Skip to content
Project 2025
Search

Latest Stories

Top Stories
What You Should Know About Russ Vought, Trump’s Shadow President

What You Should Know About Russ Vought, Trump’s Shadow President

A Trump 2020 flag outside of a home.

Trump’s 2.0 Actions Have Harmed Rural America Who Voted for Him

Indiana Republicans Could Lose at the Ballot over Redistricting Plan

Indiana Republicans Could Lose at the Ballot over Redistricting Plan

Protestors holding signs that read "protect trans kids."

Trump's Orders Threaten Transgender Americans’ Rights

Video: Battling the effects of conspiracy theories and disinformation

Video: Battling the effects of conspiracy theories and disinformationplay icon
Panel: Battling the Effects of Conspiracy Theories and Disinformation
www.youtube.com
The Fulcrum
By The FulcrumJun 08, 2022
The Fulcrum
The Fulcrum staff.
See More Writings by author

This week, we are excited to share a video series featuring panel discussions from the Global Democracy Champions Summit co-hosted by Keseb and the SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University. We hope this series will spur dialogue and action to advance inclusive democracy in the US and globally.

Communities across the world are battling the effects of conspiracy theories and disinformation. Today’s featured panel discussion highlights examples of innovations to mitigate these effects, discusses the implications of disinformation for upcoming elections, and surfaces ideas for immediate and long-term solutions, both in the US and globally.

Moderator: Yascha Mounk, Associate Professor of the Practice of International Affairs, School of Advanced International Studies and the SNF Agora Institute, Johns Hopkins University

Panelists:

●Tareq Alani, Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer, PushBlack

●Samar Ali, Founding President and CEO, Million of Conversations

●Ian Bassin, Co-Founder and Executive Director, Protect Democracy

●Peter Pomerantsev, Senior Fellow at the SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University; Co-Director of Arena Initiative

Check out the discussion: Battling the Effects of Conspiracy Theories and Disinformation

We will share one panel discussion from the Summit each day of this week. Come back tomorrow to view “Building Enduring People Power.”

Please visit Keseb and the SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University to subscribe and receive news of future Democracy Champions opportunities.

Latest news

"Vote Here" sign
Electoral Reforms

Election Reform Turns Down the Temperature of Our Politics

Rediscovered 1945 Speech on Interfaith Unity Offers Urgent Lessons
Community

Rediscovered 1945 Speech on Interfaith Unity Offers Urgent Lessons

When the Lights Go Out — and When They Never Do
Media & Technology

When the Lights Go Out — and When They Never Do

Read More

Fear of AI Makes for Bad Policy
Getty Images

Fear of AI Makes for Bad Policy

Fear is the worst possible response to AI. Actions taken out of fear are rarely a good thing, especially when it comes to emerging technology. Empirically-driven scrutiny, on the other hand, is a savvy and necessary reaction to technologies like AI that introduce great benefits and harms. The difference is allowing emotions to drive policy rather than ongoing and rigorous evaluation.

A few reminders of tech policy gone wrong, due, at least in part, to fear, helps make this point clear. Fear is what has led the US to become a laggard in nuclear energy, while many of our allies and adversaries enjoy cheaper, more reliable energy. Fear is what explains opposition to autonomous vehicles in some communities, while human drivers are responsible for 120 deaths per day, as of 2022. Fear is what sustains delays in making drones more broadly available, even though many other countries are tackling issues like rural access to key medicine via drones.

Keep ReadingShow less
A child looking at a smartphone.

With autism rates doubling every decade, scientists are reexamining environmental and behavioral factors. Could the explosion of social media use since the 1990s be influencing neurodevelopment? A closer look at the data, the risks, and what research must uncover next.

Getty Images, Arindam Ghosh

The Increase in Autism and Social Media – Coincidence or Causal?

Autism has been in the headlines recently because of controversy over Robert F. Kennedy, Jr's statements. But forgetting about Kennedy, autism is headline-worthy because of the huge increase in its incidence over the past two decades and its potential impact on not just the individual children but the health and strength of our country.

In the 1990s, a new definition of autism—ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder)—was universally adopted. Initially, the prevalence rate was pretty stable. In the year 2,000, with this broader definition and better diagnosis, the CDC estimated that one in 150 eight-year-olds in the U.S. had an autism spectrum disorder. (The reports always study eight-year-olds, so this data was for children born in 1992.)

Keep ReadingShow less
Tech, Tribalism, and the Erosion of Human Connection
Ai technology, Artificial Intelligence. man using technology smart robot AI, artificial intelligence by enter command prompt for generates something, Futuristic technology transformation.
Getty Images - stock photo

Tech, Tribalism, and the Erosion of Human Connection

One of the great gifts of the Enlightenment age was the centrality of reason and empiricism as instruments to unleash the astonishing potential of human capacity. Great Enlightenment thinkers recognized that human beings have the capacity to observe the universe and rely on logical thinking to solve problems.

Moreover, these were not just lofty ideals; Benjamin Franklin and Denis Diderot demonstrated that building our collective constitution of knowledge could greatly enhance human prosperity not only for the aristocratic class but for all participants in the social contract. Franklin’s “Poor Richard’s Almanac” and Diderot and d’Alembert’s “Encyclopédie” served as the Enlightenment’s machines de guerre, effectively providing broad access to practical knowledge, empowering individuals to build their own unique brand of prosperity.

Keep ReadingShow less
The limits of free speech protections in American broadcasting

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr testifies in Washington on May 21, 2025.

Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Image

The limits of free speech protections in American broadcasting

The chairman of the Federal Communications Commission is displeased with a broadcast network. He makes his displeasure clear in public speeches, interviews and congressional testimony.

The network, afraid of the regulatory agency’s power to license their owned-and-operated stations, responds quickly. They change the content of their broadcasts. Network executives understand the FCC’s criticism is supported by the White House, and the chairman implicitly represents the president.

Keep ReadingShow less
© Copyright 2025