Thursday, September 5, 2024 at 7:30 PM EST
Baikar Building Main Hall downstairs (Norseman Ave. entrance)
755 Mt. Auburn Street, Watertown, MA, 02472

FEATURED SPEAKER:

Maria Titizian, Yerevan-based writer, journalist, and educator.

Her talk will tackle a variety of topics in fighting misinformation. Establishing effective mechanisms to combat misinformation amid ongoing hybrid warfare and persistent security crises can be challenging for any country, especially for small states. In Armenia, a transitional democracy seeking to consolidate its political system, the population is struggling with post-war trauma while having to confront constant threats by hostile, non-democratic neighbors. The prevalence of fake news and coordinated disinformation campaigns — both external and internal — has impacted perceptions about security, while public trust in the media is at record-low levels in the country. Strategies and policies are being implemented to combat false narratives, but how effective are they in a polarized society and when decontextualized news and information on social media platforms are pervasive?

In addition, the talk will discuss the possible guardrails against misinformation to build a more resilient and informed society, especially in the context of the ongoing security crisis in Armenia. She will address key events in recent history, including the 2020 Artsakh War and Azerbaijan’s subsequent incursions into Armenia, the 2023 ethnic cleansing of Nagorno-Karabakh, and Russia’s hybrid threats against Armenia.