Spy-themed video game tackles misinformation

For the latest in our series on organizations that inspire us to take action to build a stronger democracy, Democracy Group community manager Jessie Nguyen caught up with Alterea, Inc. Co-Founder Anahita Dalmia. Alterea is the brains behind Agents of Influence, an interactive spy-themed game designed to help future generations combat misinformation.

Q: How did the idea behind Agents of Influence come about?

Anahita: We want to show people that their actions matter in a way that’s meaningful and will allow them to build the future they’re looking for. We realized that misinformation and disinformation are preventing people from making meaningful choices that lead to those outcomes — we depend on information in every aspect of our lives to make decisions. Whether it’s where to send your kids to school, what restaurants to eat at, or what time restaurants open. So if people are making decisions based on bad, unreliable information then there’s really limited chances that they’ll get the outcome they’re vying for. So Agents of Influence is supposed to help people start exercising the necessary skills for them to make those kinds of choices.

The mission that matters most to us is to show people that your actions matter. Agents of Influence is an educational video game on media literacy and misinformation, particularly, to show people how they can make more informed responsible decisions that will allow them to achieve the outcome that they are moving toward.

Q: Why is it important for Gen Z and future generations to get involved in this program and specifically, learn about misinformation?

Anahita: In this day and age, everything is online and there are pros and cons to that. We’ve seen unprecedented effects of globalization because of the interconnected nature of the internet, which is amazing. But that has also allowed a lot of nefarious actors to create false information and share that at unprecedented rates, and people are not prepared to deal with that level of manufacturing and fabrication. The level of quality control has gone down significantly as the rate of content created has gone up significantly. The goal of the game is to prime people to be able to look at information and practice the idea of trust but verify, where it’s good to trust things, but you should double-check and look for different perspectives and be open to changing perspectives when new information comes out because of the level of polarization we’re seeing right now, especially with the upcoming election.

We found that most people who were entertainment executives in our network were asking if they could have the game for their kids since they spend most of their time on TikTok and social media. There was a clear need since the next generation is growing up to be digital natives. All of their information and our information today is accessed through the phone so based on that indication we developed Agents of Influence into an educational video game for middle and high school students.

Q: What are some steps we can take to differentiate facts from false information?

Anahita: I like to think of it as a three-step process. The first step is to ask yourself, ‘Does it matter?,’ and if you find yourself scrolling through social media and looking at pieces of news and going, ‘I have an emotional reaction to this’ whether it’s positive or negative, then it probably matters.

The next step is to ask, ‘Why does it matter?’ Some questions I like to ask myself are ‘How does this affect my decision-making?’ and ‘How does it affect my worldview?’

If you find that this is something that matters to you then I have two key tips that I recommend to people: find dramatically different perspectives — the absolute opposite of what you believe in and see where they’re coming from — and get as many data points as you can since things are not typically black and white, there are lots of shades of gray in the middle. We have a tendency to generalize but you don’t want to be close-minded.

It’s an active process of learning to take risks with rewards and doing your due diligence when it matters.

‍

The Great Battlefield: Fighting back against misinformation with Former Congressman Denver Riggleman

On the topic of combating misinformation, I have to bring you this episode from The Great Battlefield which features the tech advisor to the January 6 committee. The episode shares insights into Riggleman's expertise in fighting back against the spread of false information as well as the current challenges of combating misinformation and disinformation in politics and our society — it encouraged me to look at the digital age under a more critical eye.

‍

This is Jessie Nguyen, The Democracy Group's Community Manager. Here are some of my favorite podcasts this week, check them out!

Future Hindsight: Solving Homelessness: Gregg Colburn

I read an article last week about defensive architecture which introduces the idea of architectural design that discourages public use like metal bars on benches or spikes on flat surfaces. While one of the intents is to protect public property, these designs disproportionately affect the homeless and weaker populations by preventing them from seeking shelter on the streets. Instead of chasing away homelessness, there are many other ways to support the vulnerable population. This episode offers a glimpse into the U.S. housing crisis and possible solutions — give it a listen!

Democracy Matters: Episode 108: Solutions to the campus free speech woes: An interview with ALL IN Democracy Challenge's Stephanie King and JMU Debate

"Eight out of 10 students from each ideological group (far-left, liberal, middle, and conservative) neither agree nor strongly agree that their institutions encourage them to have a voice and share ideas openly."

While higher education encourages students to challenge ideas and promotes critical thinking and civil discourse, university campuses are now "hotbeds of discontent" due to restrictive policies and controversial speakers. Listen to see how students and administration are tackling the issue.

QUICK ANNOUNCEMENT

We have some exciting news within our network to share with you this week!‍

Meet Bad Watchdog — the newest member of The Democracy Group podcast network!

‍Bad Watchdog, a production of the Project on Government Oversight, takes an investigative approach to storytelling as the team shows you the pattern of misconduct at the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General. Throughout this six-part series, the show unravels a series of events that follows the government watchdogs whose job is to hold powerful actors accountable. So what happens when they don't do their job?

The inaugural episode focuses on the events of January 6th, particularly regarding missing text messages from Secret Service agents. Department of Homeland Security's Inspector General Joseph Cuffari's string of actions before and during the insurrection raised concerns about his commitment to accountability. This first episode will walk you through the first breach of the U.S. Capitol in over two centuries.

‍Listen to Episode 1