Evanston, Ill. — President Biden gave a speech yesterday in Washington, D.C., in which he warned that America would be on a “path to chaos” if Republican politicians and candidates continue to encourage political violence and cast doubt on the electoral process and outcome of the 2020 election and future elections.
Northwestern University experts are available to discuss how and why misinformation spreads, how to educate voters about its risks and the threats that it poses to the American political system.
David Rapp is a professor of psychology in the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences. He is an expert on how people process information, why it is difficult to debunk false claims and the role played by memory and language in cognition. He can be reached by contacting Max Witynski at [email protected].
Quote from Professor Rapp
“Work in my lab and others has shown that merely presenting inaccurate claims can be influential, leading people to doubt the truth, be confused about what is likely to be true, and in the worst case, even rely on inaccurate ideas. When inaccuracies like the ‘Big Lie’ are repeated, even in efforts to reject them (and clearly the ideas are not always rejected when they are reported), it allows for the ideas to remain in information ecosystems.”
Stephanie Edgerly is a professor of journalism in the Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communication. She studies new media, with a focus on Twitter. Her current research...
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