The Erosion of Trust in Society

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I see ourselves as a global civilization running around trying to just grab the last tiny little bits of trust that we have in our institutions. And I think it's another reminder of innovation comes from not having that sense of it will never work. In France is the same thing. Lots of people in France say, I don't trust the Parisian media. We did it in Brazil and had very similar feedback. I think there is something to this. Whether we can do it in the US for me is that's the big challenge for me in 2020.

How can tech companies help flatten the curve? First and foremost, they must address the lethal misinformation and disinformation circulating on their platforms. The problem goes much deeper than fake news, according to Claire Wardle, co-founder and executive director of First Draft. She studies the gray zones of information warfare, where bad actors mix facts with falsehoods, news with gossip, and sincerity with satire. “Most of this stuff isn't fake and most of this stuff isn't news,” Claire argues. If these subtler forms of misinformation go unaddressed, tech companies may not only fail to flatten the curve — they could raise it higher.