Newhouse Professors Earn DHS Funding to Help Stem Extremist Content in Virtual Spaces - Syracuse University News

Two professors astatine the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications person been awarded astir $600,000 successful backing from the Department of Homeland Security’s Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention (TVTP) Grant Program.

Kelly Leahy

Kelly Leahy, adjunct prof of television, vigor and film, and T. Makana Chock, David J. Levidow Endowed Professor and manager of the Newhouse School’s Extended Reality Lab, volition survey however media literacy tin connection a method for mediating cognitive and affectional responses successful an extended (virtual, augmented and mixed) world environment.

Leahy, Chock and a squad of pupil researchers volition make and trial media literacy interventions focused connected harmful accusation successful virtual spaces successful bid to pass the prevention of extremism and convulsive contented successful the metaverse.

T. Makana Chock

“Immersive virtual spaces specified arsenic virtual world and the metaverse make much visceral emotions than accepted online spaces specified arsenic the internet,” Chock says. “This makes the virtual satellite a perchance high-risk situation for manipulation.”

Adds Leahy, “Terrorist recruiters and convulsive extremists are progressive successful online societal spaces and volition astir surely people caller forms of exertion for their efforts to dispersed conspiracy theories, aerial grievances and trade misinformation, disinformation and ‘malinformation’ (reality-based accusation utilized to inflict harm).”

The survey volition place cardinal concepts and techniques specifically related to persuasion successful extended world contexts and use these findings to make gamified interventions based connected existing probe from media literacy. These experiences volition beryllium piloted for young adults who are members of the extended world community.

Emerging grounds suggests that radical thin to consciousness accrued empathy successful virtual spaces, which could pb to accrued manipulation, according to Leahy. Past probe has shown that young adults are much apt to beryllium targeted for violent recruitment, she adds.

“Extended world impacts america successful ways we are lone conscionable opening to understand,” says Newhouse dean Mark J. Lodato. “The enactment of Professors Leahy and Chock volition play an important relation successful expanding that knowing and shaping the mode we usage and mean these spaces, particularly erstwhile it comes to young people.”

TVTP seeks to assistance forestall incidents of home convulsive extremism and bolster efforts to antagonistic online radicalization and mobilization to violence. The Newhouse grant was 1 of 43 grants totaling $20 cardinal awarded this twelvemonth by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

“Working successful concern with 1 different is however we champion forestall acts of coercion and targeted violence,” said DHS Secretary Alejandro N. Mayorkas successful a property merchandise erstwhile the grants were announced. “We are equipping section communities and organizations—including those historically underserved—with needed resources truthful they tin go much effectual partners, fortify our information and assistance the American radical consciousness harmless and unafraid successful our regular lives.”