How to Fix the Internet

Rerelease - So You Think You're a Critical Thinker

Oct 11, 2024

Alice Marwick, the Director of Research at Data & Society, dives into the murky waters of online disinformation and conspiracy theories. She reveals why seemingly bizarre ideas draw so much interest, linking these beliefs to feelings of disenfranchisement. The discussion highlights the complex relationship between personal identity and misinformation, emphasizes the need for systemic change in privacy protections, and urges a focus on shared human experiences to counteract divisions. This is a call to rethink how we engage with the internet to uplift marginalized voices.

43:51

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Episode guests

Alice Marwick

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Quick takeaways

The rise of conspiracy theories highlights the complex relationship between disinformation, personal identity, and the search for meaning among marginalized individuals.

Media plays a pivotal role in perpetuating misinformation by often sensationalizing false narratives, necessitating responsible reporting to foster accurate communication.

Deep dives

The Rise of Conspiracy Theories

Conspiracy theories have gained significant traction, particularly in light of recent events like elections. Research shows that even seemingly absurd ideas can attract millions of views, overshadowing mainstream news coverage. The spread of these theories often stems from a need for meaning and reassurance among individuals, prompting them to seek narratives that resonate with their experiences and identities. Understanding this phenomenon involves recognizing the deep emotional connections people have with these ideas, rather than dismissing them as mere fantasies.

Intro

3min

Unpacking Radicalization and Misinformation

8min

Navigating the Myth of Consistency in Media

16min

Exploring the Politics of Online Privacy and Identity

6min

Navigating Data Privacy Challenges

9min

Reflecting on Progress in Digital Rights Advocacy

2min

This episode was first released on March 21, 2023.

The promise of the internet was that it would be a tool to melt barriers and aid truth-seekers everywhere. But it feels like polarization has worsened in recent years, and more internet users are being misled into embracing conspiracies and cults.

From QAnon to anti-vax screeds to talk of an Illuminati bunker beneath Denver International Airport, Alice Marwick has heard it all. She has spent years researching some dark corners of the online experience: the spread of conspiracy theories and disinformation. She says many people see conspiracy theories as participatory ways to be active in political and social systems from which they feel left out, building upon beliefs they already harbor to weave intricate and entirely false narratives.

Marwick speaks with EFF’s Cindy Cohn and Jason Kelley about finding ways to identify and leverage people’s commonalities to stem this flood of disinformation while ensuring that the most marginalized and vulnerable internet users are still empowered to speak out.

In this episode you’ll learn about:

Why seemingly ludicrous conspiracy theories get so many views and followers
How disinformation is tied to personal identity and feelings of marginalization and disenfranchisement
When fact-checking does and doesn’t work
Thinking about online privacy as a political and structural issue rather than something that can be solved by individual action

Alice Marwick is director of research at Data & Society. Previously she was an Associate Professor in the Department of Communication and cofounder and Principal Researcher at the Center for Information, Technology and Public Life at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. She researches the social, political, and cultural implications of popular social media technologies. In 2017, she co-authored Media Manipulation and Disinformation Online (Data & Society), a flagship report examining far-right online subcultures’ use of social media to spread disinformation, for which she was named one of Foreign Policy magazine’s 2017 Global Thinkers. She is the author of Status Update: Celebrity, Publicity and Branding in the Social Media Age (Yale 2013), an ethnographic study of the San Francisco tech scene which examines how people seek social status through online visibility, and co-editor of The Sage Handbook of Social Media (Sage 2017). Her forthcoming book, The Private is Political (Yale 2023), examines how the networked nature of online privacy disproportionately impacts marginalized individuals in terms of gender, race, and socio-economic status. She earned a political science and women's studies bachelor's degree from Wellesley College, a Master of Arts in communication from the University of Washington, and a PhD in media, culture and communication from New York University.

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