February 4, 2021 Program Update from Professor Jeff Kelly Lowenstein
New Yorker staff writer Andrew Marantz kicked off the first of this year’s two-part virtual Padnos/Sarosik Civil Discourse Symposium Wednesday with a lively discussion of his reporting about social media platforms, online extremists and American public discourse.
The author of Antisocial: Online Extremists, Techno-Utopians, and the Hijacking of the American Conversation answered questions from current Padnos/Sarosik Endowed Professor Jeff Kelly Lowenstein and from the audience of more than 110 people in the hourlong session.
Marantz writes in the work’s prologue that his book seeks to explain how the unthinkable becomes thinkable. During the conversation he described how online extremists used social media platforms to influence the news cycle in order to advance their political agenda. Reiterating points he has made in recent New Yorker pieces following the January 6 invasion of the U.S. Capitol, he asserted that social media companies like Facebook and Twitter have not taken sufficient action to address these issues. While sounding a cautionary note about the current and future danger to our democracy, Marantz also said that the citizenry can determine our nation’s destiny.
Co-sponsored by the School of Communications, the Big Data Initiative, the Writing Department and the Digital Studies Program, the domestically-focused event will be followed on March 25 by an internationally-oriented presentation. That event will feature the launch of a first-of-its-kind Global Civil Discourse Map built by GVSU Civil Discourse and Computer Science students and presentations by GVSU faculty member Vandana Pednekar-Magal and acclaimed Chilean journalist Alejandra Matus.
November 3, 2020 Program Update from Professor Jeff Kelly Lowenstein
Professor Kelly Lowenstein appeared on Wood TV News 8 to discuss election misinformation and disinformation, and how to spot both.
September 28, 2020 Program Update from Professor Jeff Kelly Lowenstein
One of my central goals during my tenure as Padnos/Sarosik Endowed Professor of Civil Discourse is to help the program forge deeper connections with people in the community outside of Grand Valley.
We took an important step in that direction on Wednesday, September 23.
Padnos/Sarosik board members Ms. Paula Collier and the Rev. Rachel J. Bahr joined DisArt co-founders Jill Vyn and Chris Smit in a robust, informative and engaging conversation titled “The Art of Civil Discourse.” Convened by Lisa Taylor of the West Michigan Public Relations Society of America (WMPRSA) and sponsored by Spectrum Health, the hour-long virtual conversations attended by about 50 people covered a wide range of topics centered on the challenges and possibilities of engaging in civil discourse during this turbulent time in our local, national and international communities.
Each of the panelists spoke with clarity and intelligence, integrating personal experience and professional insight. Key themes included working to make sure a diverse set of voices are included in groups, boards and organizations, how to successfully navigate the tension between comfort and discomfort while tackling controversial topics, the importance of being fully present in those conversations, accepting that civil discourse is an ongoing process, and thinking about how the multiple identities we bring to conversations impact how we enter these discussions.
The session also featured questions from audience members wanting to know how to connect with diverse people if one does not have personal connections with them and what to do when those discussions become overly tense and confrontational. The host of the Southtown Sustainable Women's Group at Seeds of Promise, Collier encouraged people to reach outside of their usual group and tap into the richness people from different communities give to the world. For their part, Rev. Bahr encouraged people to name tension when it arises, to check in on how their bodies are feeling, and to ask everyone how they are doing as a way to de-escalate emotionally charged situations.
The conversation ended on a positive note and with a shared commitment to continue the conversation. I am grateful to Lisa Taylor for reaching out to me, all of the panelists for participating in such a heartfelt and thoughtful manner, and to Padnos/Sarosik Director Lisa Perhamus for her ongoing support.
Our next community conversation will take place at noon ET on Thursday, October 8. Data scientist Adi Eyal and veteran journalist Raymond Joseph will talk about their work investigating the South African lottery and other projects as part of this year’s Big Data Ignite webinar series. The event is free and open to the public.