Exacerbated by the pandemic, the time we are spending on our screens has increased and subsequently brought back into focus uncomfortable issues regarding modern digital communications, information and the law. ‘Deep Fakes and the Infocalypse’ by Nina Schick and ‘The Secret History of Disinformation and Political Warfare’ by Thomas Rid are two books which explore the mutually reinforcing themes of the prevalence of fake media through advanced technology (e.g. deep fakes) and the crisis of misinformation.
A well-known thinker on AI, technology, and its re-shaping of politics, Nina Schick in her recent book ‘Deep Fakes and the Infocalypse’, explores the rise of fake news and the alarmingly outsized impact this type of misinformation has on how we think and behave. Written during lockdown, the book provides a real-time assessment of AI-generated synthetic content (fake video, audio, images and text) and how it is being used negatively to spread disinformation or misinformation. Schick states that the world has become so inundated with misinformation, the disintegration of expertise, the prevalence of alternative media sources and the erosion of conventional information arbiters; that we are amid an ‘Infocalypse’.
Using common examples such as President Trump’s denial of facts, anti-vaccination campaigns and clickbait driven media, Schick explores how it has become harder than ever to discern fact from fiction. What is even more interesting is Schick’s exploration of what synthetic media means for the broader economy (both illicit and licet). For example, her exploration of synthetic media around the porn industry is a fascinating vehicle to understand the ownership of pictures and identity as well as the wider marketplace. If celebrity images can be used on adult entertainers creating synthetic media with limited legal recourse, what does this mean for the rest of us? Going even further, what if synthetic media were released that allegedly showed a CEO notifying investors of a fatal problem in their product – would the company’s stock price plummet? How quickly could the damage be contained?
Schick states that with the advent and democratisation of synthetic media tools and technologies, this ‘Infocalypse’ will only get worse, as anyone can fabricate any image they want or make anyone appear to say anything. In this regard, it will become even more difficult to tell what is real and what is not; creating an increasingly dangerous and untrustworthy information ecosystem. Schick argues, however, that this crisis is not at heart a technology problem but rather that technology is being used here as the amplifier of human intention, and our laws and culture have not yet caught up with what technology is able to do. An academic at John Hopkins University in the US, Thomas Rid, in his book ‘Active Measures – The Secret History of Disinformation and Political Warfare’ – presents a detailed account of Russia’s historic strategy of using disinformation to undermine Western resolve and encourage political uncertainty. Rid argues that the operations exposed in the US around the 2016 election might not have an impact on the voting figures, but that the debate and soul-searching they ignited did much to establish uncertainty around the validity of election results. He notes that Russia’s capability in this area has a long history through the Cold War and beyond. In more confident times, its impact was perhaps more muted, but it is clear that the new digital world has given it new capabilities and reach. For example, its role in fermenting uncertainty during the Covid-19 crisis around Boris Johnson’s hospitalisation, around Bill Gates’s financial support for vaccine development, and encouraging US criticisms of China show that this is an arm of Russian soft warfare that continues to be effective. Signs that Iran and China are adopting similar strategies to advance their own interests is concerning. Rid argues that it is a capability against which the West is constrained in how they respond as a result of its law and culture.
Privacy Policy.
Revoke consent.
© Digitalis Media Ltd. Privacy Policy.
Digitalis
We firmly believe that the internet should be available and accessible to anyone, and are committed to providing a website that is accessible to the widest possible audience, regardless of circumstance and ability.
To fulfill this, we aim to adhere as strictly as possible to the World Wide Web Consortium’s (W3C) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 (WCAG 2.1) at the AA level. These guidelines explain how to make web content accessible to people with a wide array of disabilities. Complying with those guidelines helps us ensure that the website is accessible to all people: blind people, people with motor impairments, visual impairment, cognitive disabilities, and more.
This website utilizes various technologies that are meant to make it as accessible as possible at all times. We utilize an accessibility interface that allows persons with specific disabilities to adjust the website’s UI (user interface) and design it to their personal needs.
Additionally, the website utilizes an AI-based application that runs in the background and optimizes its accessibility level constantly. This application remediates the website’s HTML, adapts Its functionality and behavior for screen-readers used by the blind users, and for keyboard functions used by individuals with motor impairments.
If you’ve found a malfunction or have ideas for improvement, we’ll be happy to hear from you. You can reach out to the website’s operators by using the following email webrequests@digitalis.com
Our website implements the ARIA attributes (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) technique, alongside various different behavioral changes, to ensure blind users visiting with screen-readers are able to read, comprehend, and enjoy the website’s functions. As soon as a user with a screen-reader enters your site, they immediately receive a prompt to enter the Screen-Reader Profile so they can browse and operate your site effectively. Here’s how our website covers some of the most important screen-reader requirements, alongside console screenshots of code examples:
Screen-reader optimization: we run a background process that learns the website’s components from top to bottom, to ensure ongoing compliance even when updating the website. In this process, we provide screen-readers with meaningful data using the ARIA set of attributes. For example, we provide accurate form labels; descriptions for actionable icons (social media icons, search icons, cart icons, etc.); validation guidance for form inputs; element roles such as buttons, menus, modal dialogues (popups), and others. Additionally, the background process scans all of the website’s images and provides an accurate and meaningful image-object-recognition-based description as an ALT (alternate text) tag for images that are not described. It will also extract texts that are embedded within the image, using an OCR (optical character recognition) technology. To turn on screen-reader adjustments at any time, users need only to press the Alt+1 keyboard combination. Screen-reader users also get automatic announcements to turn the Screen-reader mode on as soon as they enter the website.
These adjustments are compatible with all popular screen readers, including JAWS and NVDA.
Keyboard navigation optimization: The background process also adjusts the website’s HTML, and adds various behaviors using JavaScript code to make the website operable by the keyboard. This includes the ability to navigate the website using the Tab and Shift+Tab keys, operate dropdowns with the arrow keys, close them with Esc, trigger buttons and links using the Enter key, navigate between radio and checkbox elements using the arrow keys, and fill them in with the Spacebar or Enter key.Additionally, keyboard users will find quick-navigation and content-skip menus, available at any time by clicking Alt+1, or as the first elements of the site while navigating with the keyboard. The background process also handles triggered popups by moving the keyboard focus towards them as soon as they appear, and not allow the focus drift outside of it.
Users can also use shortcuts such as “M” (menus), “H” (headings), “F” (forms), “B” (buttons), and “G” (graphics) to jump to specific elements.
We aim to support the widest array of browsers and assistive technologies as possible, so our users can choose the best fitting tools for them, with as few limitations as possible. Therefore, we have worked very hard to be able to support all major systems that comprise over 95% of the user market share including Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Opera and Microsoft Edge, JAWS and NVDA (screen readers), both for Windows and for MAC users.
Despite our very best efforts to allow anybody to adjust the website to their needs, there may still be pages or sections that are not fully accessible, are in the process of becoming accessible, or are lacking an adequate technological solution to make them accessible. Still, we are continually improving our accessibility, adding, updating and improving its options and features, and developing and adopting new technologies. All this is meant to reach the optimal level of accessibility, following technological advancements. For any assistance, please reach out to webrequests@digitalis.com