The tension between those people trying to share accurate information and those individuals, organizations and governments trying to misinform the public has had a major impact on the available information for civil discourse. This first of a two-part symposium will examine how this issue is playing out in the United States and the consequences it has had for the fabric of our democratic society. 

Andrew Marantz, journalist and author of Antisocial: Online Extremists, Techno-Utopians, and the Hijacking of the American Conversation, will lead an open conversation about interaction of political extremists and mainstream conversation. Marantz is a staff writer for The New Yorker and has contributed to the magazine since 2011. He has written extensively for the magazine about technology, social media, the alt-right, and the press, as well as about comedy and pop culture. Marantz hold a bachelor's degree in religion and religious studies from Brown University and a master's degree in journalism from New York University.

INT 100/201 approved!

Tuesday, February 3, 2021 from 7:00-8:00pm on Zoom. This online event is is free and open to the public. Register here.

The tension between those people trying to share accurate information and those individuals, organizations and governments trying to misinform the public has had a major impact on the available information for civil discourse. This second of our two-part symposium will examine how this issue is playing out around the world. Please join us as we hear from GVSU faculty member Vandana Pednekar-Magal and acclaimed Chilean journalist Alejandra Matus. This event will also feature the launch of the Global Civil Discourse Map, a collaborative project between Jeff Kelly Lowenstein, Padnos/Sarosik Endowed Professor of Civil Discourse, and a team of GVSU students from his IDS 350 course and the Computer Science Program.

This online event is is free and open to the public.

INT 100/201 approved!

The event is co-sponsored by the Big Data Initiative, the School of Communications, the Writing Department and the Digital Studies Program. Award-winning student group GrandPR is doing promotional work.  

Thursday, March 25, 2021 from 6:30-8:00pm on Zoom.