INFO 5330

Technology, Media, and Democracy

Course Description

Course information provided by the Courses of Study 2020-2021.

This course evaluates the role of the information ecosystem in contributing to the health of representative democracies such as the United States, with the goal of developing ideas and tools that can help citizens be equipped with the knowledge and information required to address the challenges that face our society. Specifically, the course examines the socio-technical aspects of our information ecosystem and how they may hinder, or challenge, our democracy, with a specific emphasis on the role of journalism and media in (1) monitoring the platforms (2) providing high-quality, trustworthy information and (3) enabling a healthy public sphere. Key topics include (a) how the design of platforms, algorithms, monetary models, and online communities impacts our information ecosystem (b) Credibility, Trust, and Misinformation - what are some of the challenges for credible and trustworthy information and how can they be addressed; (c) Adversary Online - who are some of the adversarial actors online, what are they goals, methods, and how can they be countered.

When Offered Spring.

Permission Note Enrollment limited to: Cornell Tech students.

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