VIRAL ARGUMENTS: PUBLIC DISCOURSE IN A PANDEMIC AGE

Monday, September 6, 2021 – online meeting (Zoom)

 

In lieu of its biennial conference, postponed to 2022 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, ECA is hosting an international online meeting on what makes arguments and information viral in online public discourse, and how these dynamics interact with the ongoing pandemic. Participation is free of charge, but registration is mandatory: to register, fill in this form and submit it

Join us on September 6, 2021, to discuss how argumentation theory may ally itself with other approaches to help improving the quality of public discourse!

 

PROGRAMME (all times are CET/GMT+1, Stockholm, Paris, Rome, Madrid)

10:00               Opening & welcome, updates on ECA2022 (Fabio Paglieri, ECA Chair)

10:15-11:00     Walter Quattrociocchi (Roma) & Fabiana Zollo (Venezia), on large-scale models of the infodemic associated with Covid-19 (chair: Fabio Paglieri)

11:00-11:45    Stephan Lewandowsky (Bristol), on a cognitive perspective on vaccine communication in relations to Covid-19 (chair: Elena Musi)

11:45-12:30    Elena Semino (Lancaster), on metaphors and Covid-19 (chair: Steve Oswald)

12:30-13:30    Shared task on social media data, first segment: assessing virality in online discourse (parallel)

(1 h lunch break) 

14:30-15:30    Shared task on social media data, second segment: comparing theoretical predictions and empirical facts on virality (parallel)

15:15-16:15    Reporting back on shared task (plenary)

16:15-17:00    Ulrike Hahn (London), on how communicating through social networks may affect the quality of our beliefs and epistemic practices (chair: Frank Zenker)

17:00-17:45    Sally Jackson (Urbana), on the role of evidence in health controversies, in particular re: Covid-19 (chair: Marcin Lewinski)

17:45-18:00    Closing remarks