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Please join us for a FAD Research Seminar Series hosted by the N&MRCDate: Monday 17 May 2021Time: 1:30pm-2:30pmLocation: 1A21 & ZoomPresenter Dr Nicole Curato Title ‘Thank you for sharing’: Overcoming Disinformation through Democratic Deliberation Abstract There is a dynamic global community of stakeholders working towards addressing the challenges posed by disinformation, especially during elections. Journalists have launched fact check initiatives. Donors continue to invest in media literacy programmes. Tech platforms like Facebook and Twitter are strengthening their content moderation practices.  These initiatives, while valuable, overlook the voices of ordinary citizens. How do citizens characterise the problem of ‘fake news’ during elections? Do they find disinformation a serious challenge to electoral integrity? Does disinformation offer a greater threat than the longstanding issues of electoral fraud, disenfranchisement, and threats of violence? What can we learn from the collective wisdom of ordinary citizens? To answer these questions, our research team conducted a three-day deliberative forum on disinformation in the Philippines – a country that Facebook considered to be the ‘patient zero’ of the global disinformation epidemic. Twenty-six randomly selected Filipinos from all over the country came together to learn about disinformation.  They deliberated on the dangers created by the spread of ‘fake news,’ answering questions of who should be held accountable for the production of disinformation and who should safeguard social media from its harms. Participants were then asked to generate collective recommendations for stakeholders leading campaigns against disinformation.  Findings of the study reveal that ordinary citizens view disinformation as closely linked to structural issues of the role of money in politics and the precarity of economic labour in a middle-income country’s gig economy.  The presentation concludes by making a call to shift the centre of gravity in scholarship of disinformation. Disinformation studies remain largely shaped by the experiences of the Global North even though many of the disinformation innovations (as well as their remedies) are unfolding in the Global South. The presentation seeks to present an alternative account of disinformation grounded on the lived experiences of disinformation producers and ordinary citizens in disinformation ‘hotspots’ around the world.  Biography Nicole Curato is an Associate Professor at the Centre for Deliberative Democracy and Global Governance at the University of Canberra. Her work examines how democracy can take root in communities recovering from the trauma of disasters, armed conflict, and urban crime. She is the author of the prize-winning Democracy in a Time of Misery: From Spectacular Tragedy to Deliberative Action (2019, Oxford University Press) and the editor of the Journal of Deliberative Democracy.  

Please join us for our first presentation in the FAD Seminar Series – hosted by the News & Media Research Centre and the Centre for Deliberative Democracy and Global Governance. Date: Monday 21 March 2022Time: 12:30pm-1:30pmLocation: Online - email nmrc@canberra.edu.au for the link

Jordan McSwiney in conversation with Kristy Campion The last decade has seen an alarming rise in far-right politics around the world. From forming governments in Italy, Argentina, and India, attempts to distort the democratic process in theUnited States and Brazil, and terror attacks in New Zealand, UK, and Germany, far-right politics presents a serious threat to democracy on a global scale. In Australia, though the far right has become increasingly visible, it remains a largely marginal politicalactor. Why hasn’t the Australian far right achieved the kinds of success witness in India, Italy, or the United States? Is Australia “immune” to the far-right? What does the future hold for far-right politics in Australia?In this conversation, two leading experts address these questions and reflect on the current state of the Australian far right and what it means for Australian democracy.The conversation will be moderated by Ariel Bogle (Guardian Australia).SpeakersDr Jordan McSwiney is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Centre for Deliberative Democracy and Global Governance at the University of Canberra. Jordan researches the far right, with a focus on the organisation and communicationof far-right parties and movements. He is the author ofFar-Right Political Parties in Australia: Disorganisation and Electoral Failure (Routledge).Dr Kristy Campion is a Senior Lecturer of Terrorism Studies with the Australian Graduate School of Policing and Security at Charles Sturt University. Her research focuses on terrorism and extremism, both domestically and internationally. In the past two years, Dr Campion’s research has focused heavily on right wing extremism in Australia, with reference to its organisations, individuals, and ideological narratives, with a focus on domestic and international connections.Ariel Bogle is an investigations reporter at Guardian Australia. Previously, Bogle was a technology reporter at the ABC where she contributed to programs across the network. Her reporting has been published in The New York Times, The Atlantic, Australian Financial Review and Slate, among other outlets.This event is hosted by the Centre for Deliberative Democracy and Global Governance at the University of Canberra. Subscribe to our mailing list by clicking on this link.16 May 2024Reception: 5.30 pmDiscussion: 6:00 - 7:15 pmJuliet Room, Verity Lane Market, Sydney Building, 50 Northbourne Avenue, Canberra ACTThis event is free, but registration is essential. Please register here: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/between-elections-and-extremism-the-australian-far-right-today-tickets-884128731837