The challenges raised by disinformation have been continuously changing in the past year. The rapid evolution of AI technologies and the evolving policies of social media platforms have posed significant challenges to the effective study of online disinformation. Nonetheless, the recent developments in EU regulations have introduced a range of innovative tools that show promise in combatting hostile information operations, especially in the lead-up to the 2024 European elections.
The EMIF Autumn Event will be an opportunity to gather the European community of factcheckers, media literacy practitioners, researchers, and journalists working to counter disinformation. Over the past two years, EMIF has supported the community by funding 70 European initiatives in the action areas of fact-checking, media literacy, research, and investigations.
Across the span of a day and a half, numerous EMIF initiatives will showcase their projects and their impact. The event will feature multiple panels and discussions focusing on the lessons learned from previous initiatives and other critical themes related to countering disinformation, including elections, European regulations, climate change, and technological progress. Additionally, the occasion will be an opportunity to acknowledge the work done by the European Digital Media Observatory (EDMO) and its network of national and regional Hubs.
Programme:
Thursday 16 November
- 14:00 – Welcome coffee and registration
- 15:00 – 15:15 - Opening Remarks
- Marco Del Panta (Secretary-General of the EUI; Chair of the Steering Committee, EMIF)
- 15:15 – 15:30 - Keynote Speech
- Vera Jourová (VP of the European Commission for Values and Transparency) (online)
- 15:30 – 16:30 - Panel 1 – Regulating Disinformation in the European Media Landscape
- Moderated by Pier Luigi Parcu (Director, CMPF – EUI)
- Ricardo Gutiérrez (General Secretary, European Federation of Journalists)
- Alberto Rabbachin (Deputy Head of Unit, European Commission)
- Sabine Verheyen (MEP, Group of the European People's Party)
- Clara Jiménez Cruz (Chair, EFCSN)
- Lara Levet (Public Policy Manager, EU Affairs, Meta)
- 16:30 – 16:45 - Coffee Break
- 16:45–17:45 - Panel 2 – Lessons Learned and Future Avenues for Countering Disinformation
- Moderated by Konrad Bleyer-Simon (Research Associate, CMPF – EUI)
- Lutz Güllner (Head of Strategic Communications, European External Action Service)
- Christophe Leclercq (Director, Europe’s Media Lab)
- Maria Giovanna Sessa (Research Manager, EU DisinfoLab)
- Stephanie Burnett (Digital Verification Editor, Reuters)
- 17:45-18:00 - Closing Remarks
- Paolo Cesarini (Programme Director, STG – EUI)
- 18:00 – 19:00 - Cocktail reception
Friday 17 November
09:00 – 09:20 - Welcome Coffee
09:20 – 09:35 - Opening Session
- Pedro Calado (Chair of the Management Committee, EMIF)
09:35 – 10:50 - Grantee Presentation Round I
Fact-checking (Introduced by Bernardo Graça, EMIF Project Manager)
- Fact-Checking to Improve Media Coverage of the Arctic in Europe
- Dwayne Menezes (Founder and Managing Director, Polar Research and Policy Initiative)
- Niels Arne Johnsen (Member of the Advisory Board, Polar Connection)
- FRAME (Fact-checking Reinforced by AI for Media Outlets)
- Emma Cacciamani (Vice-President, Les Surligneurs)
- Juliette Toussaint (Partnerships Manager, Les Surligneurs)
Investigations (Introduced by Julia Savchenko, EUI Policy Leader Fellow)
- VRBETICE Case Study
- Radovan Geist (Expert, EuroPolicy Institute)
- OMEDIALITERACY
- Santiago Tejedor Calvo (Professor, Autonomous University of Barcelona)
- Albert Sarabia Tarraga (Researcher, Autonomous University of Barcelona)
10:50 – 11:00 - Coffee Break
11:00 – 12:15 - Grantee Presentation Round II Research (Introduced by Djau Saliu, EMIF Project Manager)
- DISINFTRUST
- Jaume Suau Martínez (Leading researcher, DIGILAB, Blanquerna, Universitat Ramon Llull)
- Sara Estevez Manteiga (Machine Learning Engineer, Newtral Media)
- Luis Espinosa (Lecturer, University of Cardiff)
- LATIF Project
- Elena Musi (Associate Professor, University of Liverpool)
- Mariavittoria Masotina (Postdoctoral Researcher, University of Liverpool)
- Lorenzo Federico (Data Scientist, Luiss University)
12:15 – 13:30 - Parallel Workshops
Effective Communication of Project Results (Refettorio)
- Mariaclaudia Carella (Communications Officer, STG-EUI)
Tools for Data Analysis and Visualization (Tableau, Elicit, Semantic Scholar) (Sala del Capitolo)
- Pep Torn, Director of EUI Library
- Andrea Maniscalco, Head of HR, Training & Communities, Visualitics
- Danilo De Rosa, Business Intelligence Consultant and Trainer, Visualitics
13:30 – 14:30 - Networking Lunch
14:30 - 15:30 - Thematic Breakout Sessions
Session I – The Interplay Between the EMFA, the Code of Practice, and Media Pluralism in Europe (Seminar Room 3)
- Iva Nenadic (Research Fellow, CMPF – EUI)
- Sebastián Becker (Policy Advisor, European Digital Rights)
Rolf Nijmeijer (EMIF Research Associate, STG-EUI)
Session II – Using Technology to Counter Disinformation (Refettorio)
- Michele Giovanardi (Coordinator of the Global PeaceTech Hub, STG-EUI)
- Kalina Bontcheva (Member of EDMO Advisory Council and Senior Researcher, University of Sheffield)
Lisa Ginsborg (EDMO Research Fellow, STG-EUI)
Session III - Climate Disinformation (Sala del Capitolo)
- Mauro Buonocore (Head of the Communication and Media Office, CMCC)
- John Cook (Senior Research Fellow, Melbourne School of Psychological Sciences)
- Jennie King (Head of ISD Climate Research and Policy, CAAD Coalition)
Paula Gori (EDMO Secretary General, STG-EUI)
15:30 – 16:45 - EDMO Hubs Thematic Session – Disinformation and the 2024 European Elections
- Moderated by Paolo Cesarini (Programme Director, STG-EUI)
- Madeleine de Cock Buning (Chair of the EDMO Advisory Council, STG-EUI)
- Michal Šenk (Researcher, Charles University) for CEDMO
- Ramón Salaverría Aliaga (Professor, University of Navarra) for IBERIFIER
- Eneya Georgieva (Manager of Disinformation Products, Ontotext) for BROD
- Salvatore Custureri (Project Manager, Luiss University) for IDMO
- Andy Demeulenaere (Coordinator, Mediawijs) for EDMO BELUX
16:45 – 17:00 - Coffee break
17:00 – 18:00 - Interactive Townhall on Future EMIF Funding Priorities
- Moderated by Joanna Krawczyk (Deputy Managing Director, GMF; EMIF Management Committee)
- Introduction by Benoît Loutrel (Board Member, ARCOM)
18:00 – 18:15 - Closing Remarks:
- Georgios Papakonstantinou (Acting Director, STG – EUI)