What is the future of visuals in the media? How can we learn to distinguish fakes from facts, and how can we build our own digital self-defence? These are some of the issues that will be discussed at this year´s ViSmedia conference in Bergen, March 26 2019.

New technologies such as smart phones, AI and satellite cameras provide new opportunities for visual storytelling. Extended watching and surveillance is becoming an integrated part of our daily lives. And yet many people feel threatened by manipulated images and deep fake videos. And journalism accountability is challenged at its roots.

At the conference, the expert presenters will approach transparency and truth in the media from a multitude of angles. Investigative reporter Nora Bauer from Germany will document how worldwide investments in LED street lamps is used for surveillance purposes; Deborah Johnson from Virginia discusses dilemmas of humanoid robot-sex and its ethical implications for journalism; Lars Nyre presents a provocative theory of technological determinism, and Paul C. Adams from Austin, Texas will investigate the pathways of third party cookies in European digital media.

Moreover, Black Mirror researcher Øyvind Vågnes will discuss the emerging cultures of surveillance as they unfold in the popular fiction series on Netflix. Turo Uskali from Finland predicts a future of ubiquitous satellite journalism, whereas Duc Tien Dang Nguyen from UiB will explain new research ways for publishers and journalists to deal with image verification. Nicholas Diakopoulos from Northwestern University digs deeper into the black box and presents new approaches to AI ethics.

“By illuminating the polarities of visual transparency, we aim to inspire the audience to further dig into these issues, and to stimulate reflection and foresight thinking,” says professor Astrid Gynnild, principal investigator of the ViSmedia project at the UiB.

The conference ends with a hot topic interactive panel discussion.

The event is free and open to everyone, including journalists, researchers, tech developers, students, and media teachers. The event is organized by NCEMedia and the ViSmedia project at the University of Bergen, funded by the Norwegian Research Council. The event is carried out in accordance with the framework for responsible research and innovation, RRI.

Free entrance, limited number of seats.
Link to Facebook event

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