Commentary
AI Violence: Thick Fakes and the Need for Grounded Policies
Professor of Global Digital Media, University of Massachusetts Amherst
Faculty Affiliate
Jonathan Corpus Ong is Professor and Founding Director of Global Technology for Social Justice Lab in the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, USA. His 2018 study “Architects of Networked Disinformation” applies a production studies approach in studying the social identities and moral justifications of clandestine digital operators in the Philippines. This study was ranked among “the most valuable” pieces of disinformation research in a Poynter poll of journalists around the world–(unfortunately) the only ethnographic and Global South-focused study in the list.
He is formerly a Schuster Media & Technology Fellow at the Shorenstein Center, Harvard Kennedy School. He is an Andrew Carnegie Fellow (2022-25) and currently Co-Editor of the International Journal of Cultural Studies.
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Reports & Papers
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Media Mention
Media access to the White House has become an increasingly important topic of discussion ahead of the midterm elections. To break this down, we welcome Don Lemon, an award-winning journalist who spent thirty years at CNN, NBC, and MSNBC before leaving network television to build his own media company, along with Fall 2026 IOP Resident Fellow Chris Whipple.
Event
JFK Jr. Forum
6:00 PM – 7:00 PM ET
Olivier Sylvain will discuss how decades of communications policy shaped today’s internet, drawing on his new book, Reclaiming the Internet, to explore what this history means for online platforms and AI. This event is part of The Misinformation Speaker Series.
Event
Zoom & Northeastern University, 216 Massachusetts Ave, 3rd floor
4:00 PM ET
Shorenstein Center fellow Sylvia Chou will discuss the challenges facing health misinformation research, including pressures on federal funding and scientific inquiry, and identify priorities for advancing the field. This event is part of The Misinformation Speaker Series.
Event
Zoom & Northeastern University, 216 Massachusetts Ave, 3rd floor
12:00 PM ET
Talia Stroud will discuss new research on whether correcting people’s perceptions about how widespread misinformation is can change their attitudes and behaviors. This event is part of The Misinformation Speaker Series.
Event
Zoom & Northeastern University, 216 Massachusetts Ave, 3rd floor
11:00 AM ET
Experts will break down key federal benefit and tax policies, including Medicaid, Social Security, and the tax treatment of tips and overtime income.
Event
Zoom webinar
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM ET
Join The Journalist’s Resource and technology and government expert, Erie Meyer, to learn specific techniques to interrogate corporate chatbots
Event
Zoom webinar
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM ET
Learn how election officials are beginning to work with social media influencers and creators to provide accurate, accessible and engaging civic information.
Event
Zoom webinar
4:00 PM ET
Get an inside look at how U.S. elections work after voters cast their ballots and the processes that shape how votes are counted.
Event
Zoom webinar
1:00 PM – 2:00 PM ET
Join Meghan O’Sullivan, Joe Pfeiffer, Admiral Mike Mullen, and Shorenstein Center Director Nancy Gibbs as they reflect on the legacy and lasting impact of the September 11 attacks, 25 years later.
Event
JFK Jr. Forum, Harvard Kennedy School
6:00 PM ET
Learn how demographic shifts in aging, migration, housing, and population are reshaping communities and state finances, and how to use the data to strengthen your reporting.
Event
Zoom webinar
2:00 PM ET