DeepSummary
The episode begins with a dramatized radio broadcast reporting mysterious explosions on Mars and a meteorite crash in New Jersey, which is revealed to be an adaptation of H.G. Wells' novel 'The War of the Worlds' that caused panic among some listeners in 1938. The host, Jess Phoenix, then introduces Dr. Jo Luchito, an expert in computational sociolinguistics studying the impact of political language on elections and democracy.
Dr. Luchito discusses her work analyzing online communication, misinformation, and disinformation campaigns, particularly those targeting underrepresented communities. She explains the difference between misinformation (unintentionally spreading false information) and disinformation (deliberately spreading false information), and provides tips for identifying fake accounts and content. She also talks about Russian disinformation efforts during US elections and how they exploited existing tensions and news media.
Finally, Dr. Luchito shares how her research has helped improve media literacy and election information accessibility. She also discusses her work with the Union of Concerned Scientists' Election Science Task Force, aimed at strengthening the science behind evaluating and advancing free and fair elections using data-driven approaches.
Key Episodes Takeaways
- The 1938 'War of the Worlds' radio broadcast caused panic among some listeners who believed it was a real news report.
- Misinformation is unintentionally spreading false information, while disinformation is deliberately spreading false information.
- Russian disinformation campaigns targeted underrepresented communities and exploited existing tensions during US elections.
- Tips for identifying misinformation and disinformation include verifying information from multiple sources, reverse image searching, and checking account details.
- Improving media literacy, science communication, and access to accurate election information are crucial for combating misinformation and disinformation.
- The Union of Concerned Scientists' Election Science Task Force aims to use data-driven approaches to strengthen the science behind evaluating and advancing free and fair elections.
- Non-English language content and multi-modal platforms (video, images, text) pose challenges for detecting misinformation and disinformation.
- Dr. Luchito's research has helped journalists and news organizations improve their practices for validating and reporting on social media content.
Top Episodes Quotes
- “As a child, I think I've always been really interested in politics. I remember when I was in elementary school, and they were covering the Bush al Gore election, and I was just fascinated in the media coverage of it, how it was discussed, how my parents were voting.“ by Joe Luchito
- “We don't quite have the same resources for or Spanish or Mandarin Chinese or many of the other languages that are spoken in the United States. And so we are starting to see more disinformation content that's produced in non English, and we're less prepared to deal with that, unfortunately.“ by Joe Luchito
- “One thing that Russia has historically done and continues to do into 2020 and into but 2024 is to exploit news media specifically. That includes the creation of a bunch of fake news organizations.“ by Joe Luchito
- “I am concerned because I have been an american citizen. I was born and raised in the United States, and I've cared a lot about the democratic institutions in the United States, and I am really concerned that they are under threat not only by external actors such as Russia, but also by our own citizens.“ by Joe Luchito
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Episode Information
Got Science?
KKFI Community Podcasts
5/1/24