LWV-Downeast hosts a monthly radio program on democracy in cooperation with WERU FM. This month, we will talk about our information ecosystem and how it's contributed to this very divisive moment in American politics: how did it go wrong, can we fix it? Can liberal democracy survive the Internet? What role do mis- and dis-information, social media, media silos, and alternative realities play in fostering extremism? How are these issues playing out right here in real-world Maine? How can we find common ground and share purpose in a democracy when we consume information that promotes false narratives and alternative facts. What remedies are suggested by research?
Special Guests: Ronald Deibert is Professor of Political Science and Director of the Citizen Lab at the Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto. His new book is Reset: Reclaiming the Internet for Civil Society. Andy O'Brien is a freelance journalist for the magazine, Mainer, where he has been reporting on far-right groups in Maine. His writings have been published in Down East, Huffington Post, and Labor Notes. He is also a former Maine state legislator, former managing editor of the Free Press in Rockland, and the current communications director for the Maine AFL-CIO.
This show will be pre-recorded; no listener calls will be taken. Comments and questions may be emailed to news@weru.org with Democracy Forum on the subject line.
WERU 89.9 FM Blue Hill, streaming at weru.org