ICE representatives speak in the Americas about AI and combating disinformation

Marco Schneider and Arthur Bezerra, president and vice-president of ICIE, were in Cuba and the USA, respectively, talking about the Artificial Intelligences challenges and the Age of Disinformation.

With intense programming on Cuban soil, Marco Schneider participated in the third edition of the “Coloquio Internacional Patria”, which took place during the Cuban Press Day celebrations, from March 18 to 20, in Havana. The event brought together communication researchers, journalists, digital creators, designers and artists from 15 countries under the theme “Communicate with meaning”.

The president of ICIE traveled at the invitation of the Union of Journalists of Cuba and participated in a panel on “Artificial Intelligence and the legal, economic, narrative and technological challenges of activism in networks in the Global South”. Current events and possibilities for a New International Order of Information and Communication were also discussed on the occasion, such as that proposed by UNESCO’s McBride Report in 1980. The Colloquium offered spaces for training, reflection and exchange of experiences on the construction of a better citizenship. informed and the use of tools, resources and recommendations to exercise more critical, ethical and fair digital communication.

Still in Havana, Schneider was invited to speak at the Escuela de Filosofía Zaira Rodríguez Ugidos, at the Cuban Institute of Philosophy. The conference took place on March 19th, with the theme “Reason and artificial intelligence: criticism of the artifices of cunning”. The event, with free entry, was coordinated by the Chair of Critical Thinking and the Zaira Rodríguez Ugidos School of Philosophy. Created in 1984, the Cuban Institute of Philosophy seeks to think philosophically about the alternatives of the Revolution in the conditions of Cuba in the 21st century. The institution carries out theoretical exchanges between the country’s philosophers and brings them closer to the experiences of other countries, in addition to promoting the participation of Cuban philosophers in national and international events.

In the same period, the current vice president of ICIE was at the University of Virginia (UVA). On March 19, Arthur Bezerra spoke about “Critical Information Literacy in the Age of Disinformation” at an event aimed at students from the Department of Media Studies and the Latin American Studies Program (LASP) at UVA. According to Bezerra, “widespread disinformation on digital platforms highlights the importance of individuals’ skills for critical evaluation and ethical use of information. It is these practices that structure the concept of Critical Information Competence, which I have been working on in Brazil for at least ten years.” The researcher says that his talk aims to contribute to the fight against online disinformation through a critical analysis of the current digital ecosystem, pointing out political, economic, cultural and ethical aspects involved in the new disinformation regime.

Arthur is at the North American university at the invitation of Prof. David Nemer, current director of LASP, to develop a post-doctoral internship within the scope of the project “Critical Information Competence for the New Disinformation Regime”, financed by FAPERJ through the Young Scientist of Our State program.

The simultaneous action of the Center’s representatives in countries with such opposing political conditions demonstrates the effort to unite thinkers from different theoretical currents around the urgency of thinking about contemporary issues from the perspective of information and communication ethics. It also cooperates in expanding the network and exchanging experiences between Americas researchers on the topic, as well as in training new communicators and information professionals prepared to deal with emerging technologies and the social transformations that come within their scope.

To find out more about the American events and institutions visited by ICIE representatives, visit:

Website of the “Coloquio Internacional Patria” < https://www.coloquiopatria.cu/>

Website of the Instituto de Filosofia e Escuela de Filosofía Zaira Rodríguez Ugidos < https://www.filosofia.cu/escuela-de-filosofia-zaira-rodriguez-ugidos/>

Website of the Latin American Studies Program (LASP) at University of Virginia (UVA) < https://latinamerican.virginia.edu/>