A New Approach to Info Lit: Taking Down the “Illusion of Credibility”

Sponsored by SAGE Publishing

Recorded on 05/04/2020
Posted in The Authority File

Episode 122

Conspiracy theories. Fake news. Flat Earthers. These buzz words have seeped into our common vernacular. But how does misinformation spread? How does the internet expand its influence? And how can academics keep the next generation of students from falling prey to falsehoods?

In this four-part series, three instructors, each with their own unique backgrounds—Roz Tedford, Director of Research & Instruction at Wake Forest University; Dan Chibnall, STEM Librarian and Assistant Professor of Librarianship at Drake University; and Sarah Morris, Head of Instruction and Engagement at Emory University Libraries—discuss their own approaches to information literacy and the common traps their students fall into.

In this first episode, Tedford, Chibnall, and Morris grapple with how the internet acts as a double-edged sword. While it allows for greater connection across the globe, it can also breed echo chambers that spread false information. Joined by Mila Steele, Senior Publisher of Social Sciences at SAGE Publishing, this episode explores why ‘bad science’ and conspiracy theorists thrive in the digital age, and why an interdisciplinary approach to misinformation can be so powerful.


About the guests:

Rosalind Tedford
Director of Research & Instruction
Wake Forest University

Dan Chibnall
STEM Librarian and Assistant Professor of Librarianship
Drake University

Sarah Morris
Head of Instruction and Engagement
Emory University Libraries

Mila Steele
Senior Publisher of Social Sciences
SAGE Publishing