If we were to design a game of academic research center bingo, “launching a podcast” would definitely get a square. And if just reading the words “academic research center bingo” has you playing along virtually, well, please go ahead and fill in that square: in late June, CITAP is launching Does Not Compute, a podcast about technology, people, and power.
For our first season, we’ll be releasing weekly episodes on the topic of identity and disinformation, digging into questions like who originates these lies, and why, and then how people decide what information to believe and share, who’s harmed by these campaigns and how affected communities fight back… and obviously, the role that tech platforms play, and their role in addressing the problem.
We’re pleased to join a growing and excellent researcher-podcaster community, including Democracy in Danger, Reimagining the Internet, and Becoming Data, and we’re taking inspiration from shows like the recent Disinformed series on There Are No Girls on the Internet and the excellent Wayfair episode of You’re Wrong About. (We may want to grow up to be You’re Wrong About).
We’ll share more as we get closer to our release date, but wanted you to hear about it first!
Recent publications and appearances
Following the Hussman faculty letter we shared last week, SILS faculty (including Francesca Tripodi) and a cast of public intellectuals (including Tressie McMillan Cottom) have issued statements condemning the University’s failure to offer tenure to Nikole Hannah-Jones.
“It’s now entirely possible that most Covid deaths could occur after there are enough vaccines to protect those most at risk globally. Britain had more daily Covid-related deaths during the surge involving B.1.1.7 than in the first wave, when there was less understanding of how to treat the disease and far fewer therapeutics that later helped cut mortality rates. Even after the vaccination campaign began, B.1.1.7 kept spreading rapidly among the unvaccinated. A similar pattern was observed in much of Eastern Europe as well.” Zeynep Tufekci continues to translate epidemiological concerns into stark terms, calling for international collaboration to speed vaccination in the New York Times.
She also appeared in an article about developing good “decision hygiene” in a pandemic age:“The ancients believed that all celestial objects revolved around the earth in circular orbits. When it became clear that the observed behavior of the celestial objects did not fit this assumption, those astronomers produced ever-more-complex charts… to fit the heavens to their beliefs.”
“Examples there include things like the notion that BLM is anti-white, which, of course, is an opinion, that it is a hate group... That it's somehow anti-family, that it is morally equivalent to far-right groups, and then there are some things that kind of blur the line between fact and opinion." Deen Freelon spoke to NPR about how Black Lives Matter is fighting disinformation.
“Enlisting supporters in coordinated social media efforts is actually a routine campaign practice.” Shannon McGregor was quoted in an essay on Facebook and the challenges to countering coordinated inauthentic behavior.
Coming soon
June 19: Tressie McMillan Cottom will be speaking alongside Jasmine Griffin during the Schomburg Center Literary Festival and literary competition. Registration is free and open to the general public.
Rest of Web
Dr. Cottom joins the External Advisory Committee for MIT’s Center for Research on Equitable and Open Scholarship.
Alice Marwick shared a piece on influencer content houses:
Faculty Affiliate David Ardia comments on the likelihood of survival for a Florida bill on fines for content moderation:
And if you’ve read this far, you may enjoy this case study in how children’s author Eric Carle became the subject of a popular misinformation meme.