Leiticia Bode

Professor Bode is an associate professor in the Communication, Culture, and Technology master’s program at Georgetown University. She received her PhD in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin – Madison, and her bachelor’s degree from Trinity University. Her work lies at the intersection of communication, technology, and political behavior, emphasizing the role communication and…

Russian Disinformation: The Risks Posed to Europe

In an age where information flows freely and quickly, the threat of deception looms large, casting doubt on the basic fabric of truth. The Russian disinformation campaigns, a complex web of misinformation, propaganda, and manipulation, are among the most formidable orchestrators of this digital deception dance. These disinformation efforts have matured into a powerful tool…

Episode 158: Misinformation, An Exploration of Its Tail Risks With Stephen Lewandowsky

The way in which we find information has changed over the last few decades, and with this change, we have foregone much of the reliability of the information we immerse ourselves in.   Misinformation, often referred to as false or inaccurate information, has become a prevalent issue in the digital age. With the rapid growth…

Stephan Lewandowsky

Professor Stephan Lewandowsky is a cognitive scientist at the University of Bristol whose main interest is in the pressure points between the architecture of online information technologies and human cognition, and the consequences for democracy that arise from those pressure points. He is the recipient of numerous awards and honours, including a Discovery Outstanding Researcher…

The 2024 Russian Elections – What Are the Risks of Another Putin Presidency?

Following the Russian elections last weekend, Vladimir won his third  consecutive, and fifth overall presidential term, securing 88% of the vote on Sunday. Whilst many would assume that another term of Putin’s presidency is sure to be more of the same, our recent conversations with Ben Dubow and Ambassador John Herbst  indicated that, amidst a…

Ambassador John E. Herbst

Ambassador John E. Herbst is senior director of the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center and served for thirty-one years as a foreign service officer in the US Department of State, retiring at the rank of career minister. He was US ambassador to Ukraine from 2003 to 2006, when he worked to enhance US-Ukrainian relations, help ensure the conduct of…

Episode 152 – Putin’s Presidency, Russia’s Aggression on Ukraine, and the Prospect of a Drumpf Presidency -Is There a New Axis of Evil? with Ambassador John E. Herbst

Last week, we heard from Ben Dubow, who gave us some fascinating insights into how he sees Putin’s next presidential term playing out and the implications of who comes second in the Russian presidential elections.   This week, we thought it crucial to hear from someone who has real world experience in international diplomacy, Ambassador…

Episode 151: Putin’s Next Term as President – An Insight into the Risks Surrounding the 2024 Russian Elections with Ben Dubow

As we step into 2024, a critical year for democracy worldwide, the stage is set for 64 national elections, marking an unprecedented turnout at the polls. The backdrop is a canvas of escalating international tensions, the daunting specter of climate change, and stretched thin inter-governmental organizations like the UN and NATO. In a year of…

Ben Dubow

Ben Dubow is leading expert in AI and disinformation with a focus on Russia and its neighbors. Ben is a senior fellow at the Center for European Analysis and founder and president of Omelas, a firm that deploys AI to collect and contextualize open source intelligence. Unique insights from Omelas’s data and analysis of Russian…

The Serbian Elections – The International Risks and Why They Matter for Democracy

This week’s podcast had Dr Alexander Mesarovich discuss the Serbian elections, which took place towards the end of 2023. As discussed in the podcast, Aleksandar Vučić’s victory was not met with celebration, instead protests filled the streets of Belgrade, and other cities in Serbia, accusing Vučić’s party of fraud and calls for the elections to…