Information Integrity, Democratic Decline, & the Climate Crisis

Catalog description

This course will unpack three era-defining challenges - information integrity, democratic decline, and the climate crisis - showing how they interrelate and must be addressed in tandem. Module 1 (The Origins and Evolution of Climate Disinformation) will map the narratives and tactics used to prevent, weaken, and politicize climate action over time. We will trace orchestrated deception to its origins in the mid-20th century, then show how this agenda has leveraged and shaped modern information spaces and climate discourse and link these tactics to those used in other sectors. For the latter, we will especially consider where stakeholders have converged across the Carbon Economy and Attention Economy, creating new incentives and opportunities for each group. Module 2 (Information Ecosystems and Democratic Practice) will contextualize mis- and disinformation as a social phenomenon with both demand and supply dynamics. Students will interrogate their own media habits, including the potential outcomes of a 'personalized web', as well as the psychology undergirding conspiracy movements and the various financial, ideological, and political motives therein. We will explore how the architecture of online platforms can drive individual and societal harm, and where oversight should lie for our 'digital public square'. This includes the emergence of new technologies, such as AI, and how these may compound or diversify risk. In Module 3 (Information Integrity and Climate Action: Systemic Responses), students will debate the merits and pitfalls of tackling these issues through top-down approaches, like regulation or legal liability, and bottom-up approaches, like education or strategic communications. Classwork and assignments will be highly practical, helping students inhabit the role of key decision-makers: from social media executives to local lawmakers, confused citizens to…