text of Twitter/X posts is used internally for search and analysis. Public display relies on links or official embeds when possible, rather than exposing the archive as a downloadable republication of the original posts.

Reconstructing cited links

Many older Twitter/X posts contain shortened links, including Twitter/X internal links such as t.co and public URL-shortening services such as bit.ly or j.mp. AutiHub keeps the original URL detected in the post, then tries to reconstruct the destination URL when this is still possible.

This reconstruction is conservative. Some old short-link services are no longer reliable, some publisher pages now redirect to generic cookie or error pages, and some sites block automated access. In those cases, AutiHub may keep a fallback destination, mark the link as dead, or leave it unresolved rather than inventing a destination.

Finding DOI and registry identifiers

When a reconstructed destination looks like a scientific publication or study record, AutiHub tries to extract a stable identifier. The most useful case is a DOI. The project also detects identifiers from study registries and research databases, including ClinicalTrials.gov, CRD/PROSPERO and NIH RePORTER.

Several strategies are used depending on the domain: DOI patterns directly visible in URLs, publisher-specific URL structures, metadata embedded in publisher pages, registry identifiers in URLs, and manual correction workflows for difficult cases such as pages where the DOI is visible to a human but not reliably exposed through a simple automated request.

Structured metadata

Once a DOI or registry identifier is available, AutiHub retrieves structured information from appropriate metadata sources. For DOI-based publications, this usually means Crossref, with fallback sources when needed. For registry records, AutiHub retrieves the available title, dates, summaries, institutions or identifiers from the relevant registry when possible.

This structured layer makes it possible to list scientific references and study registration records cited by Michelle Dawson posts, sort them by publication date or post date, and link each resource back to the post where it was cited.

Search and public display

The text of the public posts is stored in AutiHub so that the project can offer search, filters and structured analysis. This internal storage is used to make the project searchable; it is not intended to create a separate downloadable republication of the raw archive.

For public reading, AutiHub favors official embeds and links to the original platforms. This keeps the displayed content connected to Bluesky or Twitter/X whenever possible, while allowing AutiHub to provide research-oriented search and context.

Limits

The structured reference list is not a list of every URL cited by Michelle Dawson. It only includes studies and study registration records for which a cited-link destination contains enough structured information, such as a DOI or a registry identifier.

Older links may be dead, redirected to generic pages, blocked by anti-bot systems, or no longer represent the original destination. The goal is to make the source material more searchable and understandable while preserving a clear distinction between original public posts, imported metadata, reconstructed links and structured scientific references.