Misinformation and disinformation is everywhere — across social media platforms, online news sites — and is harder than ever to distinguish with the improvements of Artificial Intelligence generating convincing videos and images.
A new report prepared by the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia for the Office of the Chief Scientist has drawn on the expertise of some of the nation’s most distinguished researchers, including several Fellows of the Australian Academy of the Humanities, to explore how cultural and community institutions can build what researchers call “information resilience” — the capacity of individuals and communities to identify and combat misinformation and disinformation.
Co-chaired by Professor Lynette Russell AM FASSA FAHA and Professor Kate Darian-Smith FASSA, the Expert Working Group brought together scholars across disciplines. Among the Academy Fellows who shaped the report were Professor Bronwyn Carlson FAHA, Professor Julia Kindt FAHA, and Dr Mathew Trinca AM FAHA — each contributing deep expertise in Indigenous studies, ancient history and museum leadership, respectively.
The report considers how Galleries, Libraries, Archives and Museums — collectively known as GLAM institutions — are particularly well-placed to facilitate information sharing and reach groups who are disengaged or mistrustful.
Research shows that participation in civic life helps build resilient, cohesive societies. Given their trusted status and presence across metropolitan, regional and rural Australia, cultural and community institutions act as social infrastructure, facilitating dialogue and providing locally situated responses to the spread of false information.
Combatting misinformation is not new
Misinformation refers to the unintended circulation of incorrect information — arising through mistakes, misunderstandings or confusion, without any intent to cause harm. Disinformation is deliberate: false information shared with the express intention to deceive, undermine and manipulate.
For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, Professor Bronwyn Carlson FAHA notes that misinformation and disinformation are far from a new occurrence. The doctrine of terra nullius — the legal fiction that Australia was unoccupied prior to British settlement — is perhaps the most consequential example in Australian history. Carlson’s research into Indigenous storytelling and online communities highlights how traditional practices of sharing knowledge across generations have always functioned as a form of resistance to false narratives and continue to do so on digital platforms today.
Julia Kindt FAHA, Professor of Ancient History at the University of Sydney says misinformation and disinformation shaped political trials and responses to war in the ancient world.
“This report is timely and necessary because it underscores the urgent need for the humanities and social sciences to contribute their insights to what has become a defining crisis of our time,” says Professor Kindt.
“Misinformation is not simply a failure of facts, but a problem of culture, how people form beliefs, whom they trust, and how narratives spread within communities. These are precisely the domains in which the social sciences and humanities hold deep expertise. Their perspectives are therefore essential for advising government, not only to understand the underlying drivers of misinformation, but also to develop more effective, culturally informed responses to it.”
Australians trust GLAM institutions
Australia’s GLAM institutions are among the most trusted in the country. Surveys consistently find that around 82% of Australians trust libraries, and 78% trust museums — figures that put them well ahead of many other public institutions and, notably, well ahead of social media platforms.
Dr Mathew Trinca AM FAHA, former Director of the National Museum of Australia, argues that this trusted status is one of the most valuable, and underutilised, assets available to Australian society.
Cultural institutions, in his view, are not passive repositories of objects and documents. They are active participants in civic life, and they have both the standing and the responsibility to help communities navigate an increasingly complex information environment.
The report notes, however, that despite this trust, there is evidence that institutions may exacerbate feelings of exclusion among certain groups. A survey by Creative Australia found that three in ten Australians believe that cultural and creative experiences are “not for people like them”, with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds more likely to agree. Employment within the GLAM sector, the report notes, trends towards people of similar gender, ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds, which can flow on to the voices and stories represented in public spaces.
Public institutions are already working to combat misinformation and disinformation. Libraries, for example, provide information and media literacy interventions, free programming and activities for community members to build information resilience.
Building a secure and resilient nation is one of the Australian Government’s National Science and Research Priorities, and public institutions, as this report emphasises, have a unique and trusted position in the Australian community. Leveraging and supporting the GLAM sector can support stronger social cohesion and information resilience.
Download a copy of the report, What role can cultural and community structures and institutions play in resilience to misinformation and disinformation?, prepared by the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia.
