WHEN: 31 July at 18:30–20:30

WHERE: Goethe-Institut Johannesburg, 119 Jan Smuts Avenue – Parkwood, 2193 Johannesburg

RSVP: benjamin.keuffel@goethe.de until 30 July 2018.

“Fake news” and filter bubbles have become part of the standard vocabulary within the political and media discourse not only in South Africa, but around the world.

This has also led to increased debate around algorithmic decision making (ADM) and its consequences on societies. ADM is a fact of life today and will be a much bigger fact of life tomorrow. It carries enormous dangers but it also holds enormous promise. Starting from his research about ADM in a European context, executive director of AlgorithmWatch Matthias Spielkamp will be in conversation with The Huffington Post’s Ferial Haffajee and Media Monitoring Africa’s William Bird.

Together they will unpack the discussion, going beyond software but also looking at society and the role of media, with the core question being: How can we ensure we build systems to help address the digital divide and deepen our democracy?

About the panelists:

Matthias Spielkamp – AlgorithmWatch

Matthias Spielkamp is founder and executive director of AlgorithmWatch, a German non-profit advocacy and research organisation focused on consequences of algorithmic decision making (ADM) on societies. He also is co-founder and publisher of the online magazine iRights.info. Matthias Spielkamp has co-authored and edited several books on Internet governance, journalism and copyright regulation. Twitter: @spielkamp

Ferial Haffajee – Huffpost South Africa

Ferial Haffajee is an award-winning South African editor and writer. She has previously been editor-in-chief of the leading investigative titles – the Mail&Guardian and City Press. She is on the boards of the Global Editors Network and the Open Society’s Programme for Independent Journalism. She chaired the judging panel of the CNN-Multichoice African journalist of the year awards. 2016 Committee for the Protection of Journalists press freedom hero. A previous winner of the Phil Weber award, the Naspers group’s award for achievement. Editor of the year, twice. Sanlam financial journalist of the year, economy. Ferial is a yogi and a traveller. Twitter: @ferialhaffajee

Avani Singh – ALT Advisory and Power Singh Inc

Avani is a director and co-founder of ALT Advisory and Power Singh Inc, focusing on the intersection of law and technology. ALT Advisory and Power Singh Inc. work in association to jointly offer legal advisory, research, training and litigation services in the areas of media law, data privacy, emergent technology and public law. Avani has previously clerked at the Constitutional Court of South Africa and the International Criminal Court, and has practised as an attorney in the Constitutional Litigation Unit at the Legal Resources Centre and the Information Law team at Webber Wentzel. Twitter: @AvaniS_RSA

William Bird – Media Monitoring Africa

William Bird is the director of Media Monitoring Africa (MMA), a South African media watchdog that promotes ethical and fair journalism. MMA’s vision is to create a responsible, quality media that enables an engaged and informed citizenry in Africa and the world. William Bird has worked on conceptualising MMA’s tools to build media credibility and combat misinformation in the news. Twitter: @billbobbird