Cambridge Disinformation Summit (2023)
27 Jul 2023
08:30 -22:00
28 Jul 2023
08:30 -21:45
GMT+1
By invitation only
King's College
King’s Parade
Cambridge
CB2 1ST
United Kingdom
Overview
Strategic disinformation is an accelerant for major societal problems such as climate change, extremism, polarisation, fraud, and suppression of rights. It is exploited across all information dissemination platforms, including social media, news media, financial and non-financial reporting, and other broadcast vehicles.
The purpose of the conference is to convene global thought leaders from psychology, journalism, financial reporting, political science, and related information science fields to discuss:
- the societal impact of strategic disinformation
- methods used to disseminate disinformation
- the psychology of entrenched belief systems
- means to mitigate disinformation efficacy
Listen to Professor Alan Jagolinzer’s opening comments, during the Cambridge Disinformation Summit on 27 July 2023.
Programme
Thursday 27 July 2023
08:30 – 08:45
Conference welcome
King’s College Hall
This session will discuss the objectives of the Summit, including a vision for future interdisciplinary research, curriculum, and policy project collaboration.
- Alan Jagolinzer, Professor of Financial Accounting, Co-Director, Cambridge Centre for Financial Reporting & Accountability
08:45 – 09:15
Disinformation: definition, history, strategy, consequences
King’s College Hall
This session will define key terms and offer important historical perspective regarding disinformation strategy and consequences.
- Stephen Jolly, Former senior British Defence official; Fellow Commoner, St Edmund’s College, Cambridge; Senior Adviser, Reputation Inc., Oslo
09:15 – 10:15
Belief systems: why is disinformation effective?
King’s College Hall
This session will offer key psychological insights for why and how disinformation can polarise societal groups and entrench people in belief systems.
- Diane Benscoter, Founder, antidote.ngo and author of “Shoes of a Servant – My unconditional Devotion to a Lie”
- Sunita Sah, Professor of Management Studies, Cornell University SC Johnson College of Business
- Sander van der Linden, Professor of Social Psychology in Society, University of Cambridge
10:15 – 10:45
Break
10:45 – 12:00
Societal implications of disinformation
King’s College Hall
This session will offer current perspectives regarding the effects of disinformation on climate, health, business, and democracy.
- Abdullahi Alim, Head of Project 2030 at the International Chamber of Commerce
- Todd Helmus, Senior Behavioural Scientist, RAND Corporation
- Heidi Larson, Professor of Anthropology, Risk and Decision Science, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine & Director, Vaccine Confidence Project
- Gabriella Stern, Director of Communication, World Health Organization
12:00 – 13:00
Lunch
13:00 – 14:00
Platform accountability vs free speech rights
King’s College Hall
This session will offer legal, policy, and societal impact perspectives regarding the balance between information dissemination platform accountability and free speech rights.
- Nerissa Brown, Associate Dean of Graduate Programs and Professor of Accountancy, University of Illinois Gies College of Business
- Julie Inman Grant, Australia eSafety Commissioner
- Agne Kaarlep, Head of Policy at Tremau & Former Policy Officer for Digital Services and Platforms at European Commission
- Stefan Thiel, John Thornely Fellow and Director of Studies in Law, Sidney Sussex College, University of Cambridge
- Jessica Zucker, Director of Online Safety Policy, Ofcom
14:00 – 14:30
Break
14:30 – 15:30
Discerning information credibility: fact-checking, natural language processing, and audit
King’s College Hall
This session will discuss the benefits and limitations of current technology to identify and disclose evidence of false or inaccurate information that may affect society.
- Christabel Cowling, EY UK&I Audit Partner and UK Head of Regulatory and Public Policy
- Andy Dudfield, Head of AI and Interim Chief Executive, Full Fact
- Craig Lewis, Madison S. Wiggington Professor of Finance, Vanderbilt University Owen Graduate School of Management and former Chief Economist at the US Securities and Exchange Commission
- Beth Lambert, Head of Policy and Strategic Accounts, Logically.AI
- Carolina Scarton, Senior Lecturer in Natural Language Processing, University of Sheffield
15:30 – 16:00
Break
16:00 – 17:00
Potential benefits and risks from Generative AI
King’s College Hall
This session will discuss the potential benefits and risks of Generative Alternative Intelligence.
- Stevie Bergman, Senior Research Scientist, Ethics Research Team, DeepMind
- Joe McFadden, Deputy General Counsel at McKinsey & Company
- Daniele Quercia, Head of Responsible AI, Nokia Bell Labs and Professor in Urban Informatics, King’s College London
- Sarah Shirazyan, Lecturer in Law, Stanford Law School and Manager of Content Policy, Meta
19:00 – 22:00
Private showing: The YouTube Effect documentary, with introduction from Alex Winter
The Cambridge Union
This session will discuss the rise of YouTube and its positive and damaging effects on society. Alex Winter, movie actor, director, and producer, will introduce the documentary and answer questions after the viewing.
Friday 28 July 2023
08:30 – 09:30
Profiteering: the business of disinformation
King’s College Hall
This session will discuss the financial and power incentives from disinformation and which actors engage disinformation for profit.
- Emma Briant, Research Affiliate, University of Cambridge Judge Business School Centre for Financial Reporting & Accountability
- Joshua Braun, Associate Professor of Journalism, University of Massachusetts at Amherst
- Henry Friedman, Associate Professor of Accounting, UCLA Anderson School of Management
- Marie Santini, Professor, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro School of Communication
09:30 – 10:30
Journalistic integrity
King’s College Hall
This session will discuss the current state of journalistic integrity, including the effects of economic incentives on news media platforms, and offer recommendations to improve integrity.
- Veena McCoole, VP Communications and Marketing, NewsGuard
- Raju Narisetti, Leader and Publisher, Global Publishing, McKinsey & Company
- Taylor Owen, Beaverbrook Chair in Media, Ethics and Communications, & founding director of The Center for Media, Technology and Democracy, Max Bell, School of Public Policy, McGill University.
- Richard Sambrook, Emeritus Professor, Cardiff University School of Journalism, Media and Culture
10:30 – 11:00
Break
11:00 – 12:00
Micro targeting
King’s College Hall
This session will discuss how to identify micro communities who hold shared beliefs and the societal implications of customising disinformation for these micro communities.
- Ioana Belu, Executive Director, Business Intelligence Unit
- Michael Willis, Management Practice Associate Professor and Director of the Cambridge Executive Master of Accounting Programme
- David Stillwell, Professor of Computational Social Science, University of Cambridge Judge Business School
- Rafi Mendelsohn, VP Marketing, Cyabra
12:00 – 13:00
Lunch
13:00 – 14:00
Open-source intelligence
King’s College Hall
This session will discuss open-source intelligence techniques and current and potential future applications for this technology.
- Dessi Lange-Damianova, Chief Operating Officer, Bellingcat
- Clare Wang, Professor of Accounting and Director of the Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility Research, University of Colorado
14:00 – 14:30
Break
14:30 – 16:00
Combatting disinformation: counterprogramming, inoculation, education, and community
King’s College Hall
This session will discuss the efficacy and promise of methods currently employed to minimise the societal effects of disinformation.
- Brad Badertscher, Deloitte Professor of Accountancy, University of Notre Dame Mendoza College of Business
- Bram Alkema, COO of DROG Group
- Stephan Lewandowsky, Chair in Cognitive Psychology, School of Psychological Science, University of Bristol
- Andrea Liebman, Senior Analyst, Lead Social Media, Swedish Psychological Defence Agency
- Jussi Toivanen, Head of Communications, Finnish Transport and Communications Agency, National Cyber Security Centre
- Sander van der Linden, Professor of Social Psychology in Society, University of Cambridge
18:00 – 18:45
Drinks
18:45 – 19:30
Keynote: Social media responsibility and accountability
King’s College Hall
This session will discuss perspectives on social media platforms’ responsibility to society.
- Frances Haugen, Advocate for Accountability & Transparency in Social Media and Co-Founder of Beyond the Screen
Discussion facilitated by Brian Klaas, Associate Professor in Global Politics, University College London
19:30 – 19:45
Closing comments
King’s College Hall
- Alan Jagolinzer, Professor of Financial Accounting, Co-Director, Cambridge Centre for Financial Reporting & Accountability
19:45 – 21:45
Dinner
King’s College Hall
Dinner keynote
Frances Haugen
Advocate for Accountability & Transparency in Social Media and Co-Founder of Beyond the Screen
Speakers
Abdullahi Alim
Head of Project 2030 at the International Chamber of Commerce
Bram Alkema
COO of DROG Group
Brad Badertscher
Deloitte Professor of Accountancy, University of Notre Dame Mendoza College of Business
Ioana Belu
Executive Director, Business Intelligence Unit
Diane Benscoter
Founder, antidote.ngo and author of “Shoes of a Servant – My Unconditional Devotion to a Lie”
Stevie Bergman
Senior Research Scientist, Ethics Research Team, DeepMind
Robert Bloomfield
Nicholas H. Noyes Professor of Management, Cornell University SC Johnson College of Business
Joshua Braun
Associate Professor of Journalism, University of Massachusetts at Amherst
Emma Briant
Research Affiliate, University of Cambridge Judge Business School Centre for Financial Reporting & Accountability
Nerissa Brown
Associate Dean of Graduate Programs and Professor of Accountancy, University of Illinois Gies College of Business
Christabel Cowling
EY UK&I Audit Partner and UK Head of Regulatory and Public Policy
Andy Dudfield
Head of AI and Interim Chief Executive, Full Fact
Henry Friedman
Associate Professor of Accounting, UCLA Anderson School of Management
Alexandra Geese
Member, European Parliament
Julie Inman Grant
Australia eSafety Commissioner
Todd Helmus
Senior Behavioural Scientist, RAND Corporation
Alan Jagolinzer
Professor of Financial Reporting, University of Cambridge Judge Business School
Stephen Jolly
Former senior British Defence official; Fellow Commoner, St Edmund’s College, Cambridge; Senior Adviser, Reputation Inc., Oslo
Agne Kaarlep
Head of Policy at Tremau & Former Policy Officer for Digital Services and Platforms at European Commission
Brian Klaas
Associate Professor in Global Politics, University College London
Beth Lambert
Head of Policy and Strategic Accounts, Logically.AI
Dessi Lange-Damianova
Chief Operating Officer, Bellingcat
Heidi Larson
Professor of Anthropology, Risk and Decision Science, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine & Director, Vaccine Confidence Project
Stephan Lewandowsky
Chair in Cognitive Psychology, School of Psychological Science, University of Bristol
Craig Lewis
Madison S. Wiggington Professor of Finance, Vanderbilt University Owen Graduate School of Management and former Chief Economist at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
Andrea Liebman
Senior Analyst, Lead Social Media, Swedish Psychological Defence Agency
Veena McCoole
VP Communications and Marketing, NewsGuard
Joe McFadden
Deputy General Counsel at McKinsey & Company
Rafi Mendelsohn
VP Marketing, Cyabra
Raju Narisetti
Leader and Publisher, Global Publishing, McKinsey & Company
Taylor Owen
Beaverbrook Chair in Media, Ethics and Communications, & founding director of The Center for Media, Technology and Democracy, Max Bell, School of Public Policy, McGill University.
Daniele Quercia
Head of Responsible AI, Nokia Bell Labs and Professor in Urban Informatics, King’s College London
Sunita Sah
Professor of Management Studies, Cornell University SC Johnson College of Business
Richard Sambrook
Emeritus Professor, Cardiff University School of Journalism, Media and Culture
Marie Santini
Professor, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro School of Communication
Carolina Scarton
Senior Lecturer in Natural Language Processing, University of Sheffield
Sarah Shirazyan
Lecturer in Law, Stanford Law School and Manager of Content Policy, Meta
Gabriella Stern
Director of Communications, World Health Organization
David Stillwell
Professor of Computational Social Science, University of Cambridge Judge Business School
Stefan Thiel
John Thornely Fellow and Director of Studies in Law, Sidney Sussex College, University of Cambridge
Jussi Toivanen
Head of Communications, Finnish Transport and Communications Agency, National Cyber Security Centre
Sander van der Linden
Professor of Social Psychology in Society, University of Cambridge
Clare Wang
Professor of Accounting and Director of the Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility Research, University of Colorado
Michael Willis
Management Practice Associate Professor and Director of the Cambridge Executive Master of Accounting Programme
Alex Winter
Director, writer, movie actor, and founder of Trouper Productions, which produces documentaries
Jessica Zucker
Director of Online Safety Policy, Ofcom
Advisory board
- Abdullahi Alim, Head of Project 2030 at the International Chamber of Commerce
- Brad Badertscher, Deloitte & Touche Professor of Accountancy, University of Notre Dame
- Robert Bloomfield, Nicholas H. Noyes Professor of Management, Cornell University SC Johnson College of Business
- Hui Chen, Professor of Accounting, University of Zurich
- Angus Crawford, Correspondent, BBC News
- Stephen Cushion, Director of Postgraduate Research, School of Journalism, Media and Culture, Cardiff University
- Mark de Rond, Professor of Organisational Ethnography, Cambridge Judge Business School
- Peter Easton, Director, Center for Accounting Research & Education, University of Notre Dame
- Michelle Ferrier, Executive Director, Media Innovation Collaboratory; Professor, FAMU School of Journalism & Graphic Communication; Founder of TrollBusters
- Duncan Green, Professor of Practice in International Development, London School of Economics; Senior Strategic Adviser, Oxfam GB
- Alan Jagolinzer, Professor of Financial Accounting, Co-Director, Cambridge Centre for Financial Reporting & Accountability
- Stephen Jolly, Professeur Agrégé de Géopolitique, ESC Rennes School of Business, Grande École; Fellow Commoner, St Edmund’s College, Cambridge; former senior British Defence official and propagandist
- Brian Klaas, Associate Professor in Global Politics, University College London
- Sander van der Linden, Professor of Social Psychology in Society and Director, Cambridge Social Decision-Making Laboratory, University of Cambridge
- Miriam Matthews, Senior Behavioral and Social Scientist, RAND Corporation
- Sarah McVay, Deloitte & Touche Endowed Professor in Accounting, University of Washington Foster School of Business
- Joseph Pierre, MD, Health Sciences Clinical Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California at San Francisco
- Rafael Rogo, Professor of Accounting, Co-Director, Cambridge Centre for Financial Reporting & Accountability
- Thomas Roulet, University Senior Lecturer in Organisation Theory, University of Cambridge Judge Business School
- Sunita Sah, Associate Professor of Management and Organizations, Cornell University
- Marietje Schaake, International Policy Director, Stanford University Cyber Policy Center; International Policy Fellow at Stanford’s Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence; former Member of European Parliament.
- David Stillwell, Lecturer in Big Data Analytics and Quantitative Social Science, Cambridge Judge Business School; Academic Director, The Psychometrics Centre, University of Cambridge
- Ben Taylor, Global Climate Change and Sustainability Services Strategy Partner, EY London
- Kate Wilkinson, Senior Product Manager, Full Fact
The Advisory Board membership is evolving and subject to change.
Partners
The Centre for Financial Reporting & Accountability and the Psychometrics Centre are partnering with Mendoza College of Business, the Center for Accounting Research & Education, the University of Zurich and the Journal of Financial Reporting.
