Thursday, April 13, 2017

Spring Semiosalong Session 4

Session 4: Andreas Ventsel & Mari-Liis Madisson: Affective Communication and Semiotic Mechanisms of Misinformation

Tuesday, April 18

Terms like fake news and alternative facts come from a state of paralysis in the flood of information. The proliferation of conflicting messages, the accelerated news cycle, and technologies of image and video manipulation marginalize verifiability as a criterion of truth. But even in a post-truth world we persist in the belief in our own ability to hear through the static what is really going on. When contradiction interrupts our daily broadcast we reject its sources, ignore its particulars, or troll the sender. In the process we legitimize the polarization of discourse. We do so tongue in cheek, or with fingers crossed behind our back, as if to absolve ourselves from the price. It is easier to dip back into a familiar echo chamber than to recognize the other. Can we extricate ourselves from the self-gratifying feedback loop? Where can semiotics enter into the discussion of the post-truth world?

NB! All remaining sessions for this series will be held at Genialistide Klubi

Poster design by Mehmet Emir Uslu