Manufacturing Consensus: Propaganda in the Era of Automation and Anonymity

BookPeople welcomes Samuel Woolley in conversation with Josephine Lukito to celebrate the release of Manufacturing Consensus: Propaganda in the Era of Automation and Anonymity. The event will include a moderated discussion, an audience Q&A, and a signing line.

EVENT INFO:

• This event is free and open to the public.
  • Start time: 7 P.M.
  • Run time: 45-60 minutes, followed by a signing line.
  • Location: The Second Floor of BookPeople
• The author will be signing copies of their book after the speaking portion of the event.
  • To get a book signed, a copy of the event book or an item of equal value must be purchased from BookPeople.

EVENT GUIDELINES:

• Seating will be on a first-come, first-served basis.
• There will not be a live stream or recording available.
• BookPeople reserves the right to cancel or postpone this event if necessary.
• If you have any other questions, please email us at online@bookpeople.com

ABOUT MANUFACTURING CONSENSUS: PROPAGANDA IN THE ERA OF AUTOMATION AND ANONYMITY:

An in-depth exploration of social media and emergent technology that details the inner workings of modern propaganda

Until recently, propaganda was a top-down, elite-only system of communication control used largely by state actors. Samuel Woolley argues that social media has democratized today’s propaganda, allowing nearly anyone to launch a fairly sophisticated, computationally enhanced influence campaign. Woolley shows how social media, with its anonymity and capacity for automation, allows a wide variety of groups to build the illusion of popularity through computational tools (such as bots) and human-driven efforts (such as sockpuppets—real people assuming false identities online—and partisan influencers). They use these technologies and strategies to create a bandwagon effect by bringing the content into parallel discussions with other legitimate users, or to mold discontent for political purposes.

Drawing on eight years of original international ethnographic research among the people who build, combat, and experience these propaganda campaigns, Woolley presents an extensive view of the evolution of computational propaganda, offers a glimpse into the future, and suggests pragmatic responses for policy makers, academics, technologists, and others.

ABOUT SAMUEL WOOLLEY:

Dr. Samuel Woolley is assistant professor of journalism and media, program director of the Propaganda Research Lab, and Knight Faculty Fellow at the Center for Media Engagement at the University of Texas at Austin. He is the author of The Reality Game: How the Next Wave of Technology Will Break the Truth.

ABOUT JOSEPHINE LUKITO:

Dr. Josephine (“Jo”) Lukito is an Assistant Professor at the University of Texas at Austin’s School of Journalism and Media in the Moody College of Communication. Jo specializes in research on malicious political language in the public sphere, focusing on cross-platform flows of messages and frames about global economic and political issues.

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Thank you for supporting Samuel Woolley, Josephine Lukito, and your local independent bookstore!