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Media Democracy and Combatting Misinformation
July/August 2021 Issue
From the Editor
No matter what your first issue is, media democracy is your second
Canadians need to face our history of violence, and we need a mediascape that can help us do this complicated, messy work.
In this Issue
We need stronger anti-monopoly laws if we want to curb corporate influence in the news
Canada is no stranger to dynastic ownership of its media companies
Weaponizing fact-checking: What Canada needs to know
A strong fact-checking industry can stop the normalization of lying and advocate for policy changes. But the weaponization of fact-checking can cause irreversible harm.
Why can’t we know more about what political parties know about us?
As it stands right now, political parties in Canada face little oversight or transparency requirements for the data they collect and create about Canadian citizens.
The media hasn’t even begun to reckon with sexual violence and neither have we
For decades, the media has been circling the issue of sexual violence, mirroring society’s discomfort.
“Whoever controls the media, controls the mind”
Media concentration in [the U.S. and Brazil] has reached phenomenal levels, and it is compounded by the massive spread of pernicious fake news.
A Canada–U.K. deal that protects Big Oil? We should be cheesed off.
A post-CETA free trade deal with the United Kingdom should facilitate decarbonization and a just transition, not get in the way.
Contributors
Authors appearing in this issue
Robert Hackett
Robert Hackett is a CCPA Research Associate, co-founder of Media Democracy Days in 2001, and co-author of Remaking Media: The Struggle to Democratize Public Communication (2006) and Journalism and Climate Crisis: Public Engagement, Media Alternatives (2017).
Robin Shaban
Robin is co-founder and senior economist of Vivic Research, an economic consulting firm that supports agents working toward social justice. Follow her on Twitter at @RobinShaban.
Abde Amr
Abde Amr (he/him) is a research assistant at Simon Fraser University’s Disinformation Project at the School of Communication. He examines fake news discourses on Canadian news media and social media. Follow him on Twitter at @AbdelrahmanAmr.
Sophie Birks
Sophie Birks is a writer and researcher from Montreal, and can be found on Twitter at @sophiejeanbirks.
Trevor Deley
Trevor Deley (he/him) is a PhD candidate in e-business at the University of Ottawa. He has a BSc in neuroscience, an MSc in biology and data science, and was a software developer at IBM.
Sabrina Wilkinson
Sabrina Wilkinson (she/her) is a researcher and writer interested in digital policy. She holds a PhD in media and communications. Follow her on Twitter at @sabwilkinson.
Róisín West
Róisín (they/she) is the Senior Editor of the Monitor and Behind the Numbers. They write about disability and accessibility, civic engagement, and media. Find them on Twitter at @RoisinWest.
Stuart Trew
Stuart Trew (he/him) is the Director of the CCPA's Trade and Investment Research Project and the former Editor of the Monitor. Find him on twitter at @StuJT.
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