International Symposium on “Social Impact and the Social Sciences: Theory and Practice in the Era of Propaganda, Fake News and Media Manipulation”, 5-6 December 2019

Between 5 and 6 December 2019 the International Symposium “Social impact and the social sciences: Theory and practice in the era of propaganda, fake news and media manipulation” was held at the University of Bucharest. Parallel sessions were held throughout the two days, canvassing a range of important contemporary issues in the advancement of social impact. These included: the role of theory in analysing impact in the context of political propaganda; the challenges of online and offline strategies to tackle fake news and media manipulation; and the importance of evidence-based social impact programs in and for organisations in the government and non-profit sectors. Some discussions focused on regional issues, including the Black Sea area and the EU. Others focused on country-specific interventions with social impact. Additional presenters debated issues on fake news, media manipulation and social impact at the trans-national and global levels. In concluding the conference, Professor Marian Zulean and Dr Gaby Ramia, two of the conference organisers, announced that a conference discussing social issues in the Black Sea region is likely to be organised in May 2020, and the 2020 iteration of the conference will be organised for the Fall in 2020.