Upcoming Events
May 9, 2022
7:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
VIRTUAL LECTURE
Preserving Democracy
"Disinformation, Disruption and the Destabilization of Democracies"
Michael Colaresi
Michael Colaresi is the William S. Dietrich II Chair of Political Science, the director of the Pitt Disinformation Lab, and the research and academic director of Pitt Cyber.
Professor Colaresi’s most recent article, published in The Critical Quarterly, explores “How our misunderstandings of the digital and computing revolutions puts democracy at risk (and what to do about it.)” His most recent book, Democracy Declassified: The Secrecy Dilemma in National Security, was published by the Oxford University Press. His work has been honored by such groups as the Journal of Peace Research and the American Political Science Association.
Mr. Colaresi's work leverages the accelerating availability of computational tools, including machine learning and Bayesian approaches, along with unstructured information, such as from digitized text, to build and improve models of national security secrecy and oversight, international and intrastate violence, and changes in human rights over time. He also develops computational and visual tools that enable domain specialists to work alongside computer scientists to improve specific applications. He was the co-editor of the journal International Interactions from 2014-2019 and was co-recipient of the Best Visualization Award from the Journal of Peace Research in 2017 and the Gosnell Prize for Excellence in Political Methodology from the Methodology section of the American Political Science Association in 2006. He has been PI or co-PI on four NSF grants and is a research affiliate for the ERC-funded Violence Early Warning Project at the University of Uppsala.
This lecture is sponsored by:
The Dick Thornburgh Forum for Law & Public Policy / The Institute of Politics
Pitt Disinformation Lab / Pitt Cyber
Message from the Governor
The Forum was established at the late Dick Thornburgh’s Law School alma mater, the University of Pittsburgh. In connection with the Dick Thornburgh Papers held by the University's Hillman Library, the Forum reflects his experiences in public life. It is in intended to foster discourse on issues vital to the preservation of our democratic system and the Rule of Law upon which that system depends.
Special thanks are due to Chancellor Emeritus Mark Nordenberg who serves as the Director of the Dick Thornburgh Forum and has been unstinting in support of this effort since its inception. In addition, many others have provided time, resources and dedication to this undertaking.
