Disinformation in Local Elections: How to spot it and what you can do
Speakers
America’s architects viewed the press as essential to our democracy, including it in the first article of our Bill of Rights.
And yet today we are faced with consistent attacks on credible news and information. Factual, accurate reporting is literally being replaced by Russian bots feeding us false information via our social media feeds.
But this is not what you’ll find in The Sacramento Bee or The San Luis Obispo Tribune. Journalists at McClatchy’s five California news organizations — which also include The Fresno Bee, The Modesto Bee and The Merced Sun-Star — are doing essential reporting around the clock, seven days a week. They’re reporting on how the coronavirus is impacting us by ZIP code and what school districts are doing to ensure equitable access to remote learning.
News organizations across the country are rooting out corruption in local government and forcing people in power to share information.
Many have never had more people reading their stories, viewing videos and listening to podcasts — because local news has never been more important.
Please join us for a live event at 12:30 p.m. Sept. 30, where we will share examples of disinformation in California’s local elections, and strategies for spotting it as you look to make the best possible decisions for your community in November. We will give you a roadmap for spotting false claims and help you learn how to set the record straight.
We will also bring together disinformation experts from technology and academia, including event partners Fresno State, Microsoft, Sacramento State, local reporters and lawmakers to discuss how we can navigate with confidence an election unlike any other.
Please join us. You can sign up here. Thanks, as always, for your support of local news.
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What: Disinformation in Local Elections: How to spot it and what you can do
When: 12:30 p.m. Sept. 30
Where: This free event will livestream on sacbee.com, as well as fresnobee.com, modbee.com, sanluisobispo.com and mercedsunstar.com.
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Dr. Richard Pan is a pediatrician, former UC Davis educator, and state senator representing Sacramento, West Sacramento, Elk Grove and unincorporated areas of Sacramento County. He chairs the Senate Committee on Health and the Budget and Fiscal Review Subcommittee on Health and Human Services as well as the Senate Select Committee on the 2020 United States Census. Dr. Pan co-founded and served as chair of Healthy Kids Healthy Future, where he helped secure health, dental and vision coverage for over 65,000 children in the Sacramento area.
Hannah Wiley joined The Sacramento Bee in February 2019 to cover the California Capitol and state politics. She reports on the state’s housing crisis, education equity, homelessness initiatives and police accountability. In the last year and a half, she’s reported extensively on the state’s anti-vaccine movement, and how activists have partnered with alt-right coalitions to build their campaign and influence decision-makers in the Capitol.
Jevin West is an associate professor in the Information School at the University of Washington. He is the co-founder of the DataLab and the director of the new Center for an Informed Public at UW. His research and teaching focus on the impact of 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.”
Kim L. Nalder, PhD, is a professor of political science at California State University, Sacramento. She serves as executive director of the CalSpeaks Poll at Sacramento State and directs a nonpartisan voter information organization, the Project for an Informed Electorate. Her research focuses on misinformation, fact checks, and gendered perceptions of candidates and has been featured in The Economist, Vox.com and Wired.
Ashish Jaiman is the Director of Technology and Operations in the Customer Security and Trust organization at Microsoft, focusing on the Defending Democracy Program. Jaiman’s mission is to help customers to improve their security posture and defend against cyber-attacks. He is currently working on disinformation defense and deepfakes intervention strategy and its impact on society and democracy.
Jim Boren is the executive director of the Institute for Media and Public Trust at Fresno State, where he teaches journalism. He founded the Media Institute after retiring in 2018 as executive editor of The Fresno Bee. The Media Institute’s mission is to improve media literacy, develop strategies for identifying fake news and bridge the trust gap between media outlets and news consumers.
Moderator: Lauren Gustus
Editor & President of The Sacramento Bee and West Region Editor for McClatchy
Moderator: Gil Duran
California Opinion Editor for The Sacramento Bee
