Listening to social media

Natural disasters: Severe and extreme weather events or geological occurrences, such as hurricanes, earthquakes, and floods, that cause significant damage and disruption.
Disinformation: False information spread deliberately to deceive others.
Information vacuums: Situations with a lack of reliable information that can lead to the spread of rumours or falsehoods.
Newsworthy: Worthy of being reported as news due to its relevance, importance, or impact.
Deep fake: Media (usually video or audio) that has been manipulated using artificial intelligence to make it appear as though someone said or did something they did not.
Debunking: The process of disproving or exposing the falsehoods of a claim or belief.
Paywall: A system that prevents access to certain online content unless a subscription or payment is made.
API: Application Programming Interface; a set of rules and tools that allows different software applications to communicate with each other.

Illustration of a tsunami catastrophe in Japan © Yukari Mishima

Why do natural disasters in Japan lead to an increase in misinformation? Given its unique geographical condition, Japan frequently experiences natural disasters - can you imagine what happens when you couple them with rumours and misinformation? In this episode, we dive into the action taken by people on a mission to debunk online rumours.

Watch this episode to find out how rumours spread during disasters and what the Japanese broadcasting system is doing about it. Not sure about the technical terms used in this video? Below you can find a full breakdown.

Story: Kaori Kohyama
Illustration: Yukari Mishima
Script: Awe Studio
Animation: Awe Studio x Jorge Ramos
Music: Youjin Jeon
Production: Awe Studio
Post-production: Awe Studio x Jorge Ramos
Editorship & Translation: bpb & Goethe-Institut
Scientific Advice: John W. Cheng, Tsuda University / Jeanette Hofmann, Berlin Social Science Center

Listening to Social Media(PDF, 7 MB)

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Listening to social media

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