WHAT IS Digital truthfulness.

About the seminar:

In this What is…? seminar we want to explore together what happens to truthfulness in the age of digital media and AI. AI-generated texts, images, podcasts, and news challenge how we perceive reality and authenticity. How can we tell what is real? And how can we analyse AI systems, often described as “black boxes”?

Elleström (2018) suggests that truthfulness in communication is closely tied to coherence. In light of this, how should we rethink truthfulness today? Can intermedial research and artistic practice help us better understand AI? What kinds of materials and case studies are most useful when exploring digital truthfulness?

After a short introduction, we invite you to join a discussion based on selected examples. We will begin with brief reflections and welcome contributions. If you would like to present a case that illustrates challenges related to digital (or AI) forms of truthfulness, please contact us.

Suggested reading

• Asun López-Varela, “Intermedial Semiotics in the Age of Artificial Intelligence”, New Techno Humanities, Vol. 3, Issue 2, Dec. 2023, pp. 73–81 (Open Access)
• Menno van Doorn et al. 2021. ”Real Fake – The Murder of Reality”. In Real Fake. Playing with Reality in the Age of AI, Deepfakes and the Metaverse. Lubdibrium (e-mail ims@lnu.se for access to this reading)
• Elleström’s article “Coherence and truthfulness in communication” (2018, open access) is outlined shortly in:
  Schirrmacher & Mousavi (Eds.), Truth Claims Across Media (2024), Section 1.3. (open access)

How to attend:

To attend the seminar online, please email ims@lnu.se