Expert advice must be protected from targeted attacks: Opinion

The advice of experts must be protected from the “chaotic information ecosystem that amplifies misinformation and disinformation,” write Wendy Hui Kyong Chun (Simon Fraser University), Amanda Clarke (Carleton University), Matthew Herder (Dalhousie University), Howard Ramos (Western University), and Julia M Wright (Dalhousie). The authors write that the “infodemic” has resulted in the use of technologies that make it easier to share information used to target and threaten scholars. The authors say that these attacks, which disproportionately affect women and BIPOC researchers, have been worsened by the pandemic. Governments, research funders, and the postsecondary sector must take action to support researchers involved in public engagement. “If we don’t act, we risk increasing the pressures on researchers to withdraw from public engagement,” write the authors. “We must do more to support and strengthen informed public discussion.” Globe and Mail Note: Archived stories may contain dead links or be missing source links.

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