Based at the Institute of Global Affairs (IGA) within the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), Arena is an innovative programme dedicated to overcoming the challenges of disinformation.
The aim of the Arena programme is to use high-quality research, analysis and evaluation to create effective best practices that can then be disseminated to journalists, public diplomacy teams and civic groups.
Arena seeks creative ways to counter the menace of unreality, stop the spread of hatred and division and foster a fact-based discourse that enhances security, enables democracy and entrenches trust. Its experimental research projects involve journalists, data analysts and activists who seek to both understand disinformation campaigns and reach audiences impacted by them.
Arena has a small but dedicated core staff, and an international network of partners that includes government, strategic communication and public diplomacy centres, media, academia and NGOs. Its location at a world-class research institution, such as LSE, enables the programme to connect individuals and organisations in the fields of tech, media, government and academia in order to pioneer new practices which can be applied globally.
Unlike many academic or think tank projects, Arena does not simply analyse the changing nature of information; rather, it creates content and then measures its impact, uniquely rooted in academic rigour and practice.
Ultimately all of Arena’s projects are underpinned by one overarching ambition: to reverse engineer the societal damage caused by the divisive use of social media favoured by populists and authoritarians.
Arena is very much a ‘do’-tank, dedicated to finding the practical tools, best practices and methodologies to defeat disinformation. Arena will take advantage of its unique network of academics, opinion-makers and policy-makers interested in this field– from heads of State, the military and the media, all the way to bedroom activists, academics, computer scientists and NGOs – to move into responsive action.
For more information about our projects click here