Information Wars

NoVa is inviting all 14-19-year-olds interested in current affairs to participate in the discussion on how wars today are being fought not just physically but also online. The event will take place at Vabamu Museum on April 5th at 4PM.

As an introduction into the discussion we will hear about the latest research at Tallinn University on what techniques are used on social media to polarise audiences in military conflicts and how any one of us can avoid falling into a trap set up by an online-scammer.

If you are interested in participating in the discussion, please sign up here

For the discussion part we will form two groups:

The first group will be discussing:
– information disorder. What are mis, dis and mal-info?
– are filter bubbles real? What about echo-chambers?
– propaganda techniques, also visual, e.g. war memes.
– what is expected from images in times of conflict? We will look at some famous war images from history and from today.
– what is compassion fatigue? How to support yourself emotionally and psychologically in difficult times

The second group will discuss:
– information pollution of the social media landscape:
– everyday examples of mis, dis and mal-information
– scam victim attitudes online
– scam containers on social media
– production of gullibility and false trustworthiness
– trust-building strategies used by scammers

The speakers and discussion moderators are:

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Jaana Davidjants is a Visiting Research Fellow at the Baltic Film, Media and Arts School, Tallinn University. Her PhD thesis is on social media-based activism of conflict and war, focusing on the Middle East and Caucasus. Jaana has worked for 15 years in visual communication. She is especially interested in images and storytelling in the context of conflict and crisis.

Photo: TLU

Patience Gombe is a Research Assistant at the Baltic Film, Media and Arts School, at Tallinn University. She completed her Masters in Screen Media and Innovation and her thesis was on disinformation on social media. Her specific focus was on trust-building strategies that scammers use on social media. Patience has worked for 16 years in several industries around the world, including Television production, Television broadcast, social media and marketing. She is especially interested in how media is used to affect and shape society. 

Photo: Patience Gombe