Today: Panel on Social Media and Disinformation
Anabel Quan-Haase
Dear colleagues/friends,
please join us today for this event at 2pm EST via Zoom.
Looking forward to seeing many of you there,
Anabel
Professor
Faculty of Information and Media Studies/Department of Sociology
Rogers Chair in Studies in Journalism and New Information Technology is pleased to present:
Disinformation on social media during the COVID-19 pandemic:
Prevalence and journalistic challenges
A Panel Discussion
Ahmed Al-Rawi, Simon Fraser University
Alfred Hermida, University of British Columbia
Lauren Pelley, CBC
Craig Silverman, ProPublica
Thursday April 28, 2021 2:00-3:30 pm
Zoom: https://westernuniversity.zoom.us/j/95479768419
Social media has been a strategic tool used by governments, health agencies, and experts during the COVID-19 pandemic, providing rapid updates on topics such as health regulations, safety recommendations, and disease risk. Yet, with its unmoderated and fast-paced nature, social media has contributed to the spread of disinformation, fears, and distrust of experts and the mainstream media. A 2021 CBC Marketplace investigation identified hundreds of social media posts spreading disinformation and no initiatives on part of tech giants to deal with the problem. The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned of an ‘infodemic’ that impairs effective health policy and requires immediate intervention. This panel will discuss many of the challenges confronted by journalists today with identifying and combatting disinformation. The panel brings together academic experts in the field of journalism and communication with professional journalists working on the ground. The panel also highlights how innovative forms of journalism like The Conversation contribute to sharing important information at an accelerated pace. The panel further addresses issues associated with journalism that have worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic such as online harassment of journalists and experts, the subsequent burnout experienced by some media members, and challenges communicating complex information to a wide audience in an inflexible environment.
Speaker Bios:
Dr. Ahmed Al-Rawi is an Assistant Professor of News, Social Media, and Public Communication at the School of Communication at Simon Fraser University, Canada. He is the Director of the Disinformation Project that empirically examines fake news discourses in Canada on social media and news media. His research expertise is related to social media, news, and global communication with emphasis on Canada and the Middle East.
Lauren Pelley is an award-winning reporter with CBC News in Toronto. She’s currently covering the COVID-19 pandemic with the national Health & Science team, and was previously a municipal affairs reporter for CBC Toronto and a staff reporter at the Toronto Star. She has an MA in Journalism (‘11) and BA in International Relations (‘10) from Western.
Dr. Alfred Hermida is professor and former director (2015-2020) at the School of Journalism, Writing, and Media at the University of British Columbia, and co-founder of The Conversation Canada. With more than two decades of experience in digital journalism, his research addresses the transformation of news, media innovation, social media and data journalism. His books include Data Journalism and the Regeneration of News (Routledge, 2019), co-authored with Mary Lynn Young, and Tell Everyone: Why We Share and Why It Matters (DoubleDay, 2014). He was a BBC TV, radio and online journalist for 16 years, including four years in North Africa and the Middle East.
Craig Silverman is an award-winning journalist and author and one of the world's leading experts on online disinformation, fake news, and digital investigations. He recently joined ProPublica as a reporter investigating voting, platforms, disinformation, and online manipulation. He's also the editor of the European Journalism Centre’s Verification Handbook series. Craig previously served as media editor of BuzzFeed News, where he pioneered coverage of digital disinformation and media manipulation. He received a George Polk Award in 2021 for a series of articles about Facebook, and is the recipient of the Carey McWilliams Award from the American Political Science Association, which honors “a major journalistic contribution to our understanding of politics.” His 2019 series exposing a global Facebook advertising scam was also named investigation of the year by the Canadian Association of Journalists. His journalism and books have also been honored by the Mirror Awards, U.S. National Press Club, National Magazine Awards (Canada), and Crime Writers of Canada.
Everyone is welcome. Find out more about the event.
URL:
Contact: FIMS Communications fims-comm...@uwo.ca