604-304-RI Class #6 A19

Today's Class

1. Midterm Oral Presentation: Team Assignment (15 %)

- Review guidelines

- Evaluation grid

2. Alternative News and Canadian Politics

- "Les médias alternatifs et la désinformation"

3. Comparative Essay (15 %)

- Guidelines

- Brainstorming Activity

4. Lab (HC-2160)

- Midterm Oral Presentation (15 %): Teamwork + Schedule

- Comparative Essay (15 %)

Midterm Oral Presentation: Team Assignment (15 %)

• The guidelines are available in the document "Team Assignment Guidelines" (August 20).
• Total time: 16 - 20 minutes. Each team member must speak between 8 and 10 minutes.
• You must present (show and explain) the results of your survey in your presentation. These may be presented at any moment.
• You will either present on October 1 or 8.
• The schedule will be prepared during the period at the lab.

Alternative News

The federal elections elections will be held on October 21. Have you made a decision? If so, based on what information?

What does political alternative news and disinformation look like?

Sharing Alternative News

• Information is spread over social media

(e.g. Facebook, Twitter).

• Often contains information meant to generate intense reactions.
• Information is easily accessible due to being shared by many fake accounts.

Spotting Fake Accounts

- A fake profile picture (the image was taken from the Internet and does not reveal the author's identity).

- No profile picture.

- Image or illustration used as a profile picture.

- The account is fairly recent.

- Contains a great amount of posts and comments.

- All publications (post and comments alike) defend one specific ideology.

You may be dealing with a fake account or a troll.

Analyzing Potential Alternative News

Before sharing information, thoroughly analyze all content.

Is it a reliable source? Is it from a partisan group?

"Les médias alternatifs et la désinformation"

Le bureau d'enquête: https://www.journaldemontreal.com/2018/08/04/des-medias-alternatifs-inquietent

Discussion Questions

1. What is the most common type of alternative news you have seen?

2. Have you ever shared information on Facebook and later realized it was alternative news or disinformation?

3. Have you recently seen suspicious information shared on Facebook, but are still unsure as to whether it's disinformation or not?

4. Why is there such an apparent increase of disinformation shared online? What can be done to fight against disinformation spread through social media?

Federal Elections

The federal elections will be held on October 21. Have you made a decision? If so, based on what information?

1. Some of the candidates recently visited our provincial region. Were you aware? Did you attend events? If so, how has this helped you shape your opinion? If not, why not?

2. What are your predictions about election results?

3. What do you think people should look for in a political party? Is it generation-based? If so, what are your generation's priorities?

Guidelines

• This assignment is due on Léa by the beginning of class on October 29.
• The guidelines are available on Léa.
• A sample will be uploaded shortly.

Brainstorming activity

• For homework, you were asked to prepare three potential topics for the comparative essay.
• For each topic, you were asked to prepare three comparative points.
• In pairs, share your choice of topics (including the comparative points).
• Your partner must comment on your choices and make suggestions (if any) using the following criteria:

- Are the comparative essay topics precise?

- Are the comparative points coherent and cohesive?

- Are the comparative points presented in a logical order?