Using media literacy to confront the impact of disinformation on Australian democracy
Channel: Australian Media Literacy Alliance
Date: 2021-04-20

Mis- and disinformation diminish the ability of citizens to make timely and informed decisions, while exacerbating mistrust in news media and public institutions. Around the world a range of strategic responses have been proposed to address the problem of mis- and disinformation and one of these responses focuses on increasing people’s media literacy. However, too little is known about how effective media literacy is in preparing people to recognise, avoid and counter mis- and disinformation across a range of topics, contexts, and sociotechnical environments. This panel will share their own research and experiences to inform a public discussion about the role media literacy interventions can play in confronting the problem of mis- and disinformation.

Facilitator: Prof James Avanatarkis

THE PANEL
1. The online ecosystem that supports misinformation (Ariel Bogle, journalist and analyst at The Australian Strategic Policy Institute’s Cyber Center)
2. Understanding misinformation and deconstructing racism around COVID-19 in Australian opinion media (Deliana lacoban, All Together Now)
3. Digital threats to democracy (Chris Cooper,  Reset Australia)
Is Wikipedia the antidote to disinformation? (Heather Ford, University of Technology Sydney)