The One where CITAP goes to Seattle
An award, a new textbook, and many highlights for the CITAP community this week!
Celebrating Dr. Francesca Tripodi’s work
Last week, a few of us from CITAP travelled to Seattle, Washington to attend the award reception for UW’s CIP Award for Impact and Excellence. Dr. Francesca Tripodi was selected this year as the 2nd ever winner of this award.
The Center for an Informed Public (CIP), a center in the Knight Research Network, “translate[s] research about misinformation and disinformation into policy, technology design, curriculum development, and public engagement.”
The CIP Award for Impact and Excellence “recognizes an individual or organization that has made outstanding contributions, achievements, or bodies of work that significantly resist strategic misinformation, promote an informed society, and strengthen democratic discourse.”
Francesca & Dr. Shannon McGregor were able to spend time with UW graduate students during the day on Thursday.
CIP hosted a reception for Francesca where CITAP members and CIP members and affiliates were able to talk about their research, network, and learn more about the work happening within the Knight Research Network.
Following the reception, Dr. Kate Starbird, CIP Director, and Francesca talked about Francesca’s research, such as her 2022 book “Propogandist’s Playbook” and her work with social media, political partisanship, democratic participation, and how Google and Wikipedia are manipulated for political gains.
Please, join us in congratulating Dr. Francesca Tripodi on receiving the CIP Award for Impact and Excellence and for her groundbreaking & much needed research in these areas!
Platforms, Power, and Politics
Daniel Kreiss, along with Ulrike Klinger and Bruce Mutsvairo, published “Platforms, Power, and Politics: An Introduction to Political Communication in the Digital Age” (Polity, 2023) in the UK on Friday, October 13th. This book will be available in the U.S. in December of 2023. As discussed by Polity:
“This is the first textbook to center digital platforms in understanding political communication. With global examples beyond the context of Western democracies, the text reveals how digital technologies such as social media and search engines are increasingly shaping political communication in countries around the world. It shows how the core processes of political communication are being reshaped by platforms, from how elections are contested to how issues make it onto policymaking agendas. Topics covered include public opinion, journalism, strategic communication, political parties, social movements, governance, disinformation, propaganda, populism, race, ethnicity, and democratic backsliding.”
Publications and Appearances
“Those with the greatest reach and power should be subject to at least the same policies as all users, if not perhaps either more stringent or more holistically enforced versions of those policies. That’s where we see the danger. It’s not like some random person breaking a content moderation rule, which is a problem. It’s a [bigger] problem when someone who has a ton of power and attention does it.” Shannon McGregor appeared in a Slate article about the role of X in receiving/ sharing news about Israel and Gaza.
Tressie McMillan Cottom opened the EDUCAUSE 2023 Annual Conference with a fireside chat on Tuesday, October 10th.
Affiliate Highlights
CITAP has a community of research affiliates from all over the world and in many different disciplines. They're experts in mis- and disinformation, digital (in)equality/justice/equity, ethical technology, media and communication, AI, and journalism (among many other topics). The group brings together philosophers, sociologists, legal scholars, historians, information scientists, linguists. Here are a few highlights from our affiliate community this week:
“Clemson University Media Forensics Hub has expanded its research team with four new faculty from different fields,” which includes CITAP affiliates, Ayse Lokmanoglu and Morgan Wack. 👏👏👏
On October 27th, Chad Bryant (CITAP affiliate & UNC Professor of History) will deliver the Kleio Prize Lecture as part of UNC’s University Research Week. Bryant’s talk is titled "Blogging and Belonging: Prague's Czech-Vietnamese Community and What Social Media Might Have Been.”
For those in the area, the talk will take place in Pauli Murray Hall 569 from 12:30pm to 2:00pm. Food and drink will be provided. 👏👏👏
We are hiring!
We are seeking a Postdoctoral Research Associate to join us and work with CITAP & CMLP. This postdoc will serve as a communicator between academic researchers and policymakers (both in government and within technology platforms). Read the full description here and share the posting!
We are seeking a Postdoctoral Research Associate to join us and work with Dr. Francesca Tripodi and the Search Prompt Integrity & Learning Lab (SPILL). Read the full description here and share the posting!
Coming Soon
October
October 18 at AoIR: Alice Marwick, Yvonne Eadon, and Rachel Kuo are among the co-organizers of an AoIR preconference on future of conspiracy.
October 20 at AoIR: CITAP, CDCS, and IDDP are co-hosting a networking Happy Hour on Friday at 6pm.
October 22 at the Annenberg Public Policy Center: The Post-API Conference.
November
November 1 at CITAP: CITAP is hosting a book club! We will be reading “White Evangelical Racism” by Anthea Butler. Email citap@unc.edu for more information.
November 10 at CITAP: Symposium on Religion, Media, and Public Life.
Confirmed panelists include Whitney Phillips, Samuel Perry, Eden Consenstein, Xavier Pickett, Erika Gault, LeRhonda Manigault-Bryant, and Heidi Campbell. Register to join in person or virtually!