Loading...

Beyond Post-Communication

Challenging Disinformation, Deception, and Manipulation

by Jim Macnamara (Author)
©2020 Textbook XVI, 302 Pages

Summary

While many analyses have examined disinformation in recent election campaigns, misuse of ‘big data’ such as the Cambridge Analytica scandal, and manipulation by bots and algorithms, most have blamed a few bad actors. This incisive analysis presents evidence of deeper and broader corruption of the public sphere, which the author refers to as post-communication. With extensive evidence, Jim Macnamara argues that we are all responsible for the slide towards a post-truth society. This analysis looks beyond high profile individuals such as Donald Trump, Russian trolls, and even ‘Big Tech’ to argue that the professionalized communication industries of advertising, PR, political and government communication, and journalism, driven by clickbait and aided by a lack of critical media literacy, have systematically contributed to disinformation, deception, and manipulation. When combined with powerful new communication technologies, artificial intelligence, and lack of regulation, this has led to a ‘perfect data storm’. Accordingly, Macnamara proposes that there is no single solution. Rather, he identifies a range of strategies for communication professionals, industry associations, media organizations and platforms, educators, legislators, regulators, and citizens to challenge post-communication and post-truth.

Table Of Contents

  • Cover
  • Title
  • Copyright
  • About the author
  • About the book
  • This eBook can be cited
  • Contents
  • Acknowledgements
  • Introduction
  • Post-Truth and Distrust in a Sea of Information
  • A Perfect Storm Scenario
  • The Framework and Context of This Analysis
  • Methodology and Sources
  • PART 1 Democratic Decline, Deficit, Destabilization
  • 1. Brexit, Trump, ‘Hung Parliaments’, and the Collapse of Public Trust
  • Truth Decay
  • Fake News, Alternative Facts, Misinformation, and Disinformation
  • Partisanship and Polarization
  • The Crisis of Trust
  • Particularized Trust
  • Generalized/Social Trust
  • Political Trust
  • What’s the Problem with Distrust?
  • The Role of Communication in Trust
  • Engagement and Disengagement
  • What’s the Problem with Disengagement?
  • The Collapse of Civility
  • Lack of Listening
  • 2. Post-Truth, Post-Democracy … Post-Politics, Post-Capitalism, Post-Society?
  • Post-Truth
  • What Is Truth?
  • Post-Democracy
  • The End of Democracy?
  • The Relocation of Democracy
  • Post-Media
  • Post-Journalism
  • Post-Representation
  • Post-Politics
  • Post-Capitalism
  • Post-Society
  • Living in the Age of Post-Everything
  • 3. Post-Communication
  • What Is Post-Communication?
  • The Growing Pervasiveness of Post-Communication
  • Spin
  • Merchants of Doubt
  • Toxic Sludge Is Good for You
  • Citizens for a Free Kuwait
  • Weapons of Mass Destruction
  • ‘Black PR’
  • Advertorial and Pay-to-Play
  • Native Advertising
  • Merged Media
  • Greenwashing
  • Behavioural Insights—A Tool for Good or Evil
  • Bell Pottinger
  • Astroturfing
  • Covering Up Corporate Corruption
  • Communication “Tricks” of Public Companies
  • “Washington’s Worst Communicator”
  • Churnalism
  • Yellow Journalism—Muckraking, Sensationalism and Fabrication
  • Partisan Journalism
  • Targeting and Micro-Targeting
  • The Marketization and Politicization of Government Communication
  • Social Media Influencers
  • Fake Accounts and Trolls
  • Weaponizing Social Media
  • Bald-Faced Lies in Advertising
  • Spin, Clickbait, Fabrication, Disinformation—The Escalation to Post-Truth
  • 4. Technologies Turbocharging Post-Communication
  • Social Media—The New Media Monopolies
  • Big Data
  • Data Analytics
  • Cambridge Analytica and Co.
  • Automation
  • Algorithms
  • Bots
  • Artificial Intelligence (AI)
  • Deepfakes and Fake Text—Next Gen Disinformation
  • A Perfect Datastorm Brews
  • PART 2 Rehabilitating Public Communication & the Public Sphere
  • 5. Strategies for a Communicative Society
  • Strategy 1: Self-Regulation by Communication Professionals—Reining in Spin
  • Journalism Futures—Beyond Opinion, Partisanship and PRization
  • Remodelling Public Relations
  • Incorporating Corporate Communication
  • Transparency in Corporate and Owned Media
  • Advertising and Marketing Standards and Codes
  • Government Communication beyond Marketing
  • Political Communication to Address the Relocation of Democracy
  • Strategy 2: Responsibility and Transparency by Publishers and Platforms
  • Human Rights and Intelligence vs. Artificial Intelligence
  • Technology as a Guardian of Technology?
  • International Cooperation—Globalization for Good
  • Strategy 3: Media Literacy for Consumption and Production
  • Overcoming Dunning-Kruger and Third Person Effects
  • Inoculation through Media Literacy for Critical Consumption
  • Media Literacy for Production—Beyond Likes and Follows to Tagging and Snoping
  • Refuting Misinformation and Disinformation
  • Obfuscating as a Way to Sabotage Surveillance
  • Strategy 4: Public Media to Protect the Public Interest
  • The Case for Public Funding of Broadcasting
  • Philanthropic Guardians of Democracy
  • Media Development
  • Strategy 5: Activism and Social Movements
  • The Arab Spring
  • Occupy
  • The Umbrella Movement
  • Climate Change Mobilization
  • Anti-Gun Lobby
  • MySociety
  • LGBTQI+
  • #MeToo
  • Black Lives Matter
  • Fixers—Fixing Themselves
  • Alt-Right
  • Shareholder Activism
  • Strategy 6: Corporate Responsibility and Social Purpose in Business
  • CSR—Responsibility, or Turning Pigs’ Ears into Silk Purses
  • Purpose
  • Responsibility of CEOs—Where the Buck Stops
  • The Rise of CCOs—The Case for Communication Leadership
  • Strategy 7: Research and Analysis
  • The Social Construction of New Realities
  • A New Vision and Narrative
  • Strategy 8: Refuting and Resisting
  • The Empire Strikes Back
  • Strategy 9: Self-Responsibility—It’s Up to You and Me
  • Check Up, Speak Up, Act Up
  • Strategy 10: Regulation and Legislation
  • Advertising and Marketing Regulation and Legislation
  • Public Relations—Uncharted Territory
  • Data Protection and Privacy
  • Regulation of Social Media Platforms
  • Algorithmic Accountability
  • Anti-Trust Action—The Big Stick
  • Freedom of Speech and of Media
  • The Need for Balance
  • Carrots and Sticks
  • 6. Conclusions
  • Complicity
  • A Troubling Technology Track Record
  • A Tipping Point
  • 10 Strategies to Address Post-Communication
  • Our Shared Responsibilities—An Action List
  • Bibliography
  • Index

cover

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Macnamara, Jim, author.

About the author

Jim Macnamara, PhD is a Distinguished Professor in the School of Communication at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) and a leading researcher in evaluation of public communication by governments and corporations through traditional and digital media.

About the book

“In Beyond Post-Communication, Jim Macnamara skilfully dissects the critical role that communication plays in the maintenance of trust, as well as the extent to which it has been abused in an era of spin, fake news, weaponized social media, and post-truth. With the skilled eye of an experienced practitioner, Macnamara not only lays out the problems, but also outlines solutions, from ethical practice and social responsibility to regulation and media activism.”

—Terry Flew, Professor, Queensland University of Technology; President,
International Communication Association (2019–2020)

“Jim Macnamara provides a detailed overview of the complex factors that play into a ‘post-communication’ world. He delivers a comprehensive picture of the scale of the difficulties we face. In response to these challenges, he offers a programme of strategies that all those involved in public communication can engage with and a positive contribution to debate about contemporary public communication that will be of value to scholars and practitioners alike.”

—Lee Edwards, Associate Professor, London School of
Economics and Political Science

While many analyses have examined disinformation in recent election campaigns, misuse of ‘big data’ such as the Cambridge Analytica scandal, and manipulation by bots and algorithms, most have blamed a few bad actors. This incisive analysis presents evidence of deeper and broader corruption of the public sphere, which the author refers to as post-communication. With extensive evidence, Jim Macnamara argues that we are all responsible for the slide towards a post-truth society. This analysis looks beyond high profile individuals such as Donald Trump, Russian trolls, and even ‘Big Tech’ to argue that the professionalized communication industries of advertising, PR, political and government communication, and journalism, driven by clickbait and aided by a lack of critical media literacy, have systematically contributed to disinformation, deception, and manipulation. When combined with powerful new communication technologies, artificial intelligence, and lack of regulation, this has led to a ‘perfect data storm’. Accordingly, Macnamara proposes that there is no single solution. Rather, he identifies a range of strategies for communication professionals, industry associations, media organizations and platforms, educators, legislators, regulators, and citizens to challenge post-communication and post-truth.

This eBook can be cited

This edition of the eBook can be cited. To enable this we have marked the start and end of a page. In cases where a word straddles a page break, the marker is placed inside the word at exactly the same position as in the physical book. This means that occasionally a word might be bifurcated by this marker.

Contents

Acknowledgements

About the Author

Previous Books

Introduction

Post-Truth and Distrust in a Sea of Information

A Perfect Storm Scenario

The Framework and Context of This Analysis

Methodology and Sources

PART 1 Democratic Decline, Deficit, Destabilization

1 Brexit, Trump, ‘Hung Parliaments’, and the Collapse of Public Trust

Truth Decay

Fake News, Alternative Facts, Misinformation, and Disinformation

Partisanship and Polarization

The Crisis of Trust

Particularized Trust

Generalized/Social Trust

Political Trust

What’s the Problem with Distrust?

The Role of Communication in Trust

Engagement and Disengagement

What’s the Problem with Disengagement?

The Collapse of Civility

Lack of Listening

2 Post-Truth, Post-Democracy … Post-Politics, Post-Capitalism, Post-Society?

Post-Truth

What Is Truth?

Post-Democracy

The End of Democracy?

The Relocation of Democracy

Post-Media

Post-Journalism

Post-Representation

Post-Politics

Post-Capitalism

Post-Society

Living in the Age of Post-Everything

3 Post-Communication

What Is Post-Communication?

The Growing Pervasiveness of Post-Communication

Spin

Merchants of Doubt

Toxic Sludge Is Good for You

Citizens for a Free Kuwait

Weapons of Mass Destruction

‘Black PR’

Advertorial and Pay-to-Play

Native Advertising

Merged Media

Greenwashing

Behavioural Insights—A Tool for Good or Evil

Bell Pottinger

Astroturfing

Covering up Corporate Corruption

Communication “Tricks” of Public Companies

“Washington’s Worst Communicator”

Churnalism

Yellow Journalism—Muckraking, Sensationalism and Fabrication

Partisan Journalism

Targeting and Micro-Targeting

The Marketization and Politicization of Government Communication

Social Media Influencers

Fake Accounts and Trolls

Weaponizing Social Media

Bald-Faced Lies in Advertising

Spin, Clickbait, Fabrication, Disinformation—The Escalation to Post-Truth

4 Technologies Turbocharging Post-Communication

Social Media—The New Media Monopolies

Big Data

Data Analytics

Cambridge Analytica and Co.

Automation

Algorithms

Bots

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Deepfakes and Fake Text—Next Gen Disinformation

A Perfect Datastorm Brews

PART 2 Rehabilitating Public Communication & the Public Sphere

5 Strategies for a Communicative Society

Strategy 1: Self-Regulation by Communication Professionals—Reining in Spin

Journalism Futures—Beyond Opinion, Partisanship and PRization

Remodelling Public Relations

Incorporating Corporate Communication

Transparency in Corporate and Owned Media

Advertising and Marketing Standards and Codes

Government Communication beyond Marketing

Political Communication to Address the Relocation of Democracy

Strategy 2: Responsibility and Transparency by Publishers and Platforms

Human Rights and Intelligence vs. Artificial Intelligence

Technology as a Guardian of Technology?

International Cooperation—Globalization for Good

Strategy 3: Media Literacy for Consumption and Production

Overcoming Dunning-Kruger and Third Person Effects

Inoculation through Media Literacy for Critical Consumption

Media Literacy for Production—Beyond Likes and Follows to Tagging and Snoping

Refuting Misinformation and Disinformation

Obfuscating as a Way to Sabotage Surveillance

Details

Pages
XVI, 302
Year
2020
ISBN (PDF)
9781433169212
ISBN (ePUB)
9781433169229
ISBN (MOBI)
9781433169236
ISBN (Softcover)
9781433169205
ISBN (Hardcover)
9781433169199
DOI
10.3726/b15614
Language
English
Publication date
2020 (August)
Published
New York, Bern, Berlin, Bruxelles, Oxford, Wien, 2020. XVI, 302 pp., 3. b/w ill., 3. tables.

Biographical notes

Jim Macnamara (Author)

Jim Macnamara, PhD is a Distinguished Professor in the School of Communication at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) and a leading researcher in evaluation of public communication by governments and corporations through traditional and digital media.

Previous

Title: Beyond Post-Communication
book preview page numper 1
book preview page numper 2
book preview page numper 3
book preview page numper 4
book preview page numper 5
book preview page numper 6
book preview page numper 7
book preview page numper 8
book preview page numper 9
book preview page numper 10
book preview page numper 11
book preview page numper 12
book preview page numper 13
book preview page numper 14
book preview page numper 15
book preview page numper 16
book preview page numper 17
book preview page numper 18
book preview page numper 19
book preview page numper 20
book preview page numper 21
book preview page numper 22
book preview page numper 23
book preview page numper 24
book preview page numper 25
book preview page numper 26
book preview page numper 27
book preview page numper 28
book preview page numper 29
book preview page numper 30
book preview page numper 31
book preview page numper 32
book preview page numper 33
book preview page numper 34
book preview page numper 35
book preview page numper 36
book preview page numper 37
book preview page numper 38
book preview page numper 39
book preview page numper 40
320 pages