“It’s like the wild wild west” is how Marianna Spring, the BBC’s first disinformation and social media reporter, described the internet at her sold out Festival of Debate talk. A realistic message about the online world and ‘Consipracyland’ rather than a sugar-coated one.
Spring loves her work despite dealing daily with the internet’s onslaught of misinformation, disinformation, trolls, and conspiracy theories, all of which were terms she defined and demystified for the audience which was a little older than expected. Perhaps Gen-Y and Z assume we know it all already, or perhaps we just have too little disposable income to get involved.
The main takeaway from how passionately Spring talked about her field was that conspiracy theory believers – those ‘down the rabbithole’ – shouldn’t be mocked, rather treated with empathy. “They’re not stupid or crazy,” she states, rather they are people who, yes, are cynical but also curious, engaged and have a strong sense of social justice. She links the rise of belief in conspiracy theory and disinformation to a lack of purpose and community in the modern world, especially post-covid, meaning we’re forced online where social networks incentivise reactionary content and push us into echo chambers.
Spring’s journalistic approach is a very human one and this came across throughout the event by how seamlessly she wove in the real stories of the people who appear in her book Among the Trolls: My Journey Through Conspiracyland. She says its her job to tell the stories of those who lack empowerment and trust and go online to find it. On social media, we’re dehumanised and that’s what makes trolling and theorising about real people so easy. In fact, she sees herself as a case study for this as she is the target of over 80% of all abuse aimed at the BBC. This could be offputting, but she deals with it pragmatically by understanding trolling as a tactic used to try and silence those shining light on the truth.
Although the outlook on the internet wasn’t necessarily positive (how could it be when discussing “conspiracy theory influencers”, crisis actors, and Andrew Tate?), we ended on a uplifting note, when a journalism teacher asked how journalism is changing for the better. Spring responded that with mediums like podcasts and videos, we now have more agency in the news. It’s no longer a top-down experience where someone tells you what to think, rather you can be taken on a journey and understand how a reporter reached their conclusions. Seeing the process is one way people can feel more trust in reputable news sources instead of turning to an easier (imaginary) pill to swallow.
Spring’s work is important in our digital world and can benefit us all, no matter how far down the rabbit hole we are, and this event was a fascinating look into a world which affects us all regardless of how chronically online we are.
Rating: ★★★★☆
Among the Trolls: My Journey through Conspiracyland was published in 2024. Other Festival of Debate events can be found here
