*As a precautionary measure to help prevent the spread of coronavirus COVID-19, SILS has decided to postpone the 2020 Kilgour Lecture with Arvind Narayanan and the CITAP panel "Free Speech, Paid Speech, and Fake Speech," both originally set for April 3. Both events are tentatively rescheduled for Sept. 10. Additional details will be shared closer to the new date.*
Misinformation and disinformation are nothing new in American democracy, but the internet and social media have accelerated their spread and amplified their impact.
On April 3, leading experts affiliated with Carolina’s Center for Information, Technology, and Public Life (CITAP) will examine how this new information landscape is influencing our personal beliefs and political leanings, and its cumulative effect on democracy.
The panel discussion, “Free Speech, Paid Speech, and Fake Speech in Democracy,” will touch on a variety of pressing issues from social media echo chambers and algorithmic micro targeting to increased partisanship and declining trust in traditional institutions. CITAP panelists will help audience members understand how we got where we are today, what is at stake for the future, and what is necessary to change course.
Panelists will include Deen Freelon, Daniel Kreiss, Alice Marwick, and Zeynep Tufekci from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Tressie McMillan Cottom from Virginia Commonwealth University. David Ardia, Associate Professor at the UNC School of Law, will moderate.
The panel is part of a larger celebration of CITAP, which launched in July 2019 with support from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and Luminate. Prior to the panel discussion, Sam Gill, Senior Vice President and Chief Program Officer for the Knight Foundation, will tak about Knight’s motivation for establishing CITAP and investing in other efforts to help preserve democracy.
The event will begin at 2pm in Carroll Hall, Room 111, and a brief reception will follow the panel conclusion.
Those interested in the panel’s focus should also consider attending the 2020 Kilgour Lecture by Arvind Narayanan hosted by the UNC School of Information and Library Science (SILS) at 10am that morning in Wilson Library. Narayanan, lead researcher with the Princeton Web Transparency and Accountability Project, will deliver a talk titled “The Cognitive Errors Enabling the Unchecked Power of Tech Platforms.”
Both events are free and open to the public. Livestream and recordings are planned. Look for additional details closer to April 3.
