Cafe Sci - The World Wars of Disinformation
Join University of Aberdeen Professors Tom Weber and Jesper Kallestrup and Dr Annelotte Janse from the University of Utrecht as they discuss disinformation and fake news
This event looks at the world wars of disinformation in the past and present. It looks at the patterns of how they emerge, play out, and end.
The discussion will include on why people are pulled towards extreme and often bizarre beliefs, echo chambers, conspiratorial thinking, and ‘big lies’. Janse, Kallestrup, and Weber will also discuss on how disinformation can be combatted and resilience against disinformation be boosted.
The speakers at the event are:
Dr Annelotte Janse is a Postdoctoral Researcher for Terinfo at Utrecht University. An expert on right-wing extremist networks on both sides of the Atlantic, European securitization efforts, and security thinking, she has looked at the transformations of right-wing extremism. TerInfo is a project of Utrecht University to help primary, secondary, and vocational schools discuss terrorism, political violence, conspiracy theories, and disruptive moments, aimed at boosting resilience among students.
Prof. Jesper Kallestrup is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Aberdeen, having previously held similar chairs at the University of Edinburgh the University of Copenhagen. Kallestrup also served as Dean of Humanities at the University of Copenhagen. He specialises in social epistemology, and his current research projects revolve around digital knowledge and combatting online disinformation.
Prof. Thomas Weber is Professor of History and International Affairs and Director of the Centre for Global Security and Governance at the University of Aberdeen. He also is a Visiting Fellow of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. The author of Becoming Hitler: The Making of a Nazi, he works on disinformation, authoritarian extremism, security, and repair from conflict from the 19th to the 21st century. He also was a historical and creative consultant on Führer und Verführer/Goebbels and the Führer, the first serious Hitler feature film in twenty years, aimed at revealing how Goebbels and Hitler wielded demagoguery, disinformation, and manipulation as weapons to devastating effect.
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