In March and April, ICIP organised the panel discussion series “Who is training your mind? Disinformation, polarisation and hate speech” as a complement to the exhibition “PolsXtrems”, which runs until 17 May at Palau Robert. The exhibition recreates a gym where visitors can train their critical thinking and test their capacity for dialogue and listening to different opinions – all set against a backdrop of growing political and social polarisation, rising disinformation, and the normalisation of exclusionary narratives.
Emotional disinformation and the need for media literacy
The first panel discussion, held on 25 March under the title “The risks of disinformation“, focused on the mechanisms behind the spread of disinformation — fuelled above all by social media — and on the need to develop tools to counter it.
Participants included Laura Pinyol, vice-president of the Audiovisual Council of Catalonia; Ona Sindreu, data journalist and editorial coordinator at Verificat; and Nereida Carrillo, PhD in Journalism and Communication and director of the association Learn to Check. The session was moderated by Sergi Picazo, a journalist at Crític.
The speakers discussed how traditional media increasingly compete with social networks in the dissemination of information, and how these same platforms tend to spread fake news and promote content that appeals to emotions and encourages more extreme opinions. To counter this situation, participants emphasised the promotion of content verification tools, the regulation of platforms, and media literacy. For example, Carrillo presented the PANTERA method, based on analysing content according to its provenance (source), authorship, novelty, tone, evidence, replies and amplification.
Algorithms, engines of polarisation
The second session of the series, held on 8 April under the title “Algorithms, power and polarisation” featured Emma Fraxanet, PhD in Information and Communication Technologies and postdoctoral researcher at the Barcelona Supercomputing Center; and Karma Peiró, co-founder and executive director of the Fundació Visualització per la Transparència (Transparency Visualisation Foundation). The session was moderated by Rita Costa from Build Up.
The discussion focused on the responsibility of digital platforms and their business model in fostering toxic polarisation. Research findings were presented demonstrating that networks such as Facebook or X structurally favour conflict and toxicity, as the most extreme content generates the most interaction and, therefore, the greatest financial return.
As a counterpoint, the experts outlined concrete alternatives including prosocial design (Prosocial Design Network), which promotes algorithms fostering dialogue and connecting divergent viewpoints through mutual understanding, as well as new European regulations, such as the Digital Services Act, to demand transparency from major tech companies and encourage the development of more local and ethical networks.
The normalisation of hate speech
The series concluded on 22 April with the panel discussion “Impact and narratives of hate speech: How to confront It?“, featuring Cheikh Drame, president of SOS Racisme; Ángeles Schjaer, pedagogical coordinator of Open Arms; and Júlia Vigó, head of Equality Policies and Feminisms at the Taula del Tercer Sector Social (Third Social Sector Platform). The discussion was moderated by Pablo Aguiar, director of FundiPau.
The session raised the alarm about the spread and normalisation of exclusionary discourse in the public, media and political sphere. Participants recalled that hatred is not a new phenomenon, but rather responds to historical structures of discrimination (racist, sexist and classist), which have served to justify the dehumanisation of the “other”. The speakers denounced institutional racism and European border policies, which often push migrants into situations of extreme vulnerability, and called for grassroots networking and civic mobilisation in the face of policies that promote hatred and exclusion. The session also addressed how to combat hate speech with transformative narratives.
The panel debate series highlighted the importance of promoting an education grounded in respect for human rights, the need to foster critical thinking, and the commitment to a system that places social justice, ethical technology and equal opportunities at its centre.
