University of Ottawa
Professional Development Institute

Videos

 

Former President Obama speaks on disinformation's threat to democracy at Stanford University

Former President Barack Obama delivers a keynote address at Stanford University about disinformation and challenges to democracy in the digital realm.

Dismantling Disinformation

Panel explores concrete proposals for dismantling disinformation in communities, on social media, and through public policy and regulation. Brings together experts from multiple fields — including communication, education, behavioral psychology, and First Amendment law — to tackle an issue that could well shape the future of public health. This is a conversation about solutions, and the role each of us can play in limiting the impact of false content.

Defending Against Disinformation

A panel of Berkeley scholars explore a critical question facing U.S. democracy: How can we counter disinformation without compromising America’s core principles?

Former President Barack Obama and Maria Ressa on Disinformation and the Erosion of Democracy You Tube.

The Atlantic. April 6, 2022.

President Barack Obama, Anne Applebaum, David Axelrod, Jeffrey Goldberg, Adrienne LaFrance, and Nobel Prize-winning journalist Maria Ressa discuss disinformation and the threats it poses to democracy in the first part of a conference presented by The Atlantic and the University of Chicago Institute of Politics.

 

Disinformation and its Impact on Democratic Processes

You Tube. April 26, 2022

International IDEA Discussion focuses on how disinformation is contributing to democratic decline globally, and how governments can respond and build resilience to disinformation. Case studies from Sweden, Myanmar and Canada are discussed and compared to illustrate the wide impact disinformation tactics can have in different contexts.

 

Disinformation's Consequences

You Tube. Institute of Politics at Harvard Kennedy School. April 28, 2021

The IOP, the University of Chicago IOP, and the Shorenstein Center welcome Dr. Joan Donovan, Roger McNamee, Kara Swisher, and Nancy Gibbs for a conversation on the looming and ongoing challenges disinformation poses to democracy.

 

Disinformation and the Russia Ukraine war

You Tube. Princeton University. March 11, 2022.

Russia is no stranger to turning to the digital sphere to spread misinformation and propaganda. As the war wages in Ukraine, how is internet discourse adding fuel to the fire — and what cybersecurity threats remain? Asha Rangappa '96, CNN legal and national security analyst and former FBI agent, moderates the discussion with Princeton experts who focus on disinformation, online governance, and propaganda by authoritarian actors.

 

Disinformation & the Threat to Democracy

You Yube. Library of Congress. January 4, 2019.

Anne Applebaum discusses the challenge facing democracies from disinformation campaigns and what might be done about it.

 

A Citizen Perspective on Mis and Disinformation

You Tube. Shorenstein Center. March 28, 2022.

In this talk Claes de Vreese, Professor of Artificial Intelligence and Society at the University of Amsterdam, addresses how citizens see mis- and disinformation. The talk analyzes how citizens perceive the phenomenon and who they see as the main culprits. He also explores misconceptions about how algorithms work and how this may aggravate the consequences of misinformation. Finally, he reviews recent European initiatives specifically addressing mis- and disinformation.

 

Disinfo Discussions: History of Disinformation with Thomas Rid

You Tube. Aspen Digital. May 10, 2021.

Garrett Graff, the director for cyber initiatives for the Aspen Digital program, discusses the history of disinformation with Thomas Rid, a political scientist and professor of strategic studies at Johns Hopkins University. His book, Active Measures: The Secret History of Disinformation and Political Warfare, examines Russia’s interference in the 2016 presidential election in the US. This session is part of a series of expert briefings on mis and disinformation hosted by the Aspen Institute in tandem with our Commission on Information Disorder to help make sense of the various facets of the information crisis. They are designed as a resource for the commissioners and the broader public.

 

The Amplification of Disinformation

You Tube. October 25, 2021.

The Undergraduate Philosophy Club hosts a panel discussion on the amplification of disinformation led by professors Thad Botham, Joan McGregor, Marcello Di Bello and Jeffrey Watson.

 

Disinformation Games

You Tube. Games for Change. August 26, 2021.

The U.S. Department of State's Global Engagement Center (GEC) hosts an expert roundtable to discuss the use of digital games to counter disinformation and extremism. The GEC discusses the game it co-funded with the Department of Homeland Security, "Harmony Square", and the gameplay mechanics of "active inoculation" to bolster cognitive defenses against disinformation. The GEC is joined by several other academic and commercial developers of games that address the problems of environmental, political, and ideological disinformation in fun ways.

 

IPRI Webinar Series Mapping Disinformation in the Digital Age

You Tube. Islamabad Policy Research Institute. May 19, 2021.

The webinar “Mapping Disinformation in the Digital Age” is an attempt to explore such trends of disinformation. It remains interesting to discuss how online disinformation campaigns have evolved. We seek to discuss the manifestations of digital foreign interference and cyber conflicts in the modern world. Disinformation is not spread in a vacuum, but it has considerable impact on the behavior and decision-making of the people. The panel would assess the larger implications of disinformation on behaviors. The disinformation trends calls for the digital resilience worldwide. We seek to articulate the ethnics of digital technologies, if any, and chart out how laws and regulations can address the challenges posed by disinformation.

 

Peter Pomerantsev on Disinformation in the Modern Age

You Tube. Hromadske International. November 28, 2019.

Disinformation, propaganda, and ‘fake news’ – these are some of the biggest topics today – especially in Ukraine, where Russian disinformation has inspired Ukrainians to create organizations like StopFake to combat it. Author Peter Pomerantsev’s new book "This Is Not Propaganda: Adventures in the War Against Reality" dives deep into the world of propaganda, looking at techniques used across the world, from the Philippines to Russia. Hromadske was able to sit down with Pomerantsev to discuss the book, as well as take a look at the common threads linking ISIS, the far-right, and modern populist movements.

 

What is Fake News?

You Tube. BBC Click. November 12, 2018.

BBC Click talks to people who create fake news and investigates how video and sound can be manipulated.

 

Fake: Searching For Truth In The Age Of Misinformation

You Tube. Connecticut Public. February 14, 2020.

Given the sheer volume of news available, how can the average person separate fact from fiction? This series draws from common sense, critical thinking skills, and universal standards of journalism to give viewers the tools to discern fact from fiction in news reports, identify fake news, and evaluate the biases of real news. This documentary explores how and why misinformation spreads, and how to be a smarter information consumer in our increasingly digital world.

 

Deepfake video: The weaponization of fake news

You Tube. The Fifth Estate. November 18, 2018.

The technology to manipulate video has become so sophisticated that words can literally be put into people’s mouths. Mark Kelley explores how it’s done and why the implications have led the U.S. Defence Department to work to protect itself against the "weaponization" of fake news.

 

Steven Pinker: Danger of moral panic over “fake news”

You Tube. The Telegraph. November 12, 2021.

Social media companies face a tough choice in censoring their users. Steven Pinker joins Steven Edginton to discuss rationality, big tech companies and conspiracy theories in the latest Off Script podcast. Watch the full episode above or search “Off Script” on your podcast app.

 

The Birth of Click Bait & Fake News: Yellow Journalism

You Tube. Dark History Podcast. January 27, 2022.

The News. However you feel about it, it’s something we all know and all kind of need. And we have seen how badly it can go when the people in charge of the news take advantage of that. But when did that all start, how did two men flip the news industry on its head, sensationalize the news, and change how the news would be done?

 

The psychology of fake news

You Tube. Monash Business School. MY 9, 2022.

The spread of misinformation online can have dramatic consequences, from influencing election outcomes to compromising public health initiatives. In this lecture, award-winning scholar and fact-checking researcher MIT Professor David G. Rand explains why people believe and share fake news, and offers scalable fact-checking strategies such as crowdsourced veracity ratings to improve social media ranking algorithms.

 

Fake News: An Oxford Conversation

You Tube. Oxford Population Health. January 15, 2021.

 

Disinformation, Misinformation, and “Fake News”

You Tube. KTOO360TV. September 17, 2019.

Recent events have revealed that both state and non-state actors are capable of carrying out malign information operations against democratic countries. Targeted disinformation campaigns can interfere not only in elections but our entire political discourse, often seeking to damage the foundations of democratic societies. This session will focus on defining and unpacking the problem and offering democratic solutions for civil society, governments, and platforms to address this challenge.

 

Fake News in the Post-Truth Era: A Professional Panel

You Tube. Case Western Reserve University. December 18, 2019.

 

Fake News & Alternative Facts: Fighting Disinformation

You Tube. UChicago Institute of Politics. October 23, 2019.

 

Wikipedia Founder Combatting Fake News

You Tube. Talks at Google. December 4, 2017.

Wikipedia Founder, Jimmy Wales discusses fake news and his new site, WikiTribune, which attempts to combat it. He is joined by WikiTribune co-founder and human rights activist Orit Kopel.

 

Carlo Ginzburg lecture - Fake news? An old, new story

You Tube. House of European History. January 12, 2022.

In this lecture, Carlo Ginzburg attempts to analyse the phenomenon of “Fake News” with a certain chronological and conceptual distance. He does so on the basis of the essay by Robert Merton, who popularised the notion of a self-fulfilling prophecy. This essay, published in 1948, well before the advent of the internet, has not been prominently cited in the debate on fake news. Yet it allows us to understand the phenomenon from an angle that is both enlightening and unexpected.

 

The role of education in the fake news era

You Tube. University of Cambridge. May 27, 2022.

The seminar 'The role of education in the fake news era' promotes debate on the phenomenon of fake news, which has become a global threat to democracy. We seek to understand what role does (or can) education play in times marked by the advance of misinformation and a social and political context with the rise of populist movements, global polarisation and technological advances increasing the potential for rapid dissemination of fake news. The seminar is chaired by Haira Gandolfi (Lecturer, Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge), with guest speakers Susan Robertson (Head of the Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge), Márcia Tiburi (Philosopher and Lecturer, University Paris 8), Jean Wyllys (Journalist and scholar, University of Barcelona and Harvard) and Victor Fraga (journalist and filmmaker).

 

When Sensationalism Became Fake News

You Tube PBS. September 29, 2021.

In the late 1800s, William Randolph Hearst pioneered yellow journalism, a style of reporting focused on eye-catching headlines and sensationalism over the accurate reporting of facts. Today, media consumers and journalists contend not only with exaggerated headlines and click-driven content, but stories shared exclusively to spread misinformation. Our panelists examine the ubiquity of William Randolph Hearst’s media empire, the novel tactics he employed to build it, and its lasting impact on journalism today. They explore the parallels between Hearst's pioneering methods and modern-day engagement-driven reporting, the proliferation of misleading and fake news online, and how journalists work to report the truth to an increasingly skeptical populace.

 

Fake News: The Role of Suggestion in a Fast World

You Tube. International Psychoanalytical Association. July 5, 2022.

 

Fake News: The Math Behind the Myths

You Tube. Bentley University. October 22, 2021

How does technology exacerbate — and ameliorate — the spread of conspiracy theories? As the author of “How Algorithms Create and Prevent Fake News,” Assistant Professor Noah Giansiracusa will explain how his formal training in mathematics led him to exploring some of the most challenging questions about information being shared on social media.

 

Fact-checking in the ‘fake news’ era

You Tube. American Enterprise Institute. October 22. 2021.

Rising political polarization and declining trust have created an American “marketplace of realities,” where politicians feel less constrained by verifiable facts. Media fact-checking has been a way to ensure accountability and provide factual information in this environment. However, increasing polarization and declining trust in news organizations have muddied the waters in which journalists present and verify factual information. Despite fact-checking’s growing ubiquity, many challenges remain: How can fact-checking efforts leverage new technology, respond to shifts in the political and cultural landscape, and prepare us to be well-informed citizens leading up to the 2020 election and beyond? Join AEI for a presentation by David Barker, author of “One Nation, Two Realities: Dueling Facts in American Democracy” (Oxford University Press, 2019), followed by a panel discussion on the current state of fact-checking and challenges faced by those working in this industry.

 

How to spot manipulated video

You Tube. Washington Post. June 25, 2019.

The Internet is increasingly populated with false and misleading videos — spread by politicians, advocacy groups and others — viewed by millions. The Fact Checker set out to develop a universal language to label misleading online video and hold creators and sharers of this misinformation accountable. Some video is taken out of context; other content is deceptively edited or, in the worst instances, deliberately altered. We’ve grouped manipulated video into three categories with further sub-categories.

 

Peter Pomerantsev interview on "This is not propaganda", disinformation and fake news HQ

You Tube. University of Sheffield. June 10, 2020.

Peter Pomerantsev in conversation with Henk de Berg from The University of Sheffield on "This is not propaganda", disinformation and fake news.

 

The Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood

You Tube. James Gleick. ( Talks at Google) March 24, 2011

James Gleick spoke to Googlers in Mountain View, California on March 17, 2011 about his latest book The Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood.

 

Information manipulation: How the media ecosystem is being gamed and exploited - Craig Silverman

You Tube. Alan Turing Institute. February 4, 2019

Every digital product or service can be gamed or exploited, and this is especially true of today’s media and information environment. Whether it’s Russian trolls trying to create division in a democracy, marketers scheming to get the best reviews for their product, or criminals stealing billions thanks to ad fraud, our media environment is more open to manipulation than ever before. This talk exposes how it’s being done, and outlines ways to reclaim the media space from frauds and fakers.

 

Philanthropy and Democracy: Re-Imagining the Information Ecosystem Landscape

You Tube. Philanthropic Foundations Canada. November 30, 2021

A healthy democracy and a healthy information ecosystem are intimately intertwined. Globally, the Forum on Information and Democracy calls for immediate and sustained action in favour of independent journalism. The Journalism Trust Initiative (JTI) is a global initiative that aims at creating a healthier information space. In Canada, some funders are supporting public interest journalism. For some it is part of a broader strategy to support their missions, for others, it is a path to narrative power for equity-seeking groups. What role can philanthropy play in building a more just, equitable, and inclusive Canada through media? How can we de-risk journalism for funders? Join us as we hear from Canadian and international leaders in this space.

 

Duncan Watts - A Data-Driven View of the Information Ecosystem

You Tube. NAS Colloquia. April 30, 2019.

A Data-Driven View of the Information Ecosystem: Real News, Fake News, and No News at All - Duncan Watts, Microsoft, Inc.

 

Peter Pomerantsev: From Information to Disinformation Age - Russia and the Future of Propaganda Wars

You Tube. IWMVienna. February 16, 2016.

Despite decades of struggle for freedom of speech and access to unbiased information, the 21st century has not ended manipulation of and by the media. On the contrary, conflicts are being fought and won on TV-screens, airwaves and the Internet with an alarming intensity and frequency. Where does Russia figure in this troubling landscape? Did Vladimir Putin’s media-savvy regime invent the new mediated world in which ‘nothing is true and everything is possible‘ or did it simply follow certain preexisting models? Can Putin’s propaganda be countered and would this help to end the disinformation age in which we are living? Peter Pomerantsev took his newly published book “Nichts ist wahr und alles ist möglich” as a starting point to explore – in conversation with IWM Visiting Fellow Anton Shekhovtsov – new forms of Russian propaganda.

 

Towards a Stronger Information Ecosystem: Commission on Info Disorder Report & Recommendations

You Tube. Aspen Institute. November 15, 2021.

Following months of expert consultation and internal discussion, the Aspen Institute’s Commission on Information Disorder has launched its final recommendations for addressing America’s urgent mis- and disinformation crisis. Co-chairs Katie Couric, Chris Krebs, and Rashad Robinson engage in a live discussion of how government, private industry, and civil society can increase transparency and understanding, build trust, and reduce harms. The conversation covers what the Commission’s recommendations are, how they were selected, and what comes next.

 

Rethinking Democracy: Action Lab 1 - The New Information Ecosystem

You Tube. Club de Madrid. October21, 2021

Club de Madrid is the world's largest forum of democratic former Presidents and Prime Ministers, who leverage their unique leadership experience and global reach to strengthen inclusive democratic practice and improve the well-being of people around the world.

 

A History of Fake News

You Tube. IEA London. June 14, 2018

“Fake news” has been sweeping the nation - or has it? Today we're joined by Kate Andrews, News Editor at the IEA and Head of Education Dr. Steve Davies. Steve argues that, unlike what many in the mainstream media would have you believe, “fake news” is nothing new. In fact, trawling through history, we see that “fake news” has been around in innumerable ways, shapes and forms, for centuries - even millennia. There is no one kind of fake news, and Kate and Steve examine some of the major distinctions between them, particularly in regards to intention and trust in mainstream. Finally, they examine how to spot fake news - and what we can all do to halt its dissemination and create a higher standard of debate.

 

AI and Fake News - Data Debate

You Tube. Turing Institute. January 8, 2020

Fake news is fuelling rising public mistrust of the media, politics and big business, with even health services subject to conspiracy around life-saving vaccines and other treatments. What role does AI play in creating and disseminating fake news and how can we harness the same technologies to counteract them.

 

Renee DiResta: Media and Disinformation: What’s At Stake for Democracy?

You Tube. World Affairs. June 27, 2019

There is a war happening, according to Renee DiResta. “We are immersed in an evolving, ongoing conflict: an 'Information World War' in which state actors, terrorists, and ideological extremists leverage the social infrastructure underpinning everyday life to sow discord and erode shared reality,” she argues. It is an ongoing battle, with individual skirmishes in far-flung places like Estonia, the Philippines, the United Kingdom, and Myanmar as well as in the United States. Understanding who the digital combatants and cyberwarriors are as well as the methods they employ is the business of people like Renee DiResta, Mozilla Fellow for Media, Misinformation and Trust. We are all coming to the conclusion that, “something is wrong on the internet.” The question now is, what to do about it? With new elections taking place in Europe and in other countries around the world this year and the upcoming 2020 US Presidential election, what is at stake for democracies that value free speech and eschew internet governance? DiResta will discuss the ways in which this information world war is playing out and make some policy recommendations for the future.

 

Cracking Down on Disinformation

You Tube. The Agenda with Steve Paikin. March 9, 2022.

How are social media platforms, fact-checking organizations, and data journalism combatting disinformation? Then, will put financial pressure on Russia's oligarchs help resolve the current conflict?

 

The Age of Fake Realities is Upon Us

You Tube. The Agenda with Steve Paikin. November 10, 2020

Conspiracy theories and accusations of fake news routinely fly in some quarters across the political spectrum, and particularly in the Twitter feed of the current U.S. president. Such talk feeds a climate of misinformation and even disinformation. And if that's not unnerving enough, a new book by Nina Schick exposes a whole other level to this problem. We welcome Schick to discuss, "Deep fakes: The Coming Infocalypse."

 

Social Media: Communication Tool or Divisive Element?

You Tube. The Agenda with Steve Paikin. July 27, 2021

In 2011, Facebook and Twitter played a large role in the Arab Spring uprising. Since revolutions existed before the advent of social media, we wondered how much of a difference they really make? Then, this year, we invited author Ron Deibert to discuss the ideas he brought forth in his book, "Reset: Reclaiming the Internet for Civil Society," and what he calls the ,painful truth, of the internet age.

 

Social Media and the Problem of Hateful Content

You Tube. The Agenda with Steve Paikin. April 3, 2019

A live stream of the in-process Christchurch, New Zealand, mosque shootings has put Facebook on the defensive about its practices. The footage remained on the site for 29 minutes until it was reported and removed. In an age where anyone can broadcast to the world, technology companies are facing questions about how the content on their platforms should be regulated. The agenda discusses the responsibilities of social media companies in situations like these.

 

How Should the U.S. Respond to Disinformation?

New America. October 20, 2022

The 2022 Future Security Forum recorded a discussion of the issue of disinformation and how the United States does and should respond to it.

 

Russian Disinformation in Canada

U Calgary Alumni All-Access – School of Public Policy. October 13 2022

In February 2022, Russian forces invaded Ukraine, sparking the largest military conflict in Europe since the end of the Second World War. Propaganda has long been a major aspect of war.

How does the Russian propaganda machine work? What impact does disinformation have on the war in Ukraine? A panel of experts delved into the workings of disinformation and the dissemination of propaganda to both the Russian people and the world. Find out how propaganda is targeted at Russians and those living outside of Russia, and what impact these campaigns have on the war in Ukraine and other Russian-led efforts.

 

How to fight misinformation in the post-truth era

PHYS Org. Central European University. November 17, 2022

In February 2022, Russian forces invaded Ukraine, sparking the largest military conflict in Europe since the end of the Second World War. Propaganda has long been a major aspect of war.

The article also touches upon the question of the future usage of AI and the fear that it may be used to produce disinformation in the future. "The institutions of epistemic vigilance are indeed challenged by digitization. Perhaps the solution lies in digitization too, in programming AI to curate reliable information based on the principles of epistemic vigilance," the authors claim.

In conclusion, history tells us that institutions that deliver reliable information are fragile, and there is no straightforward strategy to repair them. Szegofi and Heintz believe that while it is not certain that we will have institutions of epistemic vigilance in the future, it is worth saving them, as they allow for us to trust.

 

Is Europe ready for an information war?

Debating Europe. June 23, 2022

What does it mean to “win the information war”? During the Russian invasion of Ukraine, headlines have proclaimed Ukraine to be “winning” its information war against Russia. But what is an information war? Is it a fancy name for propaganda? Does it also include, for example, controlling the flow of information to open source platforms (which can then be geolocated using Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) techniques)? What might future information war mean in a world of the metaverse and Extended Reality (XR)?

 

6 February 2024: Off-Shor Disinformation: The pro-Russian Facebook ad campaign disrupting Moldova’s EU accession

The webinar on 6 February uncovered the intricate web of deception woven by EU/US-sanctioned oligarch Ilan Shor and his pro-Russian party in their relentless bid to sabotage Moldova’s aspirations for EU membership. RESET, in a joint investigation with WatchDog.md, discovered the largest Moldovan paid ad campaign witnessed on Facebook in 2023, including coordinated inauthentic behaviour and glaring violations of platform policies.