Apr 28 Watch 7:49 The dangerous global flood of misinformation surrounding COVID-19 By John Yang, Sam Lane, Mike Fritz Misinformation and conspiracy theories about COVID-19 have spread rapidly online, creating what some experts are now calling an “infodemic.” Health officials across the globe are scrambling to refute a flood of bogus claims, some of which could have harmful consequences. Continue watching
Apr 06 Watch 5:57 What this inside look at Facebook says about Mark Zuckerberg and his business priorities Wired magazine’s Steven Levy has reported on Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg for years. In his new book, "Facebook: The Inside Story," Levy draws upon that familiarity, as well as a young Zuckerberg's recently unearthed journals, for an intimate look at… Continue watching
Feb 05 FBI director warns of ongoing Russian ‘information warfare’ By Eric Tucker, Associated Press FBI Director Chris Wray says Russia is engaged in "information warfare" heading into the 2020 presidential election. But he says law enforcement hasn't seen ongoing efforts by Russia to interfere in America's election infrastructure. Continue reading
Jan 03 Watch 4:23 How 2020 candidates are grappling with online disinformation By John Yang As the 2020 presidential campaign heats up, candidates are facing an unprecedented challenge: the growing scale and variety of disinformation online. John Yang reports on the difficulty of verifying that content is authentic and not manipulated -- especially when it… Continue watching
Dec 13 Watch 8:15 Are social media giants doing enough to prevent the spread of misinformation? Social media has revolutionized the way we connect and communicate -- and certainly not all for the better. In his new book, “Antisocial: Online Extremists, Techno-Utopians, and the Hijacking of the American Conversation,” Andrew Marantz explores how digital platforms full… Continue watching
Jun 12 Watch 9:37 Why ‘deepfake’ videos are becoming more difficult to detect By Miles O'Brien Sophisticated and inaccurate altered videos known as “deepfakes” are causing alarm in the digital realm. The highly realistic manipulated videos are the subject of a House Intelligence Committee hearing on Thursday. As Miles O’Brien reports, the accelerating speed of computers… Continue watching
Nov 21 Watch 7:45 The long history of Russian disinformation targeting the U.S. From Pizzagate to George Soros conspiracies, “fake news” has become a noxious presence in public discourse, especially since the 2016 presidential election. A recent New York Times video series explores the long history of Russian disinformation and its origins in… Continue watching
Nov 16 Watch 5:49 Did Facebook merely ‘deflect’ after realizing Russian disinformation? A New York Times investigative report published this week details how Facebook reacted to the discovery of massive disinformation campaigns run by Russian operatives. Sheera Frenkel, who helped write the story, joins William Brangham to explain what the social network’s… Continue watching
Oct 23 Watch 6:20 Fact checkers identify increasing rates of false claims by the president At a Monday rally, President Trump made comments about a caravan of Central American migrants that had fact-checkers on the alert. Since the president took office, they’ve identified 2,915 claims that cannot be verified by the truth. Daniel Dale, Washington… Continue watching
Oct 19 Watch 4:03 DOJ announces criminal charges as Russian citizen accused of election interference The first criminal charges alleging foreign interference in next month’s midterm elections have come to light. The Department of Justice has accused a Russian citizen of spreading distrust about American policies, candidates and debates while managing finances for a social… Continue watching