Samuel Woolley on how online manipulation is evolving

Our guest this week is Dr. Samuel Woolley,  a researcher and writer who examines how emerging media tools are used for both democracy and control. He is a faculty member at the University of Texas at Austin and directs the Propaganda Research Lab at UT’s Center for Media Engagement. He has published four books, including the recently released Bots and the forthcoming Manufacturing Consensus: Understanding Propaganda in the Age of Automation and Anonymity. He has testified before the U.S. Congress regarding the impact of electoral disinformation on communities of color. His work has been presented to and cited by the UK Parliament, NATO, and the United Nations.
 
He joined us today to discuss his paper recently published in the Journal of Democracy, Digital Propaganda: The Power of Influencers, which examines how attempts to manipulate public opinion using social media and emerging information communication technologies continue to proliferate and evolve internationally.