Episode
AI Sessions #8: Misinformation, Social Media, and Deepfakes (with Sacha Altay)
- Published
- Jan 23, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 5004
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Summary
Henry and I chat with Dr Sacha Altay about: * How prevalent is misinformation? * What even is “misinformation”? * Is there a difference between politics and science? * How impactful are propaganda, influence campaigns, and advertising? * What impact has social media had on modern democracies? * How worried should we be about the impact of generative AI, including deepfakes, on the information environment? * The “liar’s dividend” * Whether ChatGPT is more accurate and less biased than the average politician, pundit, and voter. Links * Sacha Altay * “ Misinformation Reloaded? Fears about the Impact of Generative AI on Misinformation are Overblown ” Felix M. Simon, Sacha Altay, & Hugo Mercier * “ Don’t Panic (Yet): Assessing the Evidence and Discourse Around Generative AI and Elections ” Felix M. Simon & Sacha Altay * “ The Media Very Rarely Lies ” Scott Alexander * “ How Dangerous is Misinformation? ” Dan Williams * “ Scapegoating the Algorithm ” Dan Williams * “ Is Social Media Destroying Democracy—Or Giving It To Us Good And Hard? ” Dan Williams * “ Not Born Yesterday: The Science of Who We Trust and What We Believe ” Hugo Mercier * Joseph Uscinski * “ Durably Reducing Conspiracy Beliefs Through Dialogues with AI ” Thomas H. Costello, Gordon Pennycook, & David G. Rand * “ The Levers of Political Persuasion with Conversational AI ” Kobi Hackenburg, Ben M. Tappin, et al. * Ben Tappin Chapters * 00:00 Understanding Misinformation: Definitions and Prevalence * 04:22 The Complexity of Media Bias and Misinformation * 14:40 Human Gullibility: Misconceptions and Realities * 27:28 Selective Exposure and Demand for Misinformation * 29:49 Political Advertising: Efficacy and Misconceptions * 35:13 Social Media’s Role in Political Discourse * 40:50 Evaluating the Impact of Social M…