This blog post is by Matthew L., Workforce and Economic Development Librarian.
On September 14, 2024, three University of Arizona scholars and 85 Tucson residents met at Murphy-Wilmot Library to discuss misinformation and the upcoming election. This program, organized by the Pima County Public Library and the League of Women Voters of Greater Tucson, was designed to explore the issue from both an academic and a practical point of view, ending with tips for citizens on how to improve civil discourse and make a positive impact in an election season where information is contested and somewhat confusing.
Topics discussed were:
- Current misinformation and disinformation in the news.
- Confirmation bias and how am I susceptible to believing misinformation?
- The impacts of misinformation and disinformation and how can we measure them?
- The history of misinformation in politics.
- Public trust in democratic institutions and the press.
- The challenges faced by fact-checking organizations and what can be done about misinformation?
- The impact of artificial intelligence and algorithms on media consumption.
- Misinformation on social media, traditional media and in private messaging platforms.
Did you miss the event? Don't worry! You can view it online!
We thank the following University professors for their participation:
- Dr. Jeannine Relly is a professor at the School of Journalism with a courtesy appointment in the School of Government and Public Policy at the UofA. She has conducted research and has done educational partnerships around issues of disinformation and misinformation during conflicts, post-conflicts and humanitarian crises in a number of countries around the world.
- Dr. Kate Kensky is a Professor of Communication and Government & Public Policy at the UofA. She teaches political communication, public opinion and research methods. Her current research focuses on incivility in online forums and multimedia teaching strategies to mitigate cognitive biases.
- Dr. Yotam Shmargad is a computational social scientist at the UofA whose research focuses on understanding how digital platforms shape social and political life in the US. His research speaks to questions about how social media can both fuel political polarization and incivility as well as extinguish their flames.
Join the Arizona Citizens Clean Elections Commission in collaboration with the Pima County Recorder’s Office for their online presentation on Saturday, September 28 from 10 to 11:15 am:
Election Ready: Your Basic Guide to Getting Involved in Democracy.
You will get insight into the election process, discover voter education resources, learn how to participate in elections and find out what's going to be on your general election ballot.
