Thinking of Fake News as a Chaos Problem
Authority Figures
In this episode of Authority Figures, Aaron Schoenherr talks with Chandran Sankaran, founder and CEO of Repustar, a novel fact distribution platform that partners with news organizations. The pair will discuss how technology can play a role in fighting so-called “fake news,” and journalism’s pivotal – but changing — role in that fight. 1:23 – Chandran discusses his path to Repustar, what motivated him to found the company and the problems he hopes to help solve through Repustar’s FactSparrow platform. 5:33 – Aaron and Chandran dig deeper into how the FactSparrow platform works...
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Episode 7: Insights from Greentarget’s 2021 Fake News report
Authority Figures
Even with a contentious presidential election and the worst of COVID-19 behind us, journalists say the fake news situation isn’t getting better. And they don’t know how to address it. But if journalists don’t know how combat fake news, who does? That was the focus of Greentarget’s , which was released in late October. In this episode of Authority Figures, Aaron Schoenherr sits down with members of the Greentarget team – including Betsy Hoag, Director of Research and Planning, Lisa Seidenberg, Vice President of Media Relations, and Paul Wilson, Vice President of Content and...
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Episode 6: Ad Tech and the Dissemination of Fake News
Authority Figures
Some big names in ad tech have gone public in recent months as advertisers look for programmatic ways to get in front of consumers. But is the rise of ad tech also fueling the rise of fake news? After watching the phenomenon for years, CNBC’s Megan Graham thinks it is. In this episode of Authority Figures, Graham and host Aaron Schoenherr discuss the proliferation of copy-cat sites trying to game the ad tech space and how things have gotten worse since the start of the pandemic. The problem is hitting traditional newsrooms and reporters like Graham, who demonstrates the problem in real time...
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Episode 5: Good Old-Fashioned Journalism Meets Good Old-Fashioned PR
Authority Figures
More than a year into the COVID-19 pandemic and with the 2020 election still making waves, fake news and its polarizing impact is still coursing through our society. Much has been said on the topic, but questions remain: Whose responsibility is it to tackle? How does this differ from fake news of the past? Has fake news changed the relationship between PR and journalism? In this episode, host Aaron Schoenherr and Charles Davis, Dean of the Henry W. Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Georgia, discuss findings from Greentarget’s Fake News 2020 survey, the...
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Episode 4: A Seat at the Table
Authority Figures
In part two of their conversation, host Aaron Schoenherr and Tanarra Schneider, Managing Director of Leadership & Culture at Accenture, discuss corporate America’s diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts. They cover why diversity and inclusion initiatives are felt before they’re measured, and the challenges leaders face in backing up their organization’s point of view with meaningful action. Episode Highlights: 1:27 - Aaron and Tanarra discuss affinity groups and who in an organization should have a seat at the table 3:50 - Tanarra provides advice on preparing C-suite executives for...
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Episode 3: The Racial Reckoning and Going Beyond the Performative
Authority Figures
A year after George Floyd’s murder, companies across America are still struggling with their place in the country’s racial reckoning. Many quickly released statements on diversity, equity, and inclusion – but they need to back up their words with actions. They need to go beyond the performative. In the first of two episodes, Authority Figures host Aaron Schoenherr and Tanarra Schneider, Managing Director of Leadership & Culture at Accenture, discuss how organizations can – and should – go beyond the performative from an internal and external standpoint. Effective communication on...
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Episode 2: Using Data to Create Transparency and Authority Within Your Organization
Authority Figures
Companies across the country are investing in data and how to harness it, yet some continue to struggle with using that data to tell their story. That means they’re missing the opportunity to create transparency within their organization and, most notably, the chance to exercise their authority through the contextual awareness their data can bring. In this episode, host Aaron Schoenherr and President Nick Beil discuss going beyond the dashboard and into data, the relationship between transparency and authority and data overload in the age of COVID. Episode Highlights: 1:17 – Nick provides...
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Episode 1: Authority in the COVID Moment
Authority Figures
How do you capture history as it happens? When the pandemic’s full effects became clear in March, History Factory began its COVID-19 Memory Project to capture corporate America’s reaction in real-time and provide insight into how organizations are responding to the crisis. In this episode, host Aaron Schoenherr and History Factory Managing Director Jason Dressel discuss the project rising above the noise of standard thought leadership, and how every organization will have its “COVID moment.” 1:30 – Jason discusses his background and introduces History Factory. 2:31 – A deep dive...
info_outline5:33 – Aaron and Chandran dig deeper into how the FactSparrow platform works and how it functions as an AI bot.
10:24 – Aaron asks Chandran about the reliability of FactSparrow’s sourcing, which is based on principles of good journalism.
16:01 – Chandran details how FactSparrow acts almost as a focus group, spotting topics that are potential areas of misinformation and disinformation.
18:14 – Aaron asks about Chandran’s monetization plans.
19:59 – Aaron and Chandran discuss how corporations might use the tool and consider the evolving importance of corporate responsibility in the era of fake news.
21:48 – Chandran discusses how social media companies, especially Twitter, are more in the business of checking the integrity of information.
23:24 – Aaron and Chandran discuss Greentarget’s 2021 Fake News report – and Chandran reacts to journalists’ perspectives on who is best positioned to combat misinformation and disinformation.
29:55 – If journalists aren’t a complete solution to combat fake news, what else can help?
33:08 – Chandran discusses why he’s hopeful, despite the challenges brought on by fake news.
36:35 – How news activists fit in, in Chandran’s eyes.
39:26 – Does fact-checking have a diminishing impact?
Click here to download Greentarget’s 2021 Fake News report.