Melanie Smith on combatting domestic terrorism in the US

Head of ISD’s Digital Analysis Unit, Melanie Smith, joined Eric Schurenberg at the Collision conference in Toronto in June to talk about the threat of online disinformation, extremism, and violent rhetoric. Their conversation features in this episode of In Reality, a podcast co-hosted by Eric that focuses on “fighting back against toxic misinformation that has poisoned civic discourse and threatened democracy.”

“I am optimistic that we can contain disinformation over a 10-year time frame, but I am concerned that things will get worse in the next five years. Elections tend to inflame disinformation, and that, in some places, can easily lead to violence. You have to realize that there are interests that want to seize the opportunity to deepen the divisions in our society,” Melanie said.