TecHype: 'How to Fight Fake News' with Joan Donovan

Joan Donovan, a leading disinformation researcher specializing in media manipulation, explains how social media platforms have become the new battleground for public persuasion. Co-author of “Meme Wars: The Untold Story of the Online Battles Upending Democracy in America,” Donovan uncovers the ways memes and social media enable fringe groups to lure in new recruits and spread their ideologies. In this episode, Donovan provides expert guidance on technical and policy strategies necessary to mitigate the weaponization of social media.

TecHype is a groundbreaking video and podcast series that cuts through the hype to debunk misunderstandings, provides insights into the real benefits and risks, and identifies technical and policy strategies to harness emerging technologies for good. The series features 30-minute episodes where host Brandie Nonnecke interviews experts and short TLDR (Too long; Didn't read) videos that analyze and summarize emerging tech policies, regulations, and laws.

Brandie Nonnecke, PhD is the founding director of the CITRIS Policy Lab, headquartered at UC Berkeley. She is an associate research professor at the Goldman School of Public Policy (GSPP) where she directs the Tech Policy Initiative. Nonnecke is the director of Our Better Web, a program that supports empirical research, policy analysis, training, and engagement to address the rise of online harms. She serves as co-director at the Berkeley Center for Law and Technology at Berkeley Law and the UC Berkeley AI Policy Hub. Brandie is the host of TecHype, a groundbreaking video and audio series that debunks misunderstandings, evaluates the real benefits and risks, and explores effective technical and policy strategies to harness emerging technologies for good.

TecHype is co-produced by the CITRIS Policy Lab and the Goldman School of Public Policy at UC Berkeley.

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