Max Bell School of Public Policy - Digital Democracy Project News

19 million Canadians have had their data breached in eight months

91�� — Mon, 23 Sep 2019 20:55:09 +0000

September 2, 2019 | An estimated 19 million Canadians have been affected by data breaches between November 2018 and June 2019, according to numbers obtained by "Attention Control with Kevin Newman," a new podcast that launched Monday. The numbers come from 446 breaches that were reported to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC). Victims of these kinds of data breaches are vulnerable to identity theft, financial crime, even violence in some cases.

Canadian polarized, but social media use likely not the culprit: study

91�� — Mon, 23 Sep 2019 20:59:26 +0000

September 12, 2019 | Social media might not be to blame for Canadians’ ideological polarization, a new report on digital democracy in Canada finds. “A lot of people don’t use social media very actively,” said Eric Merkley, a researcher on the project. “People on Twitter are not representative of the broader population.”

Fake news preys on emotions, expert warns

91�� — Mon, 23 Sep 2019 20:50:52 +0000

August 10, 2019| Beware of things you see online that make you emotional, one media expert warns ahead of the fall election. Taylor Owen, professor at 91�� and the co-creator of the Digital Democracy Project, says fake news often preys on feelings like anger and fear.

Listen to the Interview

Canadians' media-consumption habits lead to misinformation, study finds

91�� — Mon, 23 Sep 2019 20:45:58 +0000

August 7, 2019 | Canadians aren’t as divided into partisan echo chambers as social media would suggest, but a heavy news diet doesn't guarantee you'll be informed, a new study has found.

Read the Article

Canadians' media-consumption habits lead to misinformation | National Observer

91�� — Thu, 08 Aug 2019 17:57:27 +0000

August 7, 2019 | A report published by the Digital Democracy Project suggests that overall misinformation levels in Canada are low. However, certain trends in media consumption put news consumers and voters more at risk to be misinformed about key political issues. To learn more about how information and disinformation flow through journalistic and social media channels in the run-up to the October federal election, read the National Observer's article here.

People with strong partisan views get more facts wrong on a current events test: survey | Global News

91�� — Thu, 08 Aug 2019 16:59:49 +0000

August 8, 2019 | A survey launched by the Digital Democracy Project found that most Canadians across the political spectrum got a common set of facts from an array of mainstream media outlets. The report also highlighted voters' tendencies to select and consume news from sources that support their political beliefs, generating so-called echo chambers.

Canadians who hold strong links to political parties more likely to be misinformed about politics | The Star

91�� — Thu, 08 Aug 2019 16:31:37 +0000

August 8, 2019 | The Digital Democracy Project, an initiative of Max Bell School of Public Policy in collaboration with the Public Policy Forum, analyzes the increasing amounts of disinformation and hate in the digital public sphere. A new study shows the links between political affiliation and misinformation.

News that's safe to use: Researchers aim to track information during campaign | CBC News

91�� — Thu, 08 Aug 2019 16:14:40 +0000

August 8, 2019 | In an age where information is increasingly scrutinized yet more easily diffusable than ever, Canadians might be more misinformed than disinformed. New findings from the Digital Democracy Project show how information ricochets around the Canadian political landscape. Learn more about the ways in which exposure to certain news outlets affects voters and the democractic processes in elections.