Media Literacy

commentary

How Can Platforms Deal with Toxic Content? Look to Wall Street

Social media has a content problem. It's not the content itself, although the list of toxic material is long. The problem is the sheer volume of content. Instead of trusting in self-regulation, the United States could use its regulation of Wall Street after 2008 as a roadmap for regulating tech.

James V. Marrone

commentary

The Changing Landscape of Health Literacy During the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Viral Transmission of Knowledge and Information Around COVID-19

With the official public health emergency ended, now is a good time to reflect on the changing landscape of health literacy and consider how we can improve health communication in the future.

Julia Bandini, Lucy B. Schulson, et al.

commentary

ChatGPT's Work Lacks Transparency and That Is a Problem

In a world with Large Language Models such as ChatGPT, there is a growing need for modernized data literacy. Developers need to be more transparent about their algorithms and data sources so that people can assess the inherent sources of bias or problems with the approach.

Carter C. Price @CarterCPrice

blog

Dementia Rates, Deepfakes, Migrant Students: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on the decline of dementia rates among Americans, the dangers of deepfakes, data privacy after the reversal of Roe v. Wade, and more.

commentary

America May Not Be Ready for the Looming Tsunami of Deepfakes

Images and videos have been falsified since the first photographs were taken. But deepfakes are fundamentally different. Their realism, and the scale and ease with which they can be produced, make them incredibly potent disinformation tools.

Jared Mondschein @JSMondschein, Christopher Joseph Doss @Chris_J_Doss, et al.

blog

Veterans Health Care, Media Literacy, Sleep Retreats: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on the challenges of VA community care, the importance of improving middle schoolers' media literacy skills, tips to improve sleep, and more.

essay

Improving Media Literacy in Middle School

Middle schoolers can be savvy users of news and information—when they know where to look. But they're also easy marks for misinformation, disinformation, and trolls. Helping them find their way in today's media landscape is important both for their futures and for the future of democracy.

commentary

Facebook Misinformation Is Bad Enough. The Metaverse Will Be Worse

Virtual reality environments such as the metaverse will enable psychological and emotional manipulation of users at a level unimaginable in today's media. We must not wait until these technologies are fully realized to consider appropriate guardrails for them. We can reap the benefits of the metaverse while minimizing its potential for great harm.

Rand Waltzman

commentary

Combating Abortion Misinformation in the Post-Roe Environment

Misinformation could become a major barrier to individuals trying to navigate their way to safe, legal, and quality reproductive care. What might states, health insurers, and technology companies do to address this issue?

Julia Rollison @Julia_Rollison

blog

Gun Policy, China and Taiwan, Russian Propaganda: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on reducing America's unacceptably high rates of gun violence, what would happen if China “quarantines” Taiwan, and Russia's “firehose of falsehood.”

blog

Combating Disinformation by Bolstering Truth and Trust

For Jessica Cecil, founder and former head of the Trusted News Initiative, today feels a bit like the Dark Ages after the fall of the Roman Empire, in which agreed-upon facts endure in only a few isolated places of elite discussion and there is no common language of politics. She spoke about the need for governments, companies, news organizations, and relevant civil society groups to work together to combat disinformation at a meeting of RAND Europe's Council of Advisors.

blog

Russia Will Struggle to Sustain Its Disinformation Machine, Former New York Times/BBC Chief Tells RAND Europe

As former head of the New York Times and the BBC, Mark Thompson has tackled disinformation on both sides of the Atlantic. One of his big takeaways: It's not as easy as you might think to sustain a successful disinformation campaign.

blog

Extremism Online, Russia's Military, Preventing Police Killings: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on the internet's role in stoking extremism and hate, how Russia has failed its military personnel, a research roadmap to help prevent police killings in the United States, and more.

commentary

'Truth Decay' in Europe Is Real, but Its Advance Can Be Slowed

Though present in Europe, the evidence suggests that trends of Truth Decay are not as widespread or as pronounced as they are in the United States. There is still time for policymakers to intervene and limit their growth.

Axelle Devaux, Stijn Hoorens @StijnHoorens

blog

Truth Decay, School Lunch Nutrition, Regulating Space: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on tackling Truth Decay, how tech experts view the military's use of artificial intelligence, a new approach to regulating outer space, and more.