"The potential to weaponize deepfakes is growing at an alarming rate. The study aimed to explore how education can help youth develop resilience to malicious deepfakes and the ability to counter disinformation, regardless of context. Sixteen youth between the ages of 18 and 24 participated in a 9-h,
...
cutting-edge, experiential, and reflective learning experience on deepfakes and disinformation informed by personal construct theory (PCT). Participants experienced the creation of deepfakes and assessed their ability to counter disinformation. They delved into their own construct systems and reflected on the genesis of their vulnerabilities. They moved from being unfamiliar with the deepfake phenomenon to becoming empowered digital citizens, motivated to develop their skills in assessing the validity of online information and resisting manipulation regardless of its source. The study provides recommendations for more targeted education about deepfakes and disinformation for youth. Educators, curriculum developers, and policymakers can use these findings to ensure that a well-equipped generation of digital citizens protects society from the growing disinformation plague. With this proof of concept, the next step is to bring this approach to a larger number of youth and contribute to the fight against malicious deepfakes, while developing strategies to integrate PCT-informed learning experiences into education." (Abstract)
more
"Populists and the Pandemic examines the responses of populist political actors and parties in 22 countries around the globe to the Covid-19 pandemic, in terms of their attitudes, rhetoric, mobilization repertoires, and policy proposals. The responses of some populist leaders have received much publ
...
ic attention, as they denied the severity of the public health crisis, denigrated experts and data, looked for scapegoats, encouraged protests, questioned the legitimacy of liberal institutions, spread false information, and fueled conspiracies. But how widespread are those particular reactions? How much variation is there? What explains the variation that does exist? This volume considers these questions through critical analysis of countries in the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Africa, by leading experts with deep knowledge of their respective cases. Some chapters focus on populist parties, others on charismatic populist leaders. Some countries examined are democracies, others autocracies. Some populists are left-wing, others right-wing. Some populists are in government, others in opposition. This variation allows for a panoramic consideration of factors that systematically influence or mediate populist responses to the pandemic. The book thus makes a unique contribution to our understanding of the intersection between two of the most pressing social and political challenges of our time. The book will be of interest to all those researching populism, extremism, and political parties, and those more broadly interested in political science, public policy, sociology, communications, and economics." (Publisher description)
more
"Since the mid-2010s, chatbots have grown in usage and popularity across the humanitarian sector. While this usage has gained traction, there is scarce information on the collective successes, risks, and trade-offs of this automation. This research addresses this gap, documenting chatbot deployments
...
across the humanitarian sector and exploring the existing uses, benefits, trade-offs and challenges of using chatbots in humanitarian contexts. The research was conducted by The Engine Room, with support from the American Red Cross, the IFRC and valuable input from our advisory committee. This report is not created as a comprehensive overview of chatbots use, instead, the goal of the report is twofold: to offer guiding questions and considerations for humanitarian organisations deciding if a chatbot is an appropriate tool to address programme and community needs. It also contains use cases highlighting the experiences of practitioners working in diverse geographic contexts and issue areas." (Executive summary)
more
"Die vielfältigen Möglichkeiten moderner IT-Systeme bringen drängende ethische Probleme mit sich. Neben der offensichtlichen Frage nach einer moralisch tragbaren Verwendung von Informationstechnologien sind ebenso die Aspekte des Entwerfens, Herstellens und Betreibens derselben entscheidend. Die
...
Beiträger*innen setzen sich mit dem Konfliktpotenzial zwischen Technik und Ethik auseinander, indem sie lebensnahe Fallbeispiele analysieren und diskutieren. Damit liefern sie eine praktische Anleitung zum gemeinsamen Nachdenken über moralische Gebote und ethischen Umgamg mit IT-Systemen und ihren Möglichkeiten." (Verlagsbeschreibung)
more
"Para el trabajo en la escuela, la Alfabetización Mediática e Informacional (AMI) propone la incorporación de los medios tradicionales y digitales en el aula, que promuevan la generación de experiencias educativas reflexivas y críticas y la creación de medios, de manera responsable y ética. E
...
n tal sentido, este documento diagnóstico presenta el proceso desarrollado en el contexto peruano y los énfasis de trabajo desde el Estado y la sociedad civil para promover la AMI. Asimismo expone las comprensiones e intereses de docentes frente a la propuesta de la AMI en su quehacer educativo. Este diagnóstico muestra la visión de diversos actores educativos que permiten identificar las posibilidades de inclusión de la AMI en la agenda pública educativa peruana; sobre todo para el fortalecimiento de las capacidades de docentes, el desarrollo de una base común teórica y metodológica, una intervención educativa contextualizada y con enfoque intercultural. El presente diagnóstico contiene el planteamiento de la metodología, antecedentes de la AMI, los hallazgos de la investigación, los desafíos planteados desde los actores entrevistados y las conclusiones del diagnóstico. Además se ha incluido una propuesta de agenda pública con temas que posibiliten un debate amplio sobre la pertinencia de la AMI en un mundo mediatizado y globalizado." (Introducción)
more
"Book Bunk, eine Non-Profit-Organisation mit Sitz in Nairobi in Kenia, hat es sich vor fünf Jahren zur Aufgabe gemacht, Büchereien in Nairobi weiterzuentwickeln. Die Idee entstand aus einer Zusammenarbeit mit der McMillan Memorial Library – Nairobis ältester Bibliothek." (Seite 33)
"The Toolkit is built on a foundation of conceptual clarity, emphasizing the importance of clear definitions and context-specific understanding. It underscores the need for comprehensive disaggregated data that reveals the true extent of racial inequities and enables evidence-based policy-making. Th
...
roughout, the Toolkit focuses on the inclusion of affected communities and stakeholders, fostering meaningful engagement and dialogue. This Toolkit serves as a practical guide for policy-makers, activists, and organizations committed to advancing anti-racist policies. Drawing from global case examples and the latest research, it provides a step-by-step approach to developing, implementing, monitoring, and evaluating policies that combat racism and discrimination." (Short summary)
more
"Covid Conspiracy Theories in Global Perspective examines how conspiracy theories and related forms of misinformation and disinformation about the Covid-19 pandemic have circulated widely around the world. Covid conspiracy theories have attracted considerable attention from researchers, journalists,
...
and politicians, not least because conspiracy beliefs have the potential to negatively affect adherence to public health measures. While most of this focus has been on the United States and Western Europe, this collection provides a unique global perspective on the emergence and development of conspiracy theories through a series of case studies. The chapters have been commissioned by recognized experts on area studies and conspiracy theories. The chapters present case studies on how Covid conspiracism has played out (some focused on a single country, others on regions), using a range of methods from a variety of disciplinary perspectives, including history, politics, sociology, anthropology, and psychology. Collectively, the authors reveal that, although there are many narratives that have spread virally, they have been adapted for different uses and take on different meanings in local contexts." (Publisher description)
more
"This Working Paper addresses this challenge of adopting innovations. How can development organisations institutionalise a new way of working, bringing what was once novel to the core of how business is done? Analysing successful adoption efforts across five DAC agencies, the paper lays out a propos
...
ed process for the adoption of innovations. The paper features five case-studies and concludes with a set of lessons and recommendations for policy makers on innovation management generally, and adoption of innovation in particular." (Abstract)
more
"Theatre for Development is one of the most dynamic and controversial theatre movements on the global South. Emerging in Southern Africa in the 1970s to address social and economic problems using theatrical techniques, today it is taught in theatre departments across sub-Saharan Africa and employed
...
in numerous contexts from health care to agriculture. This book investigates the emergence of TfD from its beginnings to its transformation into a coherent organizational field capable of attracting significant governmental and NGO funding. Drawing on leading African scholars and practitioners the volume examines the complex transnational processes that led to the institutionalization of Theatre for Develoment." (Publisher description)
more
"The purpose of this report is to provide the first step towards a global overview of the weaponization of the law as a prominent threat to media freedom. In doing so, we offer a resource that can be used to empower those seeking to navigate the shifting legal environment and support those working t
...
o protect the continued coverage of the world’s most sensitive and critical issues – including corruption, organized crime, and human rights. This is also the first report of its kind to bring together substantial insights into these global legal trends from two significant constituencies: journalists from around the world, and media freedom experts. The report draws on global research conducted through the Tow Center for Digital Journalism, alongside the contributions of dozens of leading media freedom experts and the firsthand experience of nearly 500 journalists from the Thomson Reuters Foundation network, to identify and examine eight key legal threats to the profession. It provides a critical springboard into further research that might map in more detail the scale, nature, and geographic spread of these threats – essential to identifying how best to counter them. Nearly 50% of journalists in the Foundation’s alumni network who responded to a survey said that they or their media organisation were facing legal threats, illustrating the sheer scale of this war on journalism. The physical, emotional and financial consequences are enormous for journalists who are continually facing the risk of going to jail, being bankrupted, or repeatedly being dragged into court. Allowed to spread unchecked, the weaponization of the law will continue to curtail media freedom by hampering coverage of critical public interest matters, undermining accountability, and eroding trust in journalism – with catastrophic effects on democracies and freedoms globally." (Executive summary, page 8)
more
"Introduction: Journalists work in dangerous places. In recent years, the risk of illness and injury while reporting has increased, whether in the setting of conflict, protest, extreme weather, or environmental disaster. Journalists are targeted more than ever before. Working safely in remote and da
...
ngerous settings, especially without the protection of a large organization, requires a wide range of skills related to safety and security. For several years, the Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma at Columbia University has offered brief, intensive courses focused on personal safety, self defense, cyber-security and medical skills for freelance journalists working in dangerous settings.
Method: We reconceptualized the medical first responder portion of the Dart Center's "Reporting from Crisis Zones" course to emphasize basic skills related to acute injury and illness, from trauma resuscitation (e.g, hemorrhage control) to environmental exposure and medical illness. We identified the most common medical concerns that these learners might encounter and incorporated feedback from prior courses to develop a one-day curriculum meant to address the most press ing needs of incidental first responders with minimal medical training, and whose primary mission is not providing medical care to others.
Results: The resulting 8-10 hour curriculum focuses on hemorrhage control, basic airway and respiratory maneuvers and wound care, with additional focus on medical illness, indications for evacuation, and communication and prevention techniques. The restructured curriculum was first offered in Spring 2022. Feedback from learners was positive. Conclusion: Basic first responder skills are critical for journalists working in dangerous settings, who represent a unique population of learners with specific needs and objectives. Next steps include developing a better understanding of the medical and traumatic problems truly encountered by this population in the field, assessing the long-term educational impact of the course, and developing ongoing opportunities to reinforce learning via online resources, refresher sessions, and guideline development." (Page s20)
more
"This article examines, with ethnographic lenses, the emergence of shared networks in the Tseltal and Zapoteco communities in Chiapas and Oaxaca (Mexico). ‘Shared networks’ are first-mile signal-sharing practices that articulate interconnection infrastructure and values of coexistence to, in the
...
cases studied, extend the internet to areas where the services of existing larger internet service providers are unsatisfactory or unavailable. It argues that by infrastructuring their own local networks and interconnecting to the global internet, Tseltal and Zapoteco people are effectively internet codesigners, building Latin-Centric Indigenous networks and shaping internet governance from below. When comunalidad values, supported by unlicensed frequencies of the electromagnetic spectrum, towers, radio antennas, houses’ rooftops, routers, and cables, intersect with the values of the internet service providers and their policies, hybrids emerge. Shared networks are a result of what these hybrids enact and constrain, as well as evidence of the vivid struggles for a more inclusive and pluriversal internet." (Abstract)
more