This topic is particularly pertinent as a political moment in this election year, and in light of the work being done by the Department of Internal Affairs around the Christchurch Call. There has not been enough discussion around issues like online misinformation, hate, and extremism which take structural approaches into consideration. Instead the focus has been to take such issues as merely isolated acts of individuals that need to have roadblocks placed in front of them. There is a lack of focus upon the way mis/disinformation connects to extreme violence. Further, such discussions are wont to devolve into unhelpful debates around free speech, rather than more holistic and nuanced solutions. As we move into election 2020, a push is needed for better political, legislative and policy solutions to complex problems, ensuring that our government pays serious attention to keeping us SAFE from harms caused while advancing anti-violence commitments such as the Christchurch Call.
Emmi Bevensee is a Mozilla Open Web Fellow, Founder of the Social Media Analysis Toolkit (SMAT) and Rebellious Data LLC. They are also a Doctoral Fellow at the Center for Analysis of the Radical Right. They received a MA in Conflict Transformation and Peacebuilding with an emphasis on decentralization of governance in conflict zones and studied Machine Learning in the iSchool PhD program at the University of Arizona. Their work centers... Read More →
Sarah Hendrica Bickerton is a lecturer in the Public Policy Institute at the School of Social Science, University of Auckland. She is a sociologist whose research involves policy and political concerns around gender and technology. In 2020, She completed her PhD in the School of Government... Read More →
M R. X. Dentith is a philosopher whose work-to-date has concerned the epistemology of claims which are considered fragile and open to dispute, such as conspiracy theories, fake news, and how we understand secrecy. They received their PhD in Philosophy from the University of Auckland... Read More →
David Shanks is New Zealand’s Chief Censor and leads the Classification Office, an Independent Crown Entity.David is a barrister and solicitor who has executive experience in both private and public sector senior roles.He’s now responsible for protecting New Zealanders from harm... Read More →
