Conversations with CISR: Prof. Sinan Aral, author of The Hype Machine

On September 23 and 24, 2020, Peter Weill and Sinan Aral discussed Aral's new book, The Hype Machine: How Social Media Disrupts Our Elections, Our Economy, and Our Health—and How We Must Adapt. In this recording from the webinars, Aral helps us take stock of social media’s ascendance and provide clear-eyed prescriptions for how we can protect ourselves and democracy from fake news deception and social media manipulation.

The Hype Machine was published on September 15, 2020. Aral—a scientist, entrepreneur, and investor—is the David Austin Professor of Management at MIT, Director of the MIT Initiative on the Digital Economy (IDE), and a founding partner at Manifest Capital. Learn more about his research in his TED Talk from earlier this year, "How We Can Protect Truth in the Age of Misinformation."

Sinan answers questions from webinar attendees, moderated by MIT CISR's Peter Weill. During the Q&A, Sinan provided his perspective on the film The Social Dilemma and the business use of social media.