Matthew Baum

ABSTRACT: This lecture explores the problem of misinformation, with a focus on its origins, prevalence and consequences for domestic and international politics and public health. After a brief historical overview, I will then ask the question: How big of a problem is it? Here I will consider the potential difference between how serious a problem it is perceived to be, and how big a problem it actually is. I will present a case study of the anti-vax movement, from its origins to the present, as well as survey data from the U.S. and globally. I will then consider where it comes from, how most people encounter it, and why they share it. I will discuss recent research findings focused on each of these questions. Finally, I will turn to the question of what we can do about it.

Biography:

Matthew A. Baum (Ph.D., UC San Diego, 2000) is the Marvin Kalb Professor of Global Communications and Professor of Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School. His research focuses on the domestic politics of foreign policy, political communication, misinformation, and the relationship between mental health and political extremism. His research has in a wide variety of leading scholarly journals, His most recent book is War and Democratic Constraint: How the Public Influences Foreign Policy (2015, Princeton University Press, with Phil Potter). He is co-founder and co-editor of the Harvard Kennedy School Misinformation Review and co-founder of the Combatting Fake News: The Science of Misinformation Google Group, an online community of over 700 misinformation researchers.

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