Disinformation Books

Book SynopsisFrom a Pulitzer Prize-winning critic comes an impassioned critique of the West's retreat from reason.The Death of Truth is destined to become the defining treatise of our age' David GrannThe first great book of the Trump administration essential reading' Rolling StoneWe live in a time when the very idea of objective truth is mocked and discounted by the US President. Discredited conspiracy theories and ideologies have resurfaced, proven science is once more up for debate, and Russian propaganda floods our screens. The wisdom of the crowd has usurped research and expertise, and we are each left clinging to the beliefs that best confirm our biases.How did truth become an endangered species? This decline began decades ago, and in The Death of Truth, former New York Times critic Michiko Kakutani takes a penetrating look at the cultural forces that contributed to this gathering storm. In social media and literature, television, academia, and political campaigns, Kakutani identifies the trends originating on both the right and the left that have combined to elevate subjectivity over factuality, science, and common values. And she returns us to the words of the great critics of authoritarianism, writers like George Orwell and Hannah Arendt, whose work is newly and eerily relevant.With remarkable erudition and insight, Kakutani offers a provocative diagnosis of our current condition and presents a path forward for our truth-challenged times.Trade Review‘Kakutani has written the first great book of the Trump administration. The Death of Truth is a fiery polemic against the president and should go down as essential reading. In nine exquisitely crafted broadsides, the Pulitzer winner calls upon her vast knowledge of literature, philosophy and politics to serve up a damning state of the union’ Rolling Stone ‘The Death of Truth is destined to become the defining treatise of our age. Not only does it brilliantly and incisively diagnose the roots of our decaying social and political order; it also shows why we must rescue the truth before it is buried under a regime of lies. Everyone should read this book’ David Grann ‘This book is essential reading today’ Walter Isaacson ‘Kakutani’s slender, fiery new book could have been written only by someone who reads more, and retains more, than most mere mortals’ TIME ‘Without the truth we will be neither prosperous nor virtuous nor free. This book begins the self-defence of American culture’ Timothy Snyder ‘This is the book I would have written – but only if I had had a brilliant grasp of literature, politics, and history, and the ability to weave them together in a uniquely original way. The Death of Truth goes indelibly to the dark, dark heart of what is ailing our democracy as no recent book has done’ Graydon Carter ‘Kakutani's The Death of Truth is politically urgent and intellectually dazzling. She deftly goes behind the daily headlines to reveal the larger forces threatening democracy at home in America, and elsewhere around the globe. The result is a brilliant and fascinating call-to-arms that anyone who cares about democracy ought to read immediately’ Jane Mayer ‘An elegant polemic against Trump, tyranny and lies’ The Times An intellectually dazzling read’ Entertainment Weekly ‘Riveting, righteous and relevant’ Irish Times

Read more less

Book SynopsisTrade Review“This remarkable book combines sensitive ethnography, brave and imaginative analysis, and considerable passion to tell a story for our times about the failures of liberal peace-making in Colombia and the seemingly unbridgeable divide between the state and ordinary people. Its brilliant analysis of liberalism’s limitations provides sparks of hope for a more humane political future.” * Jonathan Spencer, University of Edinburgh *“This brilliant first-of-its-kind anthropological study of peace pedagogy draws lessons for lasting peace even in deeply polarized societies such as Colombia. It is highly recommended to those familiar with Colombia’s peace process and those considering how to adopt effective peace processes in other countries.” * Leigh A. Payne, University of Oxford *“A riveting inside story of the interface between government and the public with an extraordinary breadth of empirical data and a rich resource of lessons learned about countering disinformation. A must-read for all who seek to build better, more holistic narratives of peace in the current context of toxic polarization.” * John Paul Lederach, emeritus, University of Notre Dame *"Burnyeat emphasizes the concept of 'cultural liberalism'as a descriptor for the government’s approach to politics and many of those working for peace. . . The work is informed not only by the results of the plebiscite but by how the regime of President Duque weakened the peace agreement and the promises it contained. . . Recommended." * Choice *Table of ContentsNote on Translation List of Abbreviations Prologue Introduction Part I Anthrohistory of the Santos Government 1 Peace, Politics, and Public Opinion under Juan Manuel Santos, 2010–2018 2 The Rationality Drive: The Development of Government Peace Pedagogy, 2012–2018 3 The Anti-politics of Cultural Liberalism Part II Ethnography of Peace Pedagogy in Action 4 Interface: The Enactment of Legitimacy by Explanation 5 State-Consciousness: Three Layers of Responsibility and Trust 6 Rendering Political: The Affective Labor of Liaising with the FARC et al. 7 The Entangled Face: International Implication in Government Responsibility Conclusion Acknowledgments Notes References Index

Read more less

Book SynopsisTrade Review“This remarkable book combines sensitive ethnography, brave and imaginative analysis, and considerable passion to tell a story for our times about the failures of liberal peace-making in Colombia and the seemingly unbridgeable divide between the state and ordinary people. Its brilliant analysis of liberalism’s limitations provides sparks of hope for a more humane political future.” * Jonathan Spencer, University of Edinburgh *“This brilliant first-of-its-kind anthropological study of peace pedagogy draws lessons for lasting peace even in deeply polarized societies such as Colombia. It is highly recommended to those familiar with Colombia’s peace process and those considering how to adopt effective peace processes in other countries.” * Leigh A. Payne, University of Oxford *“A riveting inside story of the interface between government and the public with an extraordinary breadth of empirical data and a rich resource of lessons learned about countering disinformation. A must-read for all who seek to build better, more holistic narratives of peace in the current context of toxic polarization.” * John Paul Lederach, emeritus, University of Notre Dame *"Burnyeat emphasizes the concept of 'cultural liberalism'as a descriptor for the government’s approach to politics and many of those working for peace. . . The work is informed not only by the results of the plebiscite but by how the regime of President Duque weakened the peace agreement and the promises it contained. . . Recommended." * Choice *Table of ContentsNote on Translation List of Abbreviations Prologue Introduction Part I Anthrohistory of the Santos Government 1 Peace, Politics, and Public Opinion under Juan Manuel Santos, 2010–2018 2 The Rationality Drive: The Development of Government Peace Pedagogy, 2012–2018 3 The Anti-politics of Cultural Liberalism Part II Ethnography of Peace Pedagogy in Action 4 Interface: The Enactment of Legitimacy by Explanation 5 State-Consciousness: Three Layers of Responsibility and Trust 6 Rendering Political: The Affective Labor of Liaising with the FARC et al. 7 The Entangled Face: International Implication in Government Responsibility Conclusion Acknowledgments Notes References Index

Read more less

Book SynopsisThis volume examines the phenomenon of fake news by bringing together leading experts from different fields within psychology and related areas, and explores what has become a prominent feature of public discourse since the first Brexit referendum and the 2016 US election campaign. Dealing with misinformation is important in many areas of daily life, including politics, the marketplace, health communication, journalism, education, and science. In a general climate where facts and misinformation blur, and are intentionally blurred, this book asks what determines whether people accept and share (mis)information, and what can be done to counter misinformation? All three of these aspects need to be understood in the context of online social networks, which have fundamentally changed the way information is produced, consumed, and transmitted. The contributions within this volume summarize the most up-to-date empirical findings, theories, and applications and discussTrade Review"This volume provides a great entry point into the vast and growing psychological literature on one of the defining problems of the early 21st century – fake news and its dissemination. The chapters by leading scientists first focus on how (false) information spreads online and then examine the cognitive processes involved in accepting and sharing (false) information. The volume concludes by reviewing some of the available countermeasures. Anyone new to this area will find much here to satisfy their curiosity." - Stephan Lewandowsky, Cognitive Science, University of Bristol, UK"Fake news is a serious problem for politics, for science, for journalism, for consumers, and, really, for all of us. We now live in a world where fact and fiction are intentionally blurred by people who hope to deceive us. In this tremendous collection, four scientists have gathered together some of the finest minds to help us understand the problem, and to guide our thinking about what can be done about it. What’s New and True about Fake News is an important and inspirational contribution to one of society’s most vexing problem." - Elizabeth F Loftus, Distinguished Professor, University of California, Irvine, USA"This is an interesting, innovative and important book on a very significant social issue. Fake news have been the focus of intense public debate in recent years, but a proper scientific analysis of this phenomenon has been sorely lacking. Contributors to this excellent volume are world-class researchers who offer a detailed analysis of the psychological processes involved in the production, dissemination, interpretation, sharing, and acceptance of fake news. This book should be essential reading to anyone interested on public affairs, and especially to students, researchers, applied professionals in the social sciences." - Joseph P Forgas, Scientia Professor, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia"This volume provides a great entry point into the vast and growing psychological literature on one of the defining problems of the early 21st century – fake news and its dissemination. The chapters by leading scientists first focus on how (false) information spreads online and then examine the cognitive processes involved in accepting and sharing (false) information. The volume concludes by reviewing some of the available countermeasures. Anyone new to this area will find much here to satisfy their curiosity." - Stephan Lewandowsky, Cognitive Science, University of Bristol, UK"Fake news is a serious problem for politics, for science, for journalism, for consumers, and, really, for all of us. We now live in a world where fact and fiction are intentionally blurred by people who hope to deceive us. In this tremendous collection, four scientists have gathered together some of the finest minds to help us understand the problem, and to guide our thinking about what can be done about it. The Psycholofy of Fake News is an important and inspirational contribution to one of society’s most vexing problems." - Elizabeth F Loftus, Distinguished Professor, University of California, Irvine, USA"This is an interesting, innovative and important book on a very significant social issue. Fake news has been the focus of intense public debate in recent years, but a proper scientific analysis of this phenomenon has been sorely lacking. Contributors to this excellent volume are world-class researchers who offer a detailed analysis of the psychological processes involved in the production, dissemination, interpretation, sharing, and acceptance of fake news. This book should be essential reading to anyone interested in public affairs, and especially to students, researchers, and applied professionals in the social sciences." - Joseph P Forgas, Scientia Professor, University of New South Wales, Sydney, AustraliaTable of Contents01. What is new and true about fake news? Greifeneder, R., Jaffé, M. E., Newman, E., & Schwarz, N. 02. How Bad is the Fake News Problem? The Role of Baseline Information in Public Perceptions Lyons, B., Merola, V., & Reifler, J. 03. Truth and the Dynamics of News Diffusion on Twitter Ackland, R. & Gwynn, K. 04. Retracted Articles – The Scientific Version of Fake News Bar-Ilan, J. & Halevi, G. 05. When (Fake) News Feels True: Intuitions of Truth and the Acceptance and Correction of Misinformation Schwarz, N. & Jalbert, M. 06. Truthiness: How Non-Probative Photos Shape Belief Newman, E. J. & Zhang, L. 07. Can that be True or is it just Fake News? New Perspectives on the Negativity Bias in Judgments of Truth Jaffé, M. E. & Greifeneder, R. 08. False Beliefs: Byproducts of an Adaptive Knowledge Base? Marsh, E. J. & Stanley, M. 09. Psychological Inoculation against Fake News van der Linden, S. & Roozenbeek, J. 10. Your fake news, our facts: Identity-based motivation shapes what we believe, share, and accept Oyserman, D. & Dawson, A. 11. Conspiracy Beliefs: Knowledge, Ego-Defense, and Social Integration in the Processing of Fake News Albaraccin, D. 12. Fake News Attributions as a Source of Nonspecific Structure Axt, J. R., Landau, M. J., & Kay, A. C.

Read more less

Book SynopsisWith the prevalence of disinformation geared to instil doubt rather than clarity, Creating Chaos Online unmasks disinformation when it attempts to pass as deliberation in the public sphere and distorts the democratic processes.Table of Contents Table of Contents Introduction: A dÉjÀ vu from the silenced generation to chaos Chapter 1: Propagandistic masquerade Chapter 2: Divide and conquer: Exploiting political polarization Chapter 3: Instilling mistrust in institutions Chapter 4: Roots of Russia’s false claims of self-victimization Chapter 5: Deny and conquer: Fears of looking like a “pussy state” Epilogue: Now what? Appendix Bibliography

Read more less

Book SynopsisWeb of Lies is a fascinating and far-reaching examination of the rising threat of far-right extremist thought in Ireland and internationally, and looks at how these movements utilise the online world to spread disinformation, polarising society in the process. From the Illuminati to the Red Scare, Save the Children to QAnon, research analyst Aoife Gallagher shows that there are many pathways to radicalisation most of them benign and unassuming and demonstrates that we are all susceptible to conspiratorial thinking and at risk of falling down the rabbit hole.In an accessible and entertaining style, Web of Lies presents a history of conspiracy theories and their roots in anti-Semitism, xenophobia and white supremacy; the role social media plays in spreading these theories; how they can proliferate during times of crises; and what we can do to protect ourselves and others from falling victim to these messages.Ever wondered how good people

Read more less

Book SynopsisGabriele Cosentino is Assistant Professor in the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication at The American University in Cairo, Egypt.Trade ReviewThe book offers a sweeping inquiry into many relevant informational short-circuits and omissions that contributed to the Covid-19 pandemic. * Cristian Vaccari, Loughborough University, UK *Cosentino achieves something incredibly impressive with The Infodemic, succinctly and coherently distilling crucial elements of a complex information ecosystem that roiled the world for over two years. * Marc Owen Jones, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar *Table of ContentsIntroduction: Where did it all begin? 1. The Infodemic 2. Wet Market or Lab Leak? Controversies on the Origin of COVID-19 3. Democratic chaos: QAnon and the COVID-19 Conspiracy Theories 4. You Can’t Arrest a Virus: How Autocrats Exploited the Pandemic Conclusion: How will it end? Bibliography Index

Read more less

Book SynopsisIn this Element, the authors introduce and apply a framework for the linguistic analysis of fake news. This title is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.Table of Contents1. Introduction; 2. Analysing the Language of Fake News; 3. Jayson Blair and the New York Times; 4. Corpus; 5. Analysis and Results; 6. Conclusion; References.

Read more less

Book SynopsisThis interdisciplinary Handbook provides an in-depth analysis of the complex security phenomenon of disinformation and offers a toolkit to counter such tactics.Disinformation used to propagate false, inexact or out of context information is today a frequently used tool of political manipulation and information warfare, both online and offline. This Handbook evidences a historical thread of continuing practices and modus operandi in overt state propaganda and covert information operations. Further, it attempts to unveil current methods used by propaganda actors, the inherent vulnerabilities they exploit in the fabric of democratic societies and, last but not least, to highlight current practices in countering disinformation and building resilient audiences. The Handbook is divided into six thematic sections. The first part provides a set of theoretical approaches to hostile influencing, disinformation and covert information operations. The second part looks at disinformTrade Review'Supported and edited by excellent and up to date experts, this handbook is a most timely and highly pertinent contribution to a multidisciplinary and comprehensive understanding of one of the core challenges for our present and future security in freedom and prosperity. It should be used as a core reference for all academic and operational endeavours in this field.' Gerhard Conrad, Former Director of the European Union Intelligence Analysis and Situation Centre (EU INTCEN)'Like nuclear war shaped the XX century, hybrid and information wars will shape the XXI century. On the battlefield and in the AI labs, shaping politics and public opinion, the forces of disinformation threaten freedom and human rights. This book is a powerful handbook for leaders, scholars, and citizens eager to defend democracy.'Gianni Riotta, Princeton University, USATable of ContentsIntroduction Part I. Theoretical Perspectives: Concepts and Definitions 1. Hybrid Security Threats and the Information Domain: Concepts and Definitions 2. Deterrence by Denial and Resilience Building 3. Military Deception and Perception Management Part II. Historical Perspectives 4. Cold War Active Measures 5. Historical Disinformation Practices: Learning from the Russians 6. Influence Operations and the Role of Intelligence 7. Asymmetrical Conflict in the Information Domain: The Case of Russia Part III. Contemporary Challenges 8. Disinformation: The Jihadists’ New Religion 9. Digital Disinformation, Electoral Interference, and Systemic Distrust 10. A Perception Management Take on Propaganda as Political Warfare 11. The Use and Abuse of History by Russian Embassies on Twitter: The Case of the Baltic States 12. Using Mimetic and Rhetorical Theory to Critique a Disinformation Consensus: The Problem of "Personal Vigilance" 13. Deepfake Disinformation: How Digital Deception and Synthetic Media Threaten National Security 14. The Strategic Logic of Digital Disinformation: Offense, Defence and Deterrence in Information Warfare 15. Conspiracy Theories and Unfounded Rumours in Contemporary Democracies: Beyond Truth and Trust 16. Cognitive Warfare: Understanding the Threat Part IV. Countering Disinformation and Building Resilience 17. Journalistic Approaches to Information Sources, Fact-Checking, Verification and Detached Reporting 18. A National Security Perspective on Information Leaks 19. An Ethical Understanding of Military Strategic Communication, Public Relations, and Persuasion 20. Emotional Diplomacy in Times of Uncertainty and Disinformation 21. Open-Source Information for Intelligence Purposes: The Challenge of Disinformation 22. Protective Factors Against Disinformation Part V. General Trends and Regional Specificities in Countering Disinformation 23. The EU Approach to Combating Disinformation: Between Censorship and the "Market for Information" 24. The Strategic Security Environment and NATO’s Perspectives in Developing Effective Strategic Communications (2014-2022) 25. The Baltic Experience in Countering Contemporary Russian Disinformation 26. The Disinformation Threat: Lessons from the Chinese Experience 27. The Perils of Disinformation in Latin America Part VI: A Toolkit for Practitioners 28. The Use of Discourse Analysis in Propaganda Detection and Understanding 29. Anticipatory Approaches to Disinformation, Warning and Supporting Technologies 30. AI Technologies to Support Detection of Information Manipulation on Social Networks and Online Media: A Quick Overview 31. Wargaming Disinformation Campaigns Conclusions - Analysing and Assessing Disinformation and Hostile Influencing

Read more less

Book Synopsis''A riveting trip down the corridors of Soviet deception'' Sunday Telegraph (Five-Star Review)''Philps'' book vindicates the value of truth'' Washington Post''Philps has an eye for detail and a heart for those left behind'' The Times''A tale of intrigue and suppression'' New York Times''A compelling and often horrifying tale of moral degradation and occasional heroism superbly told'' Economist''An engaging and insightful account of foreign correspondents living in the Moscow landmark during the Second World War'' History TodayReporters. Translators. Lovers. Spies. In THE RED HOTEL: THE UNTOLD STORY OF STALIN''S PROPAGANDA WAR, former Daily Telegraph Foreign Editor and Russia expert Alan Philps sets out the way Stalin created his own reality by constraining and muzzling the British and American reporteTrade ReviewA riveting trip down the corridors of Soviet deception . . .Philps' book is almost faultlessly balanced between racy narrative and historical analysis * Sunday Telegraph *A fabulous book, packed with untold stories, written with the lyrical empathy of an author who knows and feels his subject deeply -- Patrick BishopThe Red Hotel is a sizzling read full of bitchiness and high jinks. But it is also a deeply moral book, outlining a simple truth: that the press pack abroad often operates in a bubble and is deeply dependent on local translators and fixers. Philps has an eye for detail and a heart for those left behind as the press caravan moved on * The Times *Philps adroitly uses the experiences of the wartime correspondents incarcerated in the Hotel Metropol in Moscow to tell at least part of the story of Stalin's campaign to dupe the West about the nature of his regime ... The Red Hotel gives a superb flavour of the compromises, betrayals and self-delusions require to report on the USSR * Literary Review *Philps's book vindicates the value of truth, most of all by depicting the lengths that a rare few will go to share it * Washington Post *Philps is terrific at training a spotlight on the local staff who are so often forgotten, and exposing the moral ambiguities of journalists * Spectator *The Red Hotel is a compelling and often horrifying tale of moral degradation and occasional heroism superbly told by a seasoned reporter * Economist *Balanced between racy detail and historical analysis...a riveting study * Daily Telegraph *An engaging and insightful account...an experienced and accomplished foreign correspondent himself, Philps does an excellent job of recreating a sense of time and place * History Today *

Read more less

Book SynopsisSheila Pontis is lecturer at Princeton University (USA), honorary research associate at UCL (UK), and partner at Sense Information Design. Since 2002, she teaches and facilitates workshops on information design, design research, ethnography, and design thinking in Argentina, Spain, the UK and the US. She has produced work for diverse organisations in the US, South America and Europe including Pfizer, TfL, Elsevier, Unilever and NHS. Michael Babwahsingh is an information designer and partner at Sense Information Design. His experience spans strategic design and innovation, branding, and communication design for corporate and non-profit clients. He has taught design thinking at NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service. Michael received a BA in Art and Graphic Design from Moravian College.Table of ContentsIntroduction PART I. Context 1. Understanding information design 1.1 Finding our way every day 1.2 Building a working definition 1.3 Mapping out the landscape 1.4 Seeing the bigger picture 1.5 What is effective information design? 1.6 Tracing the historical roots 1.7 Information design comes of age Exercises 2. How information designers work 2.1 What makes an information designer? 2.2 A collaborative, cross-disciplinary practice 2.3 Ethics and professional conduct 2.4 Working with the information design process 2.5 The scale of information design challenges Exercises 3. How we process visual information 3.1 The visual information processing system 3.2 Vision 3.3 Perception 3.4 Learning and retrieval 3.5 Thinking and problem-solving Exercises 4. How we create meaning 4.1 Understanding culture 4.2 Signs, the basic units of meaning 4.3 Rhetoric and communication 4.4 Society, identity, and representation Exercises PART II. Skills 5. Thinking and working visually 5.1 Giving shape to thought 5.2 Assembling your visual toolkit 5.3 Learning to sketch 5.4 Using diagrams to think 5.5 Making use of space and form Exercises 6. Learning through research 6.1 A structured search for knowledge 6.2 Understanding the subject matter 6.3 Understanding the audience 6.4 Planning out your research 6.5 Collecting data Exercises 7. Sensemaking for communication 7.1 Planning before designing 7.2 Constructing knowledge 7.3 Organizing information Exercises 8. Designing with clarity 8.1 Focusing on effectiveness 8.2 Content 8.3 Structure 8.4 Presentation 8.5 Engagement 8.6 Performance Exercises PART III. Practice 9. Communications 9.1 Working with communications 9.2 Project Re:form 9.3 GAIA Amazonas icon system 9.4 Emergency ventilator instructions 9.5 We Are Here: An Atlas of Aotearoa 10. Experiences 10.1 Working with experiences 10.2 Nemus Futurum interactive visitor experience 10.3 SEPTA wayfinding master plan 10.4 Skicircus wayfinding system 10.5 Seat at the Table interactive exhibit 11. Organizations 11.1 Working with organizations 11.2 Oregon Museum of Science and Industry vision and strategy 11.3 Integrated journey maps 12. Systems 12.1 Working with systems 12.2 Understanding elderly isolation in Pittsburgh 12.3 Systems approach to youth employment in Bhutan 12.4 Navigating the complexity of cancer diagnosis Resources Bibliography Index Acknowledgments Image credits

Read more less

Book Synopsis**Available now: Whistleblower Frances Haugen''s searing exposé of the internal workings of Facebook revealing the company''s struggles to regain control over its platform and to stop the spread of misinformation**__________In the spring of 2021, when news outlets feasted on the Facebook Files, Frances Haugen went public as the former employee who blew the whistle on the company by copying tens of thousands of documents. She testified to Congress and spoke to the media. She was hailed at President Biden''s first State of the Union Address. She made sure everyone understood exactly what the documents revealed: Facebook not only set its algorithm to reward extremism, it knew that its customers were using the platform to foment violence, to spread falsehoods, to diminish the self-esteem of young people, and more. But how was it that Frances was the only employee at the company who dared to step forward?The answer to that question is an inspiring tale o

Read more less

Book SynopsisTrade ReviewOne of the best books about free speech ever written.—Nilay Patel, The VergeA useful guide to thinking about a complex issue.—Publishers WeeklyPart historical retelling of First Amendment jurisprudence, part road map for policymakers, the book notes areas where the courts have in fact narrowly carved out First Amendment protections for false speech.—Cristiano Lima, Washington Post[Kosseff] makes the case that the courts have improved our country by gradually strengthening legal protections for false speech—a principle that should hold even though new technologies are changing how information looks, is created, and flows.—Boston GlobeKosseff, a professor of cybersecurity law at the United States Naval Academy, urges caution. He doesn't deny that technology can amplify lies, and that lies—whether deliberately engineered or not—can be dangerous....But he points to 'the unintended consequences of giving the government more censorial power.'—Jennifer Szalai, New York Times Book ReviewEngaging.—FTC Watch[An] instructive new book.Those who would regulate false speech assume that the government is well-equipped to mediate truth. They assume that the power to silence dissent will not be abused. They assume that the public will accept the state's pronouncements of fact at face value. Beyond all, they assume that censorship works—that it doesn't tend to backfire. None of these assumptions escapes Kosseff's Crowded Theater unscathed. The book's evidence against them is abundant and well-organized.—City JournalIlluminating and persuasive....[A] convincing case against tinkering with the First Amendment.—The Cipher BriefWell written...'Liar in a Crowded Theater: Freedom of Speech in a World of Misinformation' will prove of special value to readers with an interest in free speech, political propaganda and psychology, political commentary and constitutional analysis.—Midwest Book ReviewTable of ContentsNote to the ReaderIntroductionPart I. Why the Law Protects FalsehoodsChapter 1. MarketplaceChapter 2. DemocracyChapter 3. SunlightChapter 4. TruthChapter 5. UncertaintyChapter 6. OpinionChapter 7. ResponsibilityChapter 8. EfficacyPart II. Regulating Falsehoods?Chapter 9. The Scope of the ProblemChapter 10. When Regulation or Liability Is Not the AnswerChapter 11. When Regulation or Liability Might Be an AnswerPart III. Empowering RationalityChapter 12. Counterspeech and Self-HelpChapter 13. IntermediariesChapter 14. Accountability Chapter 15. DemandConclusionAcknowledgmentsNotesIndex

Read more less

Book Synopsis Misinformation has had dramatic and dangerous effects, as evidenced by numerous events of the late 2010s and early 2020s. Reading a steady stream of misinformation leads to distrust, potentially leading to conflict in one''s family and workplace, and even to civil unrest. At the heart of many such matters is scientific illiteracy. Many people enjoy a life of ease and convenience because of science--and since science also crosses courtrooms, classrooms and cultures, it has great potential to debunk misinformation and untangle the confusion on such issues as vaccines, sexual identity, race and evolution, alternative medicine, and human reproduction. This book addresses those issues and the popular stories, conspiracies, and misleading headlines that circulate across media platforms. Bringing accurate knowledge into people''s agendas is challenging, and this book uses science and facts as a basis of every deliberation over laws and policies. The chapters weave together histTable of ContentsAcknowledgmentsForeword by Jim ObergefellPrefaceIntroduction. Approach the Bench: Opening Statements and NewsfeedsU.S. Landmark Case: New York Times Co. v. Sullivan, 376 U.S. 254 (1964) (9–0 decision)  7The Necessity of This Book 7 Legislation 12 Current Events 14 A Popular Press Science Book Is Born 17 Tropism 17 Intellectual Curiosity and Skepticism 18 Science 221. Blinded by Science: The Discipline of FactsU.S. Landmark Case: Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, Inc., 509 U.S. 279 (1993) (9–0 decision)  25Scientific Literacy 25 How Science Works 28 Science, Religion and Life 332. Hello Dolly: GeneticsU.S. Landmark Case: Association for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics, 569 U.S. 576 (2013) (9–0 decision)  36Principles of Genetics 36 Genetics as a Science 40 Manipulating Genes in Animals and People 41 Cloning and Twinning 41 Types and Purposes of Cloning 44 Eugenics 46 Modifying Genes and Genetic Screening 47 Genetic Engineering 493. Time Travel: Evolution and RaceU.S. Landmark Case: Edwards v. Aguillard, 482 U.S. 578 (1987) (7–2 decision)  52Dinner Party Topics 52 Evolution 54 Tracing Our Ancestry 57 Classifying Living Things 58 Homo sapiens 58 Coding for Skin Color 59 Human Zoos 61 The Tuskegee Study 62 Racism in Medicine 64 We're More Alike Than We Are Different 67 The Founder Effect 684. Jungle Love: Sexual IdentityU.S. Landmark Case: Obergefell v. Hodges, 135 S. Ct. 2584 (2015) (5–4 decision)  70Being Gay 70 Chromosomes 73 Sexual Behavior 75 Homosexuality 775. Birds and Bees: Human ReproductionU.S. Landmark Case: Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973), (7–2 decision)  83Introduction 84 Sex Education 86 Vasectomy, Circumcision and the Hymen 88 Rape 90 Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs) 91 Overview of Reproductive Structures 93 Oocytes and Sperm 97 Reproductive Biology 98 Problems with Pregnancy 102 Breastfeeding 104 Separation of Church and State 106 The Tension Between Science and Faith: Choice 107 Planned Parenthood, Obstetrics and Gynecology 113 Legislating Reproductive Health 1156. Staying Alive: Vaccines and the Immune SystemU.S. Landmark Case: Bruesewitz v. Wyeth, 562 U.S. 223 (2011) (6–2 decision)  118Preventing Disease 118 Vaccines Do Not Cause Autism 119 Vaccine History 121 Our Immune System 123 Vaccines and Vaccine Development 126 Vaccine Myths 1317. Snake Oil: Complementary and Alternative MedicineU.S. Landmark Case: Dent v. West Virginia, 129 U.S. 114 (1889) (9–0 decision)  134Outside Mainstream Medicine 135 The Placebo Response 137 Acupuncture 138 Homeopathy 139 Naturopathy, Supplements and Herbal Remedies 139 Chiropractic 141 Cardiovascular Disease Treatment 142 Osteoarthritis Treatment 143 Back Pain Treatment 143 Depression and Anxiety Treatment 1448. I Want a New Drug: The Good, the Bad and the UnknownU.S. Landmark Case: Gonzales v. Raich, 545 U.S. 1 (2005) (6–3 decision)  145A Story About Epinephrine (Adrenaline) 146 Pharmacology 148 Drug Tolerance 153 Drug Cumulative Effect 154 Drug Synergism 154 Drug Development 155 Special Drug Programs 161 Drug Addiction 161 Alcohol 162 Opioids, Marijuana and Tobacco 164 War on Drugs 170 Changing Health Behavior 1719. The Final Chapter: Death and DyingU.S. Landmark Case: Cruzan v. Missouri Department of Health, 497 U.S. 261 (1990) (5–4 decision)  173Defining Death and Characteristics of Death 173 Brain Death and the Harvard Committee 176 Perspectives on Death 177 Postmortem Myths and Facts 179 Hypothermia and the Diving Reflex 181 Cardiovascular Disease 183 Psychology of Death 185 Palliative Care and Hospice 187 Experiencing Challenging Circumstances and Terminal Lucidity 188 Dying of a Broken Heart 189 Death Penalty 190 Choice at the End 195 Anorexia Nervosa and Cachexia 197 Terminally Ill 199 ­­End-of-Life Decision-Making Organizations 200 On a Final Note 200BibliographyIndex

Read more less

Book SynopsisA look inside the weaponization of social media, and an innovative proposal for protecting Western democracies from information warfare. When Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram were first introduced to the public, their mission was simple: they were designed to help people become more connected to each other. Social media became a thriving digital space by giving its users the freedom to share whatever they wanted with their friends and followers. Unfortunately, these same digital tools are also easy to manipulate. As exemplified by Russia's interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, authoritarian states can exploit social media to interfere with democratic governance in open societies. Tyrants on Twitter is the first detailed analysis of how Chinese and Russian agents weaponize Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube to subvert the liberal international order. In addition to examining the 2016 U.S. election, David L. Sloss explores Russia's use of foreign influence operations to threaten democracies in Europe, as well as China's use of social media and other digital tools to meddle in Western democracies and buttress autocratic rulers around the world. Sloss calls for cooperation among democratic governments to create a new transnational system for regulating social media to protect Western democracies from information warfare. Drawing on his professional experience as an arms control negotiator, he outlines a novel system of transnational governance that Western democracies can enforce by harmonizing their domestic regulations. And drawing on his academic expertise in constitutional law, he explains why that system—if implemented by legislation in the United States—would be constitutionally defensible, despite likely First Amendment objections. With its critical examination of information warfare and its proposal for practical legislative solutions to fight back, this book is essential reading in a time when disinformation campaigns threaten to undermine democracy.Trade Review"Tyrants may have Twitter, but democracies have David Sloss. He has written a pathbreaking book that does more than just identify a troubling trend of modern elections. It also boldly proposes a transnational solution, including his innovative Alliance for Democracy. His contribution will endure long after the Age of Tyrants fades away."—Jens David Ohlin, Cornell Law School"This is a detailed and extremely informative analysis of the threat of Chinese and Russian information warfare, and the related export of digital authoritarianism. Sloss's technical approach to addressing external threats while balancing the protection of free speech, personal privacy, and data security will be an important reference and source of ideas for policymakers and analysts grappling with these critical issues."—Fiona Hill, Brookings Institution"It is no hyperbole to say that the future of democracy depends on dealing with the issues raised in this book. Sloss masterfully lays out the problem and goes on to propose a novel, workable solution. This book is sure to stimulate debate, and hopefully action as well."—Tom Ginsburg, The University of Chicago Law School"Sloss's book is a timely and original contribution that draws a comprehensive picture of foreign states' interference with democratic governance on social media. Not only does Sloss provide a thorough analysis of the phenomenon, he also offers substantial proposals for transnational legislation. A must-read for all interested in the challenges that the international liberal order currently faces."—Heike Krieger, Freie Universität Berlin"Based on [Sloss's] training in law and experience drafting treatises for the US government, the book is well researched and argued, particularly regarding the legal feasibility of taming Twitter as a hotspot for foreign bad actors.... Highly recommended."—M. S. Gorham, CHOICE"Tyrants on Twitter offers an informative look into the IW landscape of today and a potential path toward reinforcing safeguards against foreign media manipulation from outside aggressors and rivals through transnational legislative efforts."—Joshua Nieubuurt, H-Sci-Med-TechTable of Contents2. Russian Information Warfare and U.S. Elections 3. Russian Influence Operations in Europe 4. China's Global Information Operations 5. An Uneven Playing Field 6. A Proposal for Transnational Regulation 7. Policy Analysis: Weighing Costs and Benefits 8. The First Amendment

Read more less

Book SynopsisPulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist James Ball takes us into the depths of the internet to trace the origins and rapid ascent of QAnon, the movement that mutated from a niche online conspiracy theory into the world’s first digital pandemic. Imagine a deadly pathogen that, once created, could infect any person in any part of the globe within seconds. No need to wait for travellers, trains, or air traffic to spread it, all you need is an internet connection. In this gripping investigation, Pulitzer Prize winner James Ball decodes the cryptic language of the online right and with a surgeon’s precision tracks the spread of QAnon, the world’s first digital pandemic. QAnon began as an internet community dedicated to supporting President Trump and intent on outing a global cabal of human traffickers. A short, cryptic message posted by an anonymous user to a niche internet forum in 2017 was the spark that ignited a global movement. What started as a macabre game of virtual make-believe quickly spiralled into the spread of virulently hateful, dangerous messaging – which turned into tragic, violent actions. Incoherent, chaotic, free from agendas: QAnon is a one-size-fits all cult conspiracy. From a standoff at the Hoover Dam, to the storming of the U.S. Capitol on 6 January 2021, to protesting COVID-19 lockdowns, this digital pandemic has spread globally and shows no signs of stopping. In The Other Pandemic Ball takes us into the niche pathways through which these digital pathogens spread, mutate and infect people all across the globe – but he also argues that the prognosis doesn’t have to be dire. He shows us that it is possible to treat and cure this virus in order to build up our digital immune systems, and be better prepared to survive the next wave. *A Financial Times Book to Read in 2023*Trade ReviewIn his new book about the QAnon movement, the investigative journalist James Ball teases out the global network of people who have essentially given up on the notion of objective reality, from bored teenage trolls to duplicitous politicians and crazed billionaires … Ball takes to his task with a convert’s zealotry -- Ethan Croft * The Times *An insightful book about the conspiracy movement compares it persuasively to a self-replicating disease … A disturbing study of the origins and resilience of an exceptionally versatile and pernicious network of paranoid digital malcontents -- Rafael Behr * Guardian *This is a worthwhile, pacy and well-written book. It is an important one, too. We need to understand why people are hoodwinked by and have faith in conspiracy theories because it is happening with increasing frequency * New Scientist *Utterly fascinating -- Dom JolyBall, with this biography of the internet, takes us beyond Zuckerberg, Bezos et al into a murkier world where we discover how everything online works and who benefits from it. Fascinating, engaging and important, too -- praise for The System * Observer *A fascinating exposé of the world behind your screen. Timely, often disturbing, and so important -- praise for The System, Caroline Criado-Perez, author of Invisible WomenBrilliant, wide-ranging … The Other Pandemic presents a detailed and disturbing diagnosis * Spectator *A riveting account * Tablet *What [Ball] reveals about QAnon is fascinating … Disturbing and insightful, The Other Pandemic is a valuable study of a “versatile and pernicious” phenomenon * Week *

Read more less

Book SynopsisHow to Separate Real Scientific Truths from Fake News“Scientific literacy is our best defense in an age of increasing disinformation.” ―Kellie Gerardi, Aerospace Professional and Author of Not Necessarily Rocket Science #1 New Release in Safety & First Aid, Education, Essays & Commentary, Scientific Research, and EthicsWe live in the internet age, where scams, frauds, fake-news, fake stories, fake science, and false narratives are everywhere. With the knowledge base gained from Dave Farina’s simple explanations, learn to spot misinformation and lies on the internet before they spot you.Is This Wi-Fi Organic? is a playful investigation of popular opinions and consumer trends that permeate our society. The organic craze has taken hold of grocery culture despite most being unable to define the term. Healers and quantum mystics of every flavor are securing their foothold alongside science-based medicine, in an unregulated and largely unchallenged landscape of unsubstantiated claims. Anti-science mentality is growing. Misleading popular opinions are used to sell you products and services that range from ineffectual to downright dangerous.Learn how to separate fact from fiction. Dave Farina, author and science communicator from the YouTube channel Professor Dave Explains offers easy-to-read lessons on basic scientific principles everyone should understand, and then uses them to expose threads of confusion among the public.Learn: The real science behind semi-controversial health issues like drugs and vaccines What energy actually is, and how we use it each and every day A core of scientific knowledge that empowers you to spot misinformation, fake-news, fake science, and increase your critical thinking skills Readers captivated by the scientific and critical thinking teachings in science books like Brief Answers to the Big Questions by Stephen Hawking, The Demon-Haunted World, or Calling Bullshit, will love Is This Wi-Fi Organic?Trade Review"With undeniable charm and just the right amount of humor, Is This Wi Fi Organic? cuts through the chaos of both bombastic woo and pretentious scientific pomp to deliver a wonderfully rational discussion on some of the biggest misconceptions plaguing the publics’ view of the discipline that is science. This book is sure to keep you laughing while also keeping you thinking. The contents of these pages will help the reader understand the power of science to help both humanity and the planet thrive.” —Matt Candeias, author of In Defense of Plants "Dave Farina’s diverting exploration of snake-oil science is a must-have for any family gathering — finally, you’ll have the perfect (+ accurate) repartee for debunking MLM homeopathy and clarifying that a “chemical free” label is a misnomer." —Zara Stone, author of The Future of Science is Female “Scientific literacy is our best defense in an age of increasing disinformation. Dave Farina offers readers helpful mental frameworks to ascertain what is fact, and a cloak of protection against tempting fiction.” —Kellie Gerardi, Aerospace Professional and Author of Not Necessarily Rocket Science Table of ContentsIntroduction: How Does the Public Perceive Science? Part 1: Chemistry Chapter 1: What Are All These Lines and Hexagons? Chapter 2: Dispelling Vitalism Chapter 3: Natural vs. Synthetic: Tackling Chemophobia Part 2: Biochemistry Chapter 4: The Molecules of Life Chapter 5: The Molecular Basis of Wellness Chapter 6: The Rise of the Alt-Health Industry Part 3: Biology Chapter 7: The Body as Machine Chapter 8: Recognizing Science-Based Medicine Chapter 9: Biotechnology and the Future of the Species Part 4: Physics Chapter 10: Energy Defined Chapter 11: An Equation For This and an Equation For That Chapter 12: To Debunk is Divine Epilogue: Science and Industry in an Educated World Appendix Index

Read more less

Book SynopsisWhen readers see the names Mark Twain or Dan De Quille, fake news may not be the first thing that comes to mind. But these legendary journalists were some of the original fake news writers in Nevada's early years. Frontier Fake News puts a spotlight on the hoaxes, feuds, pranks, outright lies, and other literary devices utilized by a number of the Silver State's frontier newsmen during the mid-19th and early 20th centuries.While Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens), who got his start at Virginia City's Territorial Enterprise, and Dan De Quille (William Wright), who some felt was a better writer than Twain, are the best known members of the Sagebrush School of Writers, author Richard Moreno includes others such as Fred Hart, who reported on the activities of a fake social club for Austin's Reese River Reveille, and William Forbes, who enjoyed sprinkling clever puns with political undertones in his news columns. Moreno traces the beginnings of genuine fake news from founding father Benjamin Franklin's reporting to the fake news articles of New York and Baltimore papers in the early 1800s. But these examples are only a prelude to the amazing accounts of petrified men, freeze-inducing solar armor, blood-curdling massacres, and other nonsense stories that appeared in Nevada's frontier newspapers and beyond.Trade Review"Rich Moreno's inviting, graceful writing combined with an intriguing topic, central to the western experience, is a welcome addition to regional literature. Frontier Fake News is a delightful book."—Ronald M. James, Nevada state historic preservation officer (retired), author of The Roar and the Silence: A History of Virginia City and the Comstock Lode"Moreno is one of the leading, most experienced writers on Nevada history and he did a masterful job of telling the story of these gifted, quirky writers . . . weaving together their writings, the analysis of scholars, and his own interpretation, to present them in full, living color, warts and all. I loved this book!"—Martin Griffith, Associated Press journalist, 1985-2015Table of Contents Cover Page Copyright Page Contents Acknowledgments Chapter Introduction: In on the Joke Chapter 1. A Peculiar Relationship with the Truth Man-Bats on the Moon Edgar Allan Poe's Flight of Fancy A Hoax to Disprove a Hoax "A Shocking Sabbath Carnival of Death" Meanwhile, out West A Sidebar—Twentieth-Century Scientific Hoaxes Chapter 2. The Sagebrush School An Exclusive Club Bret Harte's West The Devil's Typographer Renaissance Men Chapter 3. The Humorist How It All Began Trading a Pickax for a Pen News Is Serious Business—or Not "Mark One, Mark Twain" Foils and Feuds Pushing the Limits Going Too Far Chapter 4. The Master Joining the Team The "Quaints" Big Bonanza Chapter 5. The Liar The Real Lyin' Jim Truth Be Damned Chapter 6. The Scribe A Social Club Is Born Moving On The Story of the Wabuska Mangler An Appealing Opportunity Writing About "Sumpthin" Peculiar Making History Chapter 8. The Diarist The April Fools' Day "Sell" The Pranksters >From Good Times to Bad Chapter 9. The Vagabond Birth of Semblins The Wandering Years That "Major" Title The Time Two Women Fell in Love "A Few 'Sticksful' of Fiction" Coming into His Own Politics Comes Calling A Good Man Rollin M. Daggett The Enterprise Goes Dark Chapter 12. The Descendants "Luscious Lucius" and Charles Clegg The Enterprise Is Reborn "The Wild and Wooly School" The Bob Richards Era Chapter 13. The Wine of Life Selected Bibliography Index About the Author

Read more less

Book SynopsisIn today's online attention economy, supply and demand have created a rapidly growing market for firms and entrepreneurs using the tactics, tools, and strategies of digital influence warfare to gain profit and power. This book focuses on the more malicious types of online activity such as deception, provocation, and a host of other dirty tricks conducted by these "digital influence mercenaries." They can be located anywhere with an Internet connection--Brazil, China, Iran, Macedonia, Russia, Zimbabwe--and the targets of their influence efforts can be whomever and wherever they are paid to attack. They can do this for state governments willing to pay and provide their targeting instructions (usually in support of foreign policy objectives) and may have specific metrics by which they will assess the mercenaries' performance. Non-state actors (including corporations and political parties) can pay for these kinds of digital influence services as well. And in addition to being paid for services rendered, digital influence mercenaries can also profit simply by manipulating the targeted advertising algorithms used by social media platforms.James J. F. Forest describes in detail the various tools and tactics these mercenaries use to exploit the uncertainties, fears, and biases of their targets including bots, deep-fake images, fake news, provocation, deception and trolling. He also shows how they weaponize conspiracy theories and disinformation to manipulate people's beliefs and perceptions. Forest also highlights how government agencies and social media platforms are trying to defend against these foreign influence campaigns through such tactics as shutting down offending websites, Facebook pages, and YouTube channels; tagging disinformation with warning labels; identifying and blocking coordinated inauthentic behavior; and suspending social media accounts, often permanently.  European and North American governments have launched numerous investigations against these mercenaries, and in some cases have brought criminal charges. Forest concludes with suggestions for how each of us can learn to identify disinformation and other malicious efforts and defend ourselves in the future. Trade Review“Forest lays out a compelling, detailed analysis of the murky world of disinformation for profit.” — Journal of Cyber Security “Forest’s book is quite insightful.” —National Security Institute"Digital Influence Mercenaries imparts valuable lessons that all its readers would benefit from. But in a country where perhaps the demographic that most needs to read this book is also the demographic least likely to actually, well read a book, it’s unlikely the message will reach them. As these modern mercenaries get right on to the friction of the day, we should not be surprised if digital influence campaigns continue to be the primary theater in which the battle for ‘hearts and minds’ will be waged."—Armchair General “Dr. James Forest has written a new book titled Digital Influence Mercenaries: Profits and Power Through Information Warfare which describes a robust private sector in which digital influence mercenaries will do online public perception manipulation on behalf of the highest bidder, which could be political parties, corporations, dictators, individual politicians and CEOs, and yes, even state government agencies. A must-read for security professionals, educators, political analysts, journalists and most importantly, the general public which increasingly only seeks a point of view that they already agree with and without learning any other point of view.” —Brig. Gen. Russell D. Howard (Ret.), Distinguished Senior Fellow, Joint Special Operations University “This volume is of great interest–whatever one's politics. The emerging cyber realities detailed here must be better understood by all of us in the social sciences, including economics and sociocultural anthropology.” —Christopher C. Harmon, PhD, adjunct professor, Institute of World Politics “In his new book, Digital Influence Mercenaries: Profits and Power Through Information Warfare, James J.F. Forest analyzes the next frontier of conflict —the information environment, and how cyber warfare, disinformation, and hackers will figure prominently in the future of warfare. Forest meticulously details how digital forms of influence warfare will disrupt the geopolitical landscape, tracing its evolution and highlighting the main players and technologies involved. An absolute must-read!” —Colin P. Clarke, PhD, director of policy and research, The Soufan Group, and senior research fellow at The Soufan Center "James J. F. Forest offers readers a tour around the rocky and challenging landscape of online information manipulation and paid influence operations. In a world that is increasingly mediated by networked technology, Digital Influence Mercenaries is destined to be an instant standard academic reference on a vitally important topic.” —J.M. Berger, author of Extremism and postgraduate researcher at Swansea University School of Law

Read more less

Book SynopsisWould your younger self believe the news of today? An entire city block blown up by a suicide bomber on Christmas Day because he believed phone towers spread disease. A Representative elected to the US Congress on a platform that Democrats are secretly harvesting an anti-aging chemical from the blood of abused children. Angry rioters in furs and horns overrun the Capitol in a bloody carnage of insurrection. The Prime Minister of Australia employing the wife of his friend who fronts a group the FBI has declared terrorists. A global pandemic which, even as they lie dying from it, people refuse to believe exists.Many who sat in shocked disbelief as these events beamed around the world asked the same question: 'How did we get here?' For those rioters, it was the culmination of a journey of online radicalisation that began with the weaponisation of disinformation by their political leaders and outrageously biased 'news' commentators.Facts and Other Lies puts fake news in its historical context and explains how disinformation has fractured society, even threatening democracy itself. It explains why disinformation is so potent and so hard to stop, and what we can do to help prevent its proliferation in Australia - where politicians and shock jocks are already operating from the same dark playbook. It outlines how anyone can defuse disinformation in the home, office or pub, or wherever the deluded gather to spread their nonsense. Be prepared!

Read more less

Book SynopsisInformation has become one of the most crucial commodities in today’s world. From multinational corporations to single individuals, we all make critical decisions based on the information available to us. However, modern ease of access to information does not often guarantee access to good information. In this digital age, where facts can be easily manipulated to align with political, social or monetary aims, media literacy has become an essential skill. Media Smart: Lessons, Tips and Strategies for Librarians, Classroom Instructors and other Information Professionals is an invaluable toolkit for navigating the fraught information landscape. From the history of media manipulation to practical applications of media literacy, this book will offer a thorough grounding in teaching students to defend themselves from mis-and dis-information. It discusses how technology affects the information we receive, offers a brief look at the psychology behind how we process information, describes the various means by which media can be manipulated and provides tips about how to recognize and avoid false or misleading information. Featuring numerous classroom exercises and case studies specific to each aspect of media manipulation, this book is essential reading for students and educators in communications, media and information literacy as well as librarians and anyone interested in developing their media literacy skills. Trade Review"This newly published book is a CPD must-have for any librarian who delivers an information and media skills programme. It covers a huge amount of information including the history of media and manipulation, selecting sources and evaluating them, and the language used in media messages. Bots, trolls, algorithms, deep fakes, trending, and representation of cultural groups and stereotypes are just a few of the topics covered. Extremely interesting and accessible, and backed-up with recent research, there are suggestions on how we can help in the classroom as well as exercises designed to engage students that can be adapted for different age groups." * Barbara Band, Amazon UK Review *Table of ContentsChapter 1 A brief history of media and media manipulation Chapter 2 Psychology of memory and learning Chapter 3 The Internet, technology and the media Chapter 4 Selecting information sources Chapter 5 Expertise, authority and Credibility Chapter 6 Language in media messages Chapter 7 Algorithms, Bots, Cyborgs and Artificial Intelligence Chapter 8 Statistics and data visualizations Chapter 9 Images, Reverse Image Searching and Deepfakes Chapter 10 Media manipulation and Fact Checking Chapter 11 The ethics of likes, clicks, shares and data harvesting Chapter 12 How we can help ourselves

Read more less

Book Synopsis'Thoughtful, moving and well-written' - Yuval Noah Harari'An urgent examination of the human attraction to misinformation' - Daniel H. PinkMisinformation affects us daily, from social media to politics and even personal relationships. Policing social media alone cannot solve the complex problem shaped by partisan politics and subjective interpretations of truth.In Misbelief social scientist Dan Ariely explores the behaviour of 'misbelief' that leads people to distrust accepted truths and embrace conspiracy theories. Misinformation taps into something innate in all of us, regardless of political affiliation. By understanding this psychology, we can mitigate its effects. Grounded in research and Ariely's personal experience as a target of disinformation, the book analyses the psychological drivers behind adopting irrational beliefs. Ariely reveals the emotional, cognitive, personality, and social elements that drive people towards false information and mistrust.Despite advanced AI generating convincing fake news, Ariely offers hope. Awareness of the forces fuelling misbelief makes individuals and society more resilient. Combating misbelief requires empathy, not conflict. Recognising misbelief as a human problem allows us to be part of the solution.Trade Review'In this thoughtful, moving and well-written book, Dan Ariely narrates his personal and professional journey to understand the world of misbelievers and conspiracy theories, and offers insights and tips that will hopefully help all of us protect our fragile social fabric from being torn apart by disinformation and distrust.' -- Yuval Noah Harari, Bestselling author of Sapiens'Misbelief is an urgent examination of the human attraction to misinformation. This timely book can provide a crucial foundation for building a more empathetic and informed society.' -- Daniel H. Pink, NYT-bestselling author of The Power of Regret'Once again Dan Ariely writes in a way that gets us to think and reflect about our human nature. In Misbelief, Ariely helps us understand the nature of our opinions, how they're formed, and how the forces of misinformation can distort them. This is an important book for those who want to understand themselves and the increasingly complex world around us.' -- Arianna Huffington, Founder & CEO, Thrive Global'For most of us it is tempting to think that people misbelieve things because they are uneducated, unintelligent, or misinformed. But as one of the world's leading scientists studying beliefs, Dan Ariely, convincingly demonstrates in this important book (and as he discovered first hand in being wrongly accused of leading a nefarious conspiracy!), Misbelief is a process to which any of us can fall prey. More importantly, he offers science-based suggestions on what we can do about the polarization and breakdown in trust that comes with Misbelief.' -- Michael Shermer, Publisher of Skeptic magazine and author of Conspiracy'A fascinating tour of the (frighteningly) many ways in which our minds can lead us to misbelieve.' -- Michael Norton, co-author, Happy Money'Dan Ariely does to false beliefs what he did to rationality - breaks it down, explains it, and builds it back up in a way that suddenly makes sense.' -- Moran Cerf, Professor, Columbia Business School'The global economy is experiencing multiple types of fundamental challenges and threats. From trade wars to cold and hot wars to inflation to climate change and productivity slowdown. In Misbelief Dan Ariely identifies another important challenge, which is the increased intensity in false beliefs across the globe, the decrease in trust, and, consequently, the difficulties of societies to work together toward a common goal. Although complex and somewhat depressing, the perspective Ariely shares sheds an important light on this crucial challenge for modern society. A must read for anybody trying to understand the world we live in.' -- Nouriel Roubini, Professor Emeritus, Stern School of Business, NYU'In an era marked by misinformation this illuminating book, Misbelief, is a must-read for both sides of our divided world. Ariely explores the profound impact of misguided beliefs with compelling research, personal anecdotes, and amusing stories. He convincingly shows how Misbelief shapes decisions, distorts perceptions, and alters interactions, prompting readers to confront their own biases and reflect on the dangers of unquestioned assumptions.' -- Ellen Langer, Professor, Harvard University

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe COVID-19 pandemic crisis has changed the way we live and communicate. The phases of lockdown brought about by the pandemic fundamentally changed the way we work, lead our everyday lives, and how we communicate, resulting in Internet platforms becoming more important than ever before. Communicating COVID-19 explores the impact of these changes on society and the way we communicate, and the effect this has had on the spread of misinformation. Critical communication and Internet scholar Christian Fuchs analyses the changes of everyday communication in the COVID-19 crisis and how misinformation has spread online throughout the pandemic. He explores the foundations and rapid spread of conspiracy theories and anti-vaccination discourse on the Internet, paying particular attention to the vast amount of COVID-19 conspiracy theories about Bill Gates. He also interrogates Internet users' reactions to these COVID-19 conspiracy theories as well as how Donald Trump communicated about COVID-19 on Twitter during the final year of his Presidency. Communicating COVID-19 is an essential work for anyone seeking to understand the role of digital technologies, changes in communication and the Internet, and the spread of conspiracy theories in the context of COVID-19.Trade ReviewThe world of Covid-19-related conspiracy theories is a murky one, and Fuchs is an excellent guide. His examination of some of the conspiracy theories surrounding the Covid-19 pandemic is fascinating and alarming in equal measure. -- The Scotsman, September 2021Table of ContentsChapter 1. Introduction: Pandemic Times Chapter 2. Everyday Life and Everyday Communication in Coronavirus Capitalism Chapter 3. Conspiracy Theories as Ideology Chapter 4. Bill Gates Conspiracy Theories as Ideology in the Context of the COVID-19 Crisis Chapter 5. Users' Reactions to COVID-19 Conspiracy Theories on Social Media Chapter 6. Donald Trump and COVID-19 on Twitter Chapter 7. Conclusion: Digital Communication in Pandemic Times and Commontopia as the Potential Future of Communication and Society

Read more less

Book SynopsisFake News in Digital Cultures presents a new approach to understanding disinformation and misinformation in contemporary digital communication, arguing that fake news is not an alien phenomenon undertaken by bad actors, but a logical outcome of contemporary digital and popular culture, conceptual changes meaning and truth, and shifts in the social practice of trust, attitude and creativity. Looking not to the problems of the present era but towards the continuing development of a future digital media ecology, the authors explore the emergence of practices of deliberate disinformation. This includes the circulation of misleading content or misinformation, the development of new technological applications such as the deepfake, and how they intersect with conspiracy theories, populism, global crises, popular disenfranchisement, and new practices of regulating misleading content and promoting new media and digital literacies. Table of ContentsChapter 1. Introduction: Digital Cultures and Fake News Chapter 2. What is Fake News? Defining Truth Chapter 3. The Cultural Emergence of Fake News I: Digital Cultures, Interactive Practices and Artificial Feeds Chapter 4. The Cultural Emergence of Fake News II: Postmodernism, Sensationalism and the Hyperreal Chapter 5. The Visual in an Era of Hyperreality and Disinformation: The Deepfake Video Chapter 6. Fake News and Conspiracy Theories Chapter 7. Marginalising the Marginalised: Fake News as a Tool of Populist Power Chapter 8. Audiences, Trust and Polarisation in a Post-Truth Media Ecology Chapter 9. Remedying Disinformation: Communication Practice in a World of Fake News Chapter 10. Ethical Practices, Digital Citizenship and Communication Futures

Read more less

Book SynopsisWellness has become synonymous with yoga, meditation, and other forms of self-care. Over the past 60 years, what began as an alternative to mainstream medicine has coalesced with consumer culture and has been commercialised to such an extent that the term is now synonymous with an industry of exclusive products and services. This book traces the emergence of wellness culture as a countercultural movement to a trillion-dollar industry, examining the social, economic and political conditions that enabled wellness to assume mainstream cultural significance. It explores the role of the internet in making wellness more accessible to consumers, while simultaneously questioning who wields influence in these digital spaces. A must read for anyone interested in learning about wellness and its online penetration, Wellness Culture offers an in-depth yet accessible examination of how wellness has been weaponised during the COVID-19 pandemic to spread medical misinformation, conspiratorial thinking and political extremism.Table of ContentsChapter 1. What is Wellness Culture? Chapter 2. The Countercultural Origins of Wellness Culture Chapter 3. From the Wellness Movement to the Wellness Industry Chapter 4. Wellness Gurus, Internet Celebrities and Influencers Chapter 5. Wellness as a Gateway to Misinformation, Disinformation and Conspiracy Chapter 6. The Future of Wellness as a Cultural Pursuit

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe memory of the military dictatorship (1964-1985) in Brazil is still under dispute after almost 40 years of re-democratization. Narratives contradicting the memory critical to this regime started to spread digitally in the 2000s, with former army captain Jair Bolsonaro becoming one of its leading exponents. Digital Memory in Brazil draws on the results of three case studies to determine the strategies and practices applied by the Brazilian far-right government of Bolsonaro (2019-2023) to construct a negationist digital memory of the Brazilian dictatorship. Social media were crucial for Bolsonaro’s 2018 electoral campaign and government. Leda Balbino focuses on investigating this memory through its discursive processes and the impact of the digital medium on its development. Identifying a fragmented and elastic memory with the political purpose of promoting an authoritarian agenda under the vision of a Cultural War, Digital Memory in Brazil shows that the Bolsonaro government’s digital memory of the Brazilian Dictatorship was never just about the past. Instead, it represents a political project aiming to reverberate in the Brazilian present and future. Innovating by crisscrossing digital memory concept with studies on right-wing populism and digital populism, Digital Memory in Brazil exposes the strategies and practices of one of the exponents of a global political trend.Table of ContentsChapter 1. Brazil’s Digital Memory and its Discontents Chapter 2. Patterns of a Fragmented Memory Chapter 3. Overstretched Elasticity of a Fragmented Memory in the Covid Era Chapter 4. Objectives and Strategies of a Fragmented Memory Chapter 5. Conclusion: The Future of Digital Memory in Brazil

Read more less

Book SynopsisA passionate, highly accessible clarion call to a world dangerously threatened by irrational superstitions of all kinds. 'Truly a book for our time' Steven Pinker 'In Sweden's public square, Christer Sturmark has done as much as anyone to uphold reason and humane critical thinking' Richard Dawkins 'As lucid and illuminating as it is warm and inspiring' Rebecca Goldstein In country after country, conspiracy theories and religious dogmas that once seemed to have been overtaken by enlightened thought are helping to lift authoritarian leaders into power. The effects are being felt by women, ethnic minorities, teachers, scientists and students – and by the environment, the ultimate victim of climate change denial. We need clear thinking now more than ever. Christer Sturmark is a crusading secular humanist as well as a Swedish publisher and entrepreneur, and The Flame of Reason is his manifesto for a better world. It provides a set of simple tools for clear thinking in the face of populist dogmas, anti-science attitudes and pseudo-philosophy, and suggestions for how we can move towards a new enlightenment. From truth to Quantum Physics, moral philosophy to the Myers-Briggs test, Sturmark offers a passionate defence of rational thought, science, tolerance and pluralism; a warm and engaging guide for anyone who wants to better navigate the modern world. Translated by and co-written with Douglas Hofstadter, celebrated cognitive scientist, physicist and author of Godel, Escher, Bach.Trade ReviewIn an era in which the ideals of the Enlightenment need all the help they can get, we're lucky to have such a lucid, stylish, and intelligent exposition and defense. This is truly a book for our time -- Steven PinkerIn Sweden's public square, Christer Sturmark has done as much as anyone to uphold reason and humane critical thinking... and now his values are gathered and refocused in this book' -- Richard DawkinsChrister Sturmark reflects on our place in history as well as on our potential future as a more united and reasoning humankind. He gives a credible and sensible voice to the new enlightenment-oriented worldview -- Björn UlvaeusIf a book like this had been available when I was in my late teens, it would have saved me years of collecting and contemplating important information about human thinking – and its failures -- Dan Larhammar, President of the Royal Swedish Academy of SciencesAs lucid and illuminating as it is warm and inspiring -- Rebecca Goldstein

Read more less

Book SynopsisGlobal politics has been completely transformed by the rise of digitalisation and the politicised use of everyday digital communication tools by ordinary people in citizen engagement and mass protest. And yet, digital politics as a field is rarely explored holistically and interdisciplinary beyond a narrow focus on digital activism, digital warfare or Internet governance. Digital Politics, Digital Histories, Digital Futures addresses this gap. Bringing together contributions from junior and experienced scholars, the book examines digital politics theoretically, methodologically, and ethically, offering interdisciplinary perspectives and innovative pedagogies. The first part of the book presents research chapters that look at misinformation and reactionary online activism, digital imperialism and capitalism, future internet governance, digital memory, digital waste, and environmental imagination. The second part showcases several creative and experimental tools for studying digital politics historically, and for analysing and creating future imaginaries of digital politics. By sharing these tools and reflecting on the process of their creation, the book aims to simultaneously push the boundaries of, and inspire new teaching and research in, the field of digital politics.Trade ReviewThis book offers a much needed holistic and interdisciplinary perspective on digital politics. Adi Kuntsman and Liu Xin stage an engaging conversation between leading and emerging scholars, who examine the history, political economy, and materiality of digital politics. Crucially, they do so from different geo-political, disciplinary, and conceptual angles, which generates vital new insights. And, as icing on the cake, the book offers two experimental research toolkits to explore the histories and social-technical imaginaries of digital politics. In sum, Digital Politics, Digital Histories, Digital Futures is a creative and thought-provoking contribution. -- Thomas Poell, Professor of Data, Cultural & Institutions, University of AmsterdamCombining theoretical reflections and empirical diversity, this collection gathers interdisciplinary conversations about how the digital and the political are reconfiguring one another with implications for social movements, global warfare, infrastructural governance, citizen rights, and the future of archives. Entangling the socio-cultural and the environmental with the digital, leading scholars and dynamic researchers open up the field of digital politics to the political economy of disinformation, critiques of development discourses and digital divides, and materialities of dirty data. The volume presents insights curated inexperimental multi-dimensional and multi-authored forms—interviews, maps, toolkits, and essays—which will inspire researchers and teachers of social media and digital technologies, and set a new benchmark for future collaborative knowledge production. This volume not only offers a powerful argument for historicising digital research but also provides innovative methodologies and alternative imaginaries to understand digital histories and futures. -- Rahul Mukherjee, Associate Professor of Television and New Media, University of Pennsylvania and author of Radiant InfrastructuresTable of ContentsIntroduction: Crafting new approaches for historising, politicising and imagining the digital; Adi Kuntsman and Liu Xin Part I. Theories, Concepts, Explorations Chapter 1. Digital Politics: Defining, exploring and challenging the field; Athina Karatzogianni and Jonathan Ong Chapter 2. Social Media, the Archives of Tomorrow; Nermin Elsherif Chapter 3. Activism and the Anti-Vaccination Movement; Howard Grice Chapter 4. The Scattered Nature or Sovereign Surveillance: On Internet Models in the Context of Tomorrow; Kris Kaleta Chapter 5. A post-developmental critique of digital development and digital capitalism; Emeka Joseph Nwankwo Chapter 6. Dirty, toxic, dumped: Waste as data metaphor; Laura Savolainen Part II. Methodologies, Pedagogies, Imaginaries Chapter 7. Historicising Digital Research: From the histories of the digital to histories written through the digital; Nermin Elsherif Chapter 8. Sociotechnical imaginaries as an analytical tool for examining digital histories and digital futures; Liu Xin Chapter 9. Digitalised home as shell / membrane; Nermin Elsherif, Kris Kaleta, and Laura Savolainen Chapter 10. A Story about the futures of digital storytelling; Pierre Chadelle, Tatiana Klepikova, and Kerry Anne Maxwell Chapter 11. Layers of Digital Governance: Governing the Self, Platforms and Engineering; Kirsikka Grön, Hannah Guy, and David Mee

Read more less

Book SynopsisOur contemporary global digital society is not always a good place to live. Authoritarianism, hatred, false news, post-truth culture, the COVID-19 anti-vaccination movement, COVID-19 conspiracy theories, and political polarisation are organised via the Internet. The public sphere is highly polarised. Today, many humans tend to think of other humans mainly in terms of friends and enemies. Robots and Artificial Intelligence-based automation have created new challenges for the world of work. Decades of neoliberalism have increased inequalities. The COVID-19 pandemic has shown the vulnerability of humanity to viruses and health crises. Humanity and society are in a major crisis and digitalisation mediates this crisis. Digital Humanism explores how Humanism can help us to critically understand how digital technologies shape society and humanity, providing an introduction to Humanism in the digital age. Fuchs introduces the approach of Digital Humanism and outlines foundations of a Radical Digital Humanism, analysing what decolonisation of academia and the study of the digital, media and communication means; what the roles are of robots, automation, and Artificial Intelligence in digital capitalism, and how the communication of death and dying has been mediated by digital technologies, capitalist necropower, and digital capitalism. In order to save humanity and society, we need Radical Digital Humanism now.Trade ReviewDigital Humanism is the book we have been waiting for. Techno gurus, posthumanists, environmentalists, postcolonialists, post-structuralists will have you believe that humanist ethics is no longer relevant to the contemporary world. Yet, as this book demonstrates unflinchingly, never before has humanism been so relevant to the contemporary period. Humanism offers a philosophical and ethical reflection on the recklessness and havoc wrought by human choices and constitutes an attempt to formulate the conditions for a hospitable social world. Digital Humanism refuses to transform humans into machines and to think of machines as humans. This is why this book is such an important and timely intervention. -- Eva Illouz, Director of Studies at EHESS, ParisTable of ContentsChapter 1. Introduction Chapter 2. What is Humanism? Chapter 3. What is Digital Humanism? Chapter 4. Decolonising Academia: A Radical Humanist Perspective Chapter 5. Robots and Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Digital Capitalism Chapter 6. Policy Discourses on Robots and Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the EU, the USA, and China Chapter 7. Necropower, Death, and Digital Communication in Covid-19 Capitalism Chapter 8. Conclusion

Read more less

Book SynopsisScholars in the Sociology of Race have extensively researched public policy sectors such as housing, taxation, and immigration. However, media policy research has often failed to effectively engage with the critical concept of racialization, driven instead by political and economic perspectives. Racializing Media Policy fills this gap in the sociological, communications, and media studies literatures with its focus on the racialized processes that construct media policy work in the United States. With research that merges subfields of racialization and media policy, explores the US broadcasting policy, and examines racialization without integration and mediating structural challenges, the authors delve into multiple scenarios of racialization in policy. The chapters offer theoretical frameworks and case studies to consider the ways that media policy spaces are embedded with ideologies and praxes surrounding race. Racializing Media Policy contributes to a wider understanding of the role of policy work in the media systems, particularly by examining the ways that race is embedded within those structures. This unique perspective makes the volume an important read for scholars across the Sociology and Media Studies fields, in addition to providing critical context for policymakers.Table of ContentsChapter 1. Merging the Subfields of Racialization and Media Policy; Jason A. Smith and Richard T. Craig Chapter 2. The Problems of US Broadcasting Policy: Race, Rights, and Regulation; Allison Perlman Chapter 3. Racialization Without Integration: The Fight for NBC Diversity in the 1940s and 1950s; Leah P. Hunter Chapter 4. Mediating the Crisis: Collective Narrative Self-Determination and Structural Challenges to Media Policy in Philadelphia; Malav Kanuga

Read more less

Book SynopsisDigital Theology is a rapidly emerging field of academic research and gaining traction with scholars of Computer Science, Theology, Sociology of Religion and the wider Humanities. This book explores Digital Theology from a Computer Science perspective, providing a comprehensive definition of the subject and setting the agenda for future work in the field for both academics and practitioners. A range of Digital Theology case studies highlight the challenges, and successes, and the lessons learned which can be applied to future situations. The book also includes a timely analysis of the role that digital technology has played in the response of the global church to specific world events; clarifying a number of turning points which have driven dramatic and rapid change in church operating models.Table of ContentsChapter 1. Introduction: Towards a dialogue of the theological and the computational Chapter 2. What is Digital Theology? Chapter 3. Why explore Digital Theology? Chapter 4. How to research Digital Theology? Chapter 5. What might the future of Digital Theology look like? Chapter 6. Conclusion

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe COVID-19 pandemic is not only a threat to our health and economy, but also has strong implications for defence and security. Indeed, defence leaders have highlighted a second fight surrounding the spread of COVID-19, namely disinformation and preparing to face adversaries willing to exploit the public health crisis for nefarious purposes. The current pandemic is a breeding ground for the propagation of disinformation, as it represents the first major global health event in which large social media platforms have become the main distributor of information. This multi-national edited volume consists of contributions from Defence Science, academia and industry, including NATO Headquarters, United States, Netherlands, Singapore, United Kingdom and Norway. The content is aimed at a diverse audience, including NATO members, researchers from defence and security organizations, academics, and militaries including analysts and practitioners, as well as policy makers. This volume focuses on various aspects of COVID-19 disinformation, including identifying global dominant disinformation narratives and the methods used to spread disinformation, examining COVID-19 disinformation within the broader context of the cognitive domain, examining the psychological effects of COVID-19 disinformation and COVID-19 disinformation on instant messaging platforms, along with examining various countermeasures to disinformation.Table of Contents1. A Political Disinfodemic.- 2. Cognitive Warefare: NATO, COVID-19 and the Impact of Emergingand Disruptive Technologies.- 3. Developing Approaches to Detect and Mitigate COVID-19Misinfodemic in Social Networks for Proactive Policymaking.- 4. COVID-19 Disinformation, Misinformation and Malinformation During the Pandemic Infodemic: A View from the United Kingdom.- 5. Web of Lies: Mapping the Narratives, Effects and Amplifiers of Russian COVID-19 Disinformation.- 6. The Asian COVID-19 Infodemic on Instant Messaging Platforms.- 7. How to Defence Against COVID Related Disinformation.- 8. Are You Seeing What I am Seeing? Ensuring Data Relevance for Online Information Environment Assessments.

Read more less

Book SynopsisThis book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 5th Multidisciplinary International Symposium on Disinformation in Open Online Media, MISDOOM 2023, which was held in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, during November 21–22, 2023.The 13 full papers presented in this book were carefully reviewed and selected from 19 submissions. The papers focus on misinformation, disinformation, hate speech, disinformation campaigns, social network analysis, large language models, generative AI, and multi-modal embeddings.Table of ContentsGenerative AI for Explainable Automated Fact Checking on the FactEx: a New Benchmark Dataset.- Multi-Modal Embeddings for Isolating Cross-Platform Coordinated Information Campaigns on Social Media.- faKy: A Feature Extraction Library to Detect the Truthfulness of a Text.- From sharing misinformation to debunking it: How Coordinated Image Text Sharing Behaviour is used in political campaigns on Facebook.- The Information Disorder Level (IDL) Index: A Human-Based Metric to Assess the Factuality of Machine-Generated Content.- Lost in Transformation: Rediscovering LLM-generated Campaigns in Social Media.- The Effect of Misinformation Intervention: Evidence from Trump’s Tweets and the 2020 Election.- Coordinated Information Campaigns on Social Media: A Multifaceted Framework for Detection and Analysis.- Unveiling Truth Amidst the Pandemic: Multimodal Detection of COVID-19 Unreliable News.- Holistic Analysis of Organised Misinformation Activity in Social Networks.- Towards Multimodal Campaign Detection: Including Image Information in Stream Clustering to Detect Social Media Campaigns.- ChatGPT as a commenter to the news: can LLMs generate human-like opinions?.- Is foreign language news more or less credible than native language news? Examining the foreign language effect on credibility perceptions.

Read more less

Book SynopsisWestern academics, experts, and journalists specializing in Eastern Europe and Eurasia have grappled with two fundamental analytical crises in connection with the 1991 disintegration of the USSR and Russia's 2014 invasion of Ukraine. Both crises were brought about by similar lack of understanding by scholars, think tank experts, and journalists of Moscow's relations with its neighbors. Typically, they were characterized by a downplaying of the historic and current role of Russian great power nationalism.The book's contributors investigate how the Kremlin's recent turbo-charging of Russia's information warfare, 24-hour TV, and social media activity has expanded on traditional pro-Russian sentiments among Western academics, experts, and journalists. The authors analyze the downplaying of Russian nationalism, misinterpretations of the 2014 crisis, sympathetic portrayals of Crimea's occupation, and the use of the term "civil war" rather than "Russian-Ukrainian war" for the Donbas conflict in academia as well as the think tank world and media in the UK, Germany, Poland, Japan, The United States, and Canada.The list of contributors includes: Olga Bertelsen (Tiffin University, Ohio), Paul D'Anieri (University of California at Riverside), Andrew Foxall (Henry Jackson Society, London), Andreas Heinemann-Grüder (University of Bonn), Shanshiro Hosaka (University of Tartu), Petro Kuzyk (Lviv National University), Michal Wawrzonek (Jesuit University Ignatianum, Krakow), Andrei Znamenski (University of Memphis, Tennessee), and Sergei Zhuk (Ball State University, Indiana).

Read more less

Book SynopsisThis book is a collection of chapters penned by practitioners from around the world on the impact that disinformation and fake news has had in both the online and social sphere.While much has been said about individual disinformation campaigns in specific countries, this book offers a panoramic view of how these campaigns are conducted, who they target, and how they are spread. By bringing together research on specific countries and international data mined from questionnaires and online studies, the understanding of the term 'fake news' is greatly expanded and the issues we face are brought to light. The book includes contributions by experts such as Jean-Baptiste Vilmer (Macron Leaks), and includes case studies from Asia, such as Singapore and Myanmar, written in an accessible manner for the general interested reader, practitioners and policymakers in the field.Table of ContentsChapter 1. Introduction.- Part I: Overview of Disinformation.- Chapter 2. How news audiences think about misinformation across the world.- Chapter 3. Tools of Disinformation: How fake news gets to deceive.- Chapter 4. Disinformation as a threat to national security.- Part II. Disinformation in Context.- Chapter 5. Building digital resilience ahead of elections and beyond.- Chapter 6. Hate speech in Myanmar: The perfect storm.- Chapter 7. Fighting information manipulation: The French experience.- Chapter 8. Disinformation and cultural practice in Southeast Asia.- Part III. Countering Disinformation.- Chapter 9. NATO amidst hybrid warfare threats- effective strategic communications as a tool against disinformation and propaganda.- Chapter 10. Lithuanian Elves and countermeasures.- Chapter 11. Fake News and Disinformation: Singapore perspectives.

Read more less