IOP 2017 Fall Residential Fellow Karen Finney

Guests: Craig Silverman Media Editor, Buzzfeed News

Thursday, Oct 19th 4:15-5:45 FDR

Description: Until the 2016 election technology and social media platforms had been seen as a mostly positive disruption for democracy and the way campaigns are run by empowering increasingly diverse voices, better enabling voter contact and grassroots organizing, micro-targeting of messages, fundraising, etc; platforms like Facebook and Twitter make it easier for candidates to circumvent mainstream media and access their supporters’ trusted networks of potential voters and supporters. These networks are invaluable to expanding and solidifying support because while our trust in institutions, is low, our trust in the information we get from neighbors and friends remains high. New technology and algorithms essentially “weaponized” fake news in customizable echo-chambers micro-targeted to reinforce a user’s political bias. Thereby creating a new channel for campaign messages isolated from mainstream or independent media. While initially resistant, the tone and proliferation of fake news in an environment with no real gatekeepers or standards of authenticity has forced media companies to find ways to disrupt the disruption. We’ll discuss cutting edge research examining the intersection between journalism and social media, the “misinformation ecosystem” and tools being created to check facts and the validity of news sources as well as how media organizations like Buzzfeed are helping separate fact from fiction, and how companies like Facebook and Twitter are addressing their role in spreading misinformation.