Defending Against Disinformation
Channel: UC Berkeley Events
Date: 2021-09-21

Disinformation — the intentional dissemination of false information to shape political and social outcomes — is increasingly a feature of the U.S. political landscape. The effects are pernicious: By causing confusion, disinformation amplifies division and aggravates discord. By creating a false but widely held alternate reality, it can destabilize a society. Just in the past year, disinformation has had direct, harmful effects on efforts to check the spread of COVID-19, on initiatives for racial justice and on the 2020 election and its aftermath. Clearly, disinformation costs lives and erodes democracy.

On Wednesday Sept. 21 at 12 noon, a panel of eminent Berkeley scholars will explore one of the most critical questions facing U.S. democracy: How can we counter disinformation without compromising America’s core principles?

The panelists will be: Geeta Anand, dean of the School of Journalism; Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of Berkeley Law; Hany Farid, associate dean and head of the School of Information; Susan D. Hyde, chair of the Department of Political Science; john powell, director of the Othering & Belonging Institute; and moderator Henry Brady, former dean of the Goldman School of Public Policy.

The event is sponsored by the Goldman School of Public Policy, Berkeley Law, and the Office of Communications and Public Affairs, with support from the Social Science Matrix.