DIGITAL FUTURES WORKSHOP: Philip M. Napoli, Duke University Via Zoom | Register here | or email quello@msu.edu Debates about political bias in the content curation and moderation practices of social media platforms have spilled over into the policy realm, rekindling conversations about the Fairness Doctrine and its potential utility in possible regulatory approaches to social media.  This presentation revisits the history of the Fairness Doctrine, including its frequent recurrence as a point of reference in subsequent media policy debates, and uses this history as a lens for critically examining current proposals for integrating Fairness Doctrine-like principles into a regulatory framework for […]

DIGITAL FUTURES WORKSHOP: Ruth Shillair, Michigan State University & Quello Center and William Dutton, Oxford University Via Zoom | RSVP Here | or email quello@msu.edu Governments and international organizations are focusing increasing attention on building the capacity of nations to withstand threats to the security of the Internet and related digital resources on which nearly all actors within their country increasingly depend. However, there are major questions surrounding such initiatives, such as the return on the investment in capacity building and any unintended consequences on such central issues as privacy and freedom of expression. The Oxford Global Cybersecurity Capacity Centre (GCSCC) and their partners […]

DIGITAL FUTURES WORKSHOP: Robin Mansell, London School of Economics and Political Science and W. Edward Steinmueller, University of Sussex Via Zoom | RSVP Here | or email quello@msu.edu Platform companies such as Google, Facebook and Amazon are the giants of the post-industrial age. They are replacing the physical artefacts of media, transforming business models and challenging bricks and mortar retail establishments. These large-scale changes have negative as well as positive consequences and they are creating challenges for policy makers. The new ordering of markets is likely a first step in the use of data these companies are accumulating about preferences, social interconnections, […]