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SUMMARY:The Future of Free Speech Online | The Age of Constitutional Evasion: Jawboning and Other Forms of Government Pressure to Control Private Speech
DESCRIPTION:Hosted by the Center for Democracy & Technology and Stand Together Trust\, the Future of Speech Online conference is an annual event that brings together policymakers\, media\, academics\, corporations\, advocates\, and thought leaders to discuss today’s most pressing issues around free speech online. \n\n\nGovernments have always worked to shape the speech of private parties and these efforts have always threatened overcensorship of dissent and governmentally disfavored viewpoints. The current Administration in the United States is taking this common phenomenon to new and dangerous heights\, and the impacts are reverberating globally. Join us as we examine government pressure on speech intermediaries (also known as “jawboning”)\, particularly the Trump Administration’s efforts to shape online speech environments at universities\, news outlets\, online\, and in other contexts. \nThis year’s Future of Speech Online event will explore recent court decisions that increase protections against jawboning and how we can use them and other tools to reduce inappropriate government pressure on speech platforms while maintaining essential communications. Additionally\, speakers will examine the ways in which Section 230 might work to protect against censorship of vulnerable groups including immigrants\, trans youth\, and public health practitioners. We will also take a look at efforts to regulate speech produced by generative AI. \nSessions will also look at agency efforts to dictate editorial choices\, examining First Amendment limits on FCC and FTC authority to control or encourage particular editorial policies and the ways in which the agencies are trying to evade those limits. Finally\, we will talk about the unprecedented attacks against the speech of non-citizens and the various ways the government is using social media monitoring tools to silence dissent. And we will spotlight experts who have directly experienced (or work on behalf of those who have experienced) government pressure aimed at undermining free expression. \n\nThroughout the event\, we’ll hear from legal experts\, technologists\, and policymakers about what’s at stake in this important year for democracy and free speech.\n\nRead more and register to attend here. If you have questions\, concerns\, or access needs\, please contact events@cdt.org before the event.
URL:https://mediawell.ssrc.org/event/the-future-of-free-speech-online-the-age-of-constitutional-evasion-jawboning-and-other-forms-of-government-pressure-to-control-private-speech/
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Talk
ORGANIZER;CN="Center for Democracy & Technology":MAILTO:civictech@cdt.org
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251029T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251029T193000
DTSTAMP:20261023T133745
CREATED:20250909T212613Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250909T212613Z
UID:513603-1761762600-1761766200@mediawell.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Understanding AI with Data & Society | Reorienting AI for the Public Interest
DESCRIPTION:​The New York Public Library and Data & Society present “Understanding AI\,” a four-part live event series exploring the social implications of artificial intelligence and its impacts on democracy\, the environment\, and human labor. Featuring key figures in the AI ethics field\, these events will take place in person at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library (SNFL) in New York City as part of the library’s 7 Stories Up program\, and will also be available to watch via livestream. This series of conversations will demystify the AI discourse and equip library patrons and the public with practical ways of understanding the current landscape. \nFor the October 29 event\, Data & Society Executive Director Janet Haven hosts a critical discussion about AI accountability and the public interest\, featuring professor Charlton McIlwain\, journalist Julia Angwin\, and civic technologist Catherine Bracy. \nThe concentration of power and lack of regulation in the technology industry directly shapes how AI is designed and deployed\, and whose interests it serves. That means decisions about these tools often reflect corporate priorities over public benefits. While AI is often held up as a tool to increase “efficiency\,” it is essential to ask: efficiency for whom\, and at what cost? What would it mean to create and oversee AI in the public’s best interest? How could these technologies be made more accountable to the people and communities they affect? And what is needed to create a future where AI works for everyone? \nTo join the event in person | Doors will open 30 minutes before the program begins. For free events\, we generally overbook to ensure a full house. Priority will be given to those who have registered in advance\, but registration does not guarantee admission. All registered seats are released shortly before start time\, and seats may become available at that time. A standby line will form 30 minutes before the program. \nTo join the event online | Whether you’re attending in person or online\, you must register with your email address.The Zoom link will be sent to you by email approximately one day before the event. You will need a device with audio and/or video and an internet/cellular connection to join. \n\n  \nABOUT THE SPEAKERS\nJanet Haven is the executive director of Data & Society. She has worked at the intersection of technology policy\, governance\, and accountability for more than twenty years\, both domestically and internationally. From 2022 to 2025\, Janet served on the National Artificial Intelligence Advisory Committee (NAIAC)\, which advises the National AI Initiative Office and the executive branch on a range of issues related to artificial intelligence\, and chaired the Rights\, Trust\, and Safety working group. \nJulia Angwin is an award-winning investigative journalist\, a bestselling author\, a New York Times contributing Opinion writer and a Walter Shorenstein Media and Democracy Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School’s Shorenstein Center on Media\, Politics\, and Public Policy. She is the founder of Proof News\, a nonprofit journalism studio that launched in 2024. \nCatherine Bracy is a civic technologist and community organizer whose work focuses on the intersection of technology and political and economic inequality. She is the founder and CEO of TechEquity and the author of World Eaters: How Venture Capital is Cannibalizing the Economy. She was previously Code for America’s Senior Director of Partnerships and Ecosystem and Director of Obama for America’s Technology Field Office in San Francisco. She is on the board of directors at the Data & Society Research Institute and the Terner Housing Lab. \nDr. Charlton McIlwain is Vice Provost for Faculty Development\, Pathways & Public Interest Technology at New York University\, where he is also Professor of Media\, Culture\, and Communication. He is the author of Black Software: The Internet & Racial Justice\, From the Afronet to Black Lives Matter and the recent PolicyLink report Algorithmic Discrimination: A Framework and Approach to Auditing & Measuring the Impact of Race-Targeted Digital Advertising. McIlwain is the founder of the Center for Critical Race & Digital Studies\, and is Board President at Data & Society Research Institute.
URL:https://mediawell.ssrc.org/event/understanding-ai-with-data-society-reorienting-ai-for-the-public-interest/
LOCATION:Hybrid
CATEGORIES:Talk
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251112T123000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251112T123000
DTSTAMP:20261023T133745
CREATED:20251021T164337Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251021T164337Z
UID:514149-1762950600-1762950600@mediawell.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:The Double Black Box: National Security\, AI\, and the Struggle for Democratic Accountability\, with Ashley Deeks\, November 12 The Double Black Box: National Security\, Artificial Intelligence\, and the Struggle for Democratic Accountability
DESCRIPTION:Rapid advances in artificial intelligence are increasingly vital to national security operations.  The United States\, China\, and other states seek to harness these tools to bolster their own military and intelligence superiority. Yet their advent exacerbates an existing paradox within our democracy: some of the most consequential decisions made in the name of national security are often the least transparent and accountable – and the use of AI makes this problem worse. \nIn her new book\, The Double Black Box\, Ashley Deeks unpacks this pressing challenge. She examines how we can ensure democratic accountability\, legality\, and effectiveness in the use of artificial intelligence tools within national security processes\, and which traditional and nontraditional checks on the executive branch might be brought to bear on the use of national security AI. \nHarvard Law School Professor Kristen Eichensehr will hold a conversation with Deeks about the book\, unpacking its arguments and inviting the audience into the discussion. \nRead more about this event and register to attend here. 
URL:https://mediawell.ssrc.org/event/the-double-black-box-national-security-ai-and-the-struggle-for-democratic-accountability-with-ashley-deeks-november-12-the-double-black-box-national-security-artificial-intelligence-and-the-st/
LOCATION:Hybrid
CATEGORIES:Talk
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251204T000000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251204T235959
DTSTAMP:20261023T133745
CREATED:20251021T162436Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251021T162436Z
UID:514141-1764806400-1764892799@mediawell.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Beyond the Algorithm: From Research to Action for Democratic Renewal
DESCRIPTION:Beyond the Algorithm: From Research to Action for Democratic Renewal is a hybrid event jointly organised by the Horizon Europe KT4D\, ORBIS\, ITHACA and AI4GOV projects. The event puts under the spotlight the rapid deployment of Artificial Intelligence and Big Data technologies and how these these technologies hold the promise of fostering civic participation\, transparency\, and efficiency in democratic governance. Yet\, they also introduce new risks related to algorithmic bias\, privacy infringements\, disinformation\, cultural polarisation\, and the erosion of democratic values. \nRecognising the urgency and complexity of these issues\, four Horizon Europe-funded projects\, AI4GOV\, KT4D\, ITHACA\, and ORBIS\, joined forces to establish the AI\, Big Data & Democracy Task Force. Since March 2025 INNOVADE is part of the Task Force. Together\, these projects represent a broad\, interdisciplinary effort to understand the benefits and risks of AI and Big Data for democracy and civic participation\, and to develop solutions for their responsible and democratic use. This event represents the climax of this collaborative journey\, bringing together the research results\, methodologies\, and exhibiting tools produced by the Task Force\, with the ambition to foster dialogue\, impact policy\, and contribute to the future of digital democracy. \nRead more about the event and register to attend here. 
URL:https://mediawell.ssrc.org/event/beyond-the-algorithm-from-research-to-action-for-democratic-renewal/
LOCATION:Hybrid
CATEGORIES:Talk
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260414T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260414T190000
DTSTAMP:20261023T133745
CREATED:20260413T185032Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260413T185032Z
UID:516000-1776189600-1776193200@mediawell.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:AI and the Concentration of Power
DESCRIPTION:Zoë Hitzig\, known for her research and writing on the political economy of AI\, including a widely discussed op-ed reflecting on her decision to leave OpenAI\, will examine how AI systems may reshape where knowledge resides and how decisions are made. As these systems begin to capture and operationalize forms of tacit\, experience-based knowledge long embedded in workers and local contexts\, information itself may become more concentrated—and with it\, power. This shift raises broader questions about how institutions act as information powerbrokers\, and what happens when expertise and decision-making move from individuals and local settings into centralized systems. Hitzig will be joined in conversation with HLS Professor of Entrepreneurial Legal Studies Yochai Benkler to discuss how AI systems may reshape where knowledge resides in the economy. \nClick here to learn more and register to attend. \nNote: Event details are listed in ET (UTC-5). 
URL:https://mediawell.ssrc.org/event/ai-and-the-concentration-of-power/
LOCATION:Hybrid
CATEGORIES:Talk
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260520T120000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20260520T133000
DTSTAMP:20261023T133745
CREATED:20260413T163756Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260413T163857Z
UID:515976-1779278400-1779283800@mediawell.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Inside the 2026 AI Index Report | Stanford HAI
DESCRIPTION:The AI Index\, currently in its ninth year\, tracks\, collates\, distills\, and visualizes data relating to artificial intelligence. What is changing in the field of AI? Join Stanford HAI’s AI Index Lead Sha Sajadieh for an exclusive look into this trusted source of AI intelligence. \nLearn about the year’s major AI breakthroughs\, changes in the workplace\, policy shifts\, and an evolving public sentiment for this technology. From technical advances to ethical considerations\, education trends to economic impact—get the unbiased\, data-driven insights that executives\, policymakers\, and global researchers rely on. \nClick here to learn more and register to attend online or in-person. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nNote: Event details are listed in PST/PDT (UTC-8).
URL:https://mediawell.ssrc.org/event/inside-the-2026-ai-index-report-stanford-hai/
LOCATION:Hybrid
CATEGORIES:Talk
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260923T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260923T130000
DTSTAMP:20261023T133745
CREATED:20260831T173428Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260831T173444Z
UID:517706-1790168400-1790168400@mediawell.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Protecting Democracy's Data | Book Talk
DESCRIPTION:The United States census\, conducted every ten years\, is one of the world’s oldest and biggest data-making endeavors\, and one of the country’s most consequential. In her urgent new book Data Are Made\, Not Found: A Story of Politics\, Power\, and the Civil Servants Who Saved the US Census\, professor\, researcher\, and Data & Society founder danah boyd explores what it took for the Census Bureau to make the 2020 census\, amid a global pandemic and natural disasters\, and while navigating political forces that constrained the budget\, micro-managed the schedule\, and attacked statisticians’ methods. Despite these challenges\, civil servants saved the 2020 census\, but future censuses — and other data-making efforts related to elections\, health\, and the economy — are precarious. \nBy documenting the perspectives of government workers in Data Are Made\, Not Found\, boyd provides a rare glimpse into what it takes to make democracy’s data and shows clearly why protecting democracy means protecting the people and institutions that produce that data. Join us on September 23 at 1 pm ET as boyd delves into her research and its implications with historian and author Dan Bouk\, in a conversation moderated by Data & Society Executive Director Janet Haven.
URL:https://mediawell.ssrc.org/event/protecting-democracys-data/
LOCATION:Virtual
CATEGORIES:Talk
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260928T183000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260928T193000
DTSTAMP:20261023T133745
CREATED:20260831T173915Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260831T173915Z
UID:517709-1790620200-1790623800@mediawell.ssrc.org
SUMMARY:Who Gets to Decide How AI Enters Our Schools? With Data & Society
DESCRIPTION:Explore how AI’s role in classrooms is being shaped in New York City and beyond with Coding Kids author Natasha Singer and other panelists at this discussion presented by the research and policy institute Data & Society. \nThis event will take place in person and online at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library on the 7th Floor. \nThis is a pivotal year for shaping the role AI will play in American classrooms. Around the country\, states have already begun distributing AI products across school districts\, and New York City’s DOE recently released its own preliminary guidance on AI. This event will explore what’s at stake for the city’s more than 1\,700 schools and the millions of students and families they serve. \nCoding Kids: Big Tech’s Battle to Remake Public Schools\, the new book by New York Times reporter and Data & Society alum Natasha Singer\, explores how tech companies are using schools to mainstream their AI tools. Singer will discuss her reporting and the broader issues at stake in a discussion with other panelists (to be announced) moderated by Meredith Broussard\, Data & Society advisor and professor at NYU’s Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute\, and author of More Than a Glitch. The event will be introduced by Data & Society Executive Director Janet Haven.
URL:https://mediawell.ssrc.org/event/who-gets-to-decide-how-ai-enters-our-schools-with-data-society/
LOCATION:Hybrid
CATEGORIES:Talk
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