Undergraduate Module Descriptor

ANT3095: Social Media, Disinformation, and Authoritarianism

This module descriptor refers to the 2022/3 academic year.

Overview

NQF Level 6
Credits 15 ECTS Value 7.5
Term(s) and duration

This module will run during term 1 (11 weeks)

Academic staff

Dr Susannah Crockford (Convenor)

Pre-requisites

None

Co-requisites

None

Available via distance learning

No

While it may seem that social media is a neutral platform for sharing information, it can also create, enable, or encourage disinformation. Social media companies like to portray ‘connection’ as an unambiguous social good. However, the process of forming connections online can also have negative effects. In this module, we ask whether people are radicalised via social media, and if it can even lead them to violence. The racial and gender dynamics of social media are explored, and how it varies with culture, language, and nationality. Authoritarian regimes around the world have also employed social media extensively, in this module we investigate how it is used to spread falsehoods and conspiracy theories that enable such regimes to seize or maintain power illegitimately and even mobilise violence against opponents. This topic will appeal to students of the social sciences, politics, and science and technology studies, and it is suitable for interdisciplinary pathways. There are no prerequisites.

Module created

10/1/2022

Last revised

17/02/2022