January's Topic: Combating extremism in the digital world

We all live with heightened concern about extremism, from the streets of faraway nations to our own neighborhoods. Social media and other online platforms are fertile ground on which extremism can grow and intensify. Experts are concerned not just about violent attacks, but about threats to democracy itself. Fortunately, social scientists have identified intervention possibilities backed by empirical research. Better yet, new programs are in the works to bring that research to civil society where informed counter-measures may be developed and implemented. 

Join us for a conversation with a leading national expert on democracy, extremism and what we can do about it. Brian Hughes is a Research Assistant Professor in the program of Justice, Law, and Criminology at American University. Dr. Hughes is a Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation Entrepreneur. He is also the co-founder and Associate Director of the Polarization and Extremism Research and Innovation Lab (PERIL), where he develops studies and interventions to reduce the risk of radicalization to extremism. 

Suggested reading:

“The Parent and Caregivers Guide to Online Youth Radicalization”  |  Developed by PERIL in partnership with the Southern Poverty Law Center, covers radicalization dynamics.  |  Click here to read.

“Blurry Ideologies and Strange Coalitions”  |  With PERIL co-founder Dr. Miller-Idriss, covers threats to democracy.  |  Click here to read. 

“Psychological Inoculation: New Techniques for Fighting Online Extremism”  |  By Jigsaw, Google’s nonprofit think tank, describes some of the projects the PERIL lab is working on.  |  Click here to read.