6:30 p.m.
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Addressing misinformation is one of society’s grand challenges. In so doing, we might have a chance at the other grand challenges—preventing the next pandemic, preserving our planet, and protecting democracy. Humans, armed and amplified with social media, have been the primary producers of misinformation. This may be changing. Human-like chatbots and other forms of generative AI are and will contribute to this problem. It was a hard enough with humans; AI might make pre-2023 look like the good old days of mitigating misinformation. In this talk, I will address some of these new challenges and potential next steps. [AI did not generate this abstract.]
Jevin West, Associate Professor in UW Information School, Co-founder of the DataLab
Jevin West is an Associate Professor in the Information School at the University of Washington. He is the co-founder of the Center for an Informed Public at UW, aimed at resisting strategic misinformation, promoting an informed society and strengthening democratic discourse. His research and teaching focus on the impact of data and technology on science and society, with a focus on slowing the spread of misinformation. He is the co-author of the book, “Calling Bullshit: The Art of Skepticism in a Data-Driven World”, which helps non-experts question numbers, data, and statistics without an advanced degree in data science.