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The spreading of misinformation and deliberate disinformation of socially critical topics, the influence of the media and the question of whether artificial intelligence will worsen this problem – these are areas of interest for science journalist Kai Kupferschmidt. The Berlin author and moderator is taking on the Nature Marsilius Visiting Professorship for Science Communication at Ruperto Carola. The visiting professorship program – a joint initiative by Holtzbrinck Berlin, the Klaus Tschira Foundation and Heidelberg University – is intended to train young researchers, in particular, for presenting their academic work to the general public.
Press Release
Heidelberg, 28 November 2024
Facts, Fakes and General Dumbing Down: Handling Misinformation and Disinformation
Kai Kupferschmidt takes on Nature Marsilius Visiting Professorship for Science Communication at Heidelberg University
Facts, fakes and general dumbing down: the spreading of misinformation and deliberate disinformation of socially critical topics, the influence of the media and the question of whether artificial intelligence will worsen this problem – these are areas of interest for science journalist Kai Kupferschmidt. The Berlin author and moderator is taking on the Nature Marsilius Visiting Professorship for Science Communication at Ruperto Carola. The visiting professorship program – a joint initiative by Holtzbrinck Berlin, the Klaus Tschira Foundation and Heidelberg University – is intended to train young researchers, in particular, for presenting their academic work to the general public and contributing to a societal dialogue about the significance and responsibility of science. At the end of the 2024/2025 winter semester Kai Kupferschmidt will give a lecture, which is also aimed at the interested public.
Whether it is a matter of untruths, rumors, propaganda or post-truth: Kai Kupferschmidt will raise the omnipresent concern about fake news in various workshops, discussing what misinformation and disinformation actually are, how they come about and how they spread. With the participants, he wants to consider different forms of false and misleading information, presenting the way researchers explore this issue and their suggested steps to deal with it. A debate-workshop entitled “Facts, Fakes and General Dumbing Down” aims to especially discuss the role of the media and social media, the influence of artificial intelligence and the possible ways in which society can take action.
In a “career talk” Kai Kupferschmidt will offer practical insights into the professional fields of science journalism and science communication. Further workshop options will explore how science can be made comprehensible to non-scientists. The Nature Marsilius Visiting Professor will there explain the differences between scientific and journalistic writing, and introduce the “power” of story-telling. In a course playfully named “Ein Anruf, der (Wissen) schafft?” – “a phone call that creates knowledge” – the journalist will also reach out to researchers seeking to prepare for handling media inquiries. Kai Kupferschmidt will hold the public lecture entitled “Between Pandemic and Populism: Responsibility and Trust in Science Journalism” on 22 January 2025.
Kai Kupferschmidt studierte Molekulare Biomedizin an der Universität Bonn und absolvierte im Anschluss daran eine Ausbildung an der Berliner Journalistenschule. Seit 2009 arbeitet er als Journalist. Er ist als Korrespondent für das Fachmagazin Science tätig und schreibt regelmäßig für Medien wie Die Zeit, die Süddeutsche Zeitung und die Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung. Zudem ist er Co-Gastgeber des Podcasts „Pandemia – Die Welt. Die Viren. Und wir“. Zu den Schwerpunkten seiner Berichterstattung gehören Infektionskrankheiten und globale Gesundheit. Für seine journalistische Arbeit wurde Kai Kupferschmidt mehrfach ausgezeichnet. Er ist Autor von Büchern über Seuchen sowie die Faszination der in der Natur selten vorkommenden Farbe Blau.
Die Nature Marsilius Gastprofessur für Wissenschaftskommunikation ist eine gemeinsame Initiative von Holtzbrinck Berlin, der Klaus Tschira Stiftung und der Universität Heidelberg. Namhafte Expertinnen und Experten werden im Rahmen der Professur an die Universität eingeladen, um in eigenen Veranstaltungen am Marsilius-Kolleg zu vermitteln, was eine qualitativ hochwertige Berichterstattung über wissenschaftliche Arbeit und wissenschaftliche Erkenntnis ausmacht. Zugleich sollen die Gastprofessorinnen und Gastprofessoren eine breit angelegte Diskussion über neue Formen des Austauschs zwischen Wissenschaft und Öffentlichkeit anstoßen. Zu den bisherigen Inhabern der Gastprofessur gehörten zuletzt Mai Thi Nguyen-Kim, Michele Catanzaro, Martin Enserink und Fiona Fox.
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