This site contains the final projects produced by Vanderbilt students in the Exploring Disinformation in Media and Society seminar, a part of the Vanderbilt Libraries' Buchanan Library Fellows Program.
Fellowship description
From the 2016 presidential election to contemporary conspiracy theories related to the pandemic and politics, much attention has been paid to the role of social media in the rapid spread of disinformation. What exactly is disinformation, though? Is this a new phenomenon, or is it deeply embedded in power structures predating social media? Join this fellowship to explore the role of disinformation in both legacy media and social media, and its effects on society. Through a seminar-style approach, students will follow this open access curriculum, connect theory to contemporary news, and create a podcast as their final project. These podcasts will become part of an ongoing project exploring the intersection of media and society.
Fellowship project
For their final project, students selected a topic of interest related to course discussions and paired up to plan, record, and edit a podcast. In addition to the podcasts, fellows complied a list of further readings on their topics.
Spring 2022 Fellows
| Ming (Kevin) Chen | Chase Mandell |
| Katie Cho | Virali Patel |
| Brooke Gallaway | Annie Wang |
| Biyao Gao | Reya Wang |
| Sarah Beth Huntley | Sophia Yan |
| Morgan Johnson | Justin Yu |
| Shaun Karakkattu | Shiman (Miranda) Zhu |
Mentors
Andrew Wesolek
Bobby Smiley
Melissa Mallon
This podcast examines conspiracy theories and disinformation surrounding the Zika Virus. This podcast is recorded and produced by Justin Yu and Katie Cho.
This podcast explores disinformation in the upcoming (2022) midterm elections and campaigns, as well as examines possible implications for 2022 and the role of partisan media. This podcast is recorded and produced by Brooke Gallaway, Chase Mandell, and Reya Wang.
This podcast looks at misinformation and disinformation in the media during times of war, using the Russia-Ukraine war as a case study. This podcast is recorded and produced by Biyao Gao, Kevin Cen, Annie Wang, and Miranda Zhu.
This podcast examines how entertainment media contributes to misinformation through the perpetuation of stereotypes of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and people of color) and other underrepresented groups. This podcast is recorded and produced by Sarah Beth Huntley, Morgan Johnson, and Virali Patel.
This podcast discusses the spread of misinformation via immigrants through information platforms such as Whatsapp, Facebook, Wechat, and NextDoor, examining trends and takeaways. This podcast is recorded and produced by Shan Karakkatuu and Sophia Yan.
