Online Hate, Gaming, and Higher Education

Location

Littlefoot A Room 124A

Start Date

21-4-2023 3:50 PM

End Date

21-4-2023 5:05 PM

Publication Date

2023

Disciplines

Arts and Humanities | Law | Social and Behavioral Sciences

Description

This session will provide college and university professionals with a framework for understanding and responding to online hate and harassment, especially within the gaming environment.

Social media and online platforms are increasingly becoming essential components of the campus experience and are now utilized every day by students, staff, and faculty alike to facilitate learning, conduct and share research, raise awareness of social justice causes, and to promote campus teambuilding. Accompanying this growth is an uptick in the circulation of hate speech through technology and in digital spaces, an escalation rarely accounted for in most campus’ incident reporting protocols and forms, free speech policies, or mental health support services. Indeed, with rapid advances in information technology and with security measures that become quickly outdated, current campus infrastructure is rarely sufficient to interrupt harmful algorithms or online behaviors.

In this session, we will consider how online platforms, from multiplayer games to dating apps, are transforming the campus landscape, the dissemination of hate, how we think about communication and security, and what constitutes lawful and unlawful online behavior more generally. Session leaders will offer an overview of trends in online hate speech and online harassment, discuss common iterations of hate in the gaming environment, and will offer tools for responding to incidents when they occur. Participants will then be led through a series of scenarios involving incidents of online hate and online harassment. These scenarios are designed to help participants more effectively use their campus’ social media and technology policies to reduce the likelihood of incidents escalating.

The session will answer the following questions:

  • What constitutes online hate speech and online harassment on campus and off campus, especially in the gaming environment?
  • What can campuses do to prevent and respond to online hate speech and online harassment, and what are some of the legal considerations to keep in mind?
  • How can campuses more safely integrate games and other social media into the classroom and campus culture?
  • What tools can campuses use to encourage the reporting of hate incidents that occur in gaming spaces?
  • how can members of the campus community work with technology companies, scholars, and non-profit organizations to make online environments more secure and productive places for all members of the campus community?

Ultimately, the goal of the session is to equip participants in their professional capacity--and potentially as a member of multiple teams--to both assess and strengthen their campus’ existing bias prevention and response initiatives. The session will particularly benefit professionals who are seeking to address, in comprehensive fashion, hate incidents in the campus environment. Participants who attend this session should have a working knowledge of or strong interest in policies and practices related to inclusive campus climate or bias incident response.

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Apr 21st, 3:50 PM Apr 21st, 5:05 PM

Online Hate, Gaming, and Higher Education

Littlefoot A Room 124A

This session will provide college and university professionals with a framework for understanding and responding to online hate and harassment, especially within the gaming environment.

Social media and online platforms are increasingly becoming essential components of the campus experience and are now utilized every day by students, staff, and faculty alike to facilitate learning, conduct and share research, raise awareness of social justice causes, and to promote campus teambuilding. Accompanying this growth is an uptick in the circulation of hate speech through technology and in digital spaces, an escalation rarely accounted for in most campus’ incident reporting protocols and forms, free speech policies, or mental health support services. Indeed, with rapid advances in information technology and with security measures that become quickly outdated, current campus infrastructure is rarely sufficient to interrupt harmful algorithms or online behaviors.

In this session, we will consider how online platforms, from multiplayer games to dating apps, are transforming the campus landscape, the dissemination of hate, how we think about communication and security, and what constitutes lawful and unlawful online behavior more generally. Session leaders will offer an overview of trends in online hate speech and online harassment, discuss common iterations of hate in the gaming environment, and will offer tools for responding to incidents when they occur. Participants will then be led through a series of scenarios involving incidents of online hate and online harassment. These scenarios are designed to help participants more effectively use their campus’ social media and technology policies to reduce the likelihood of incidents escalating.

The session will answer the following questions:

  • What constitutes online hate speech and online harassment on campus and off campus, especially in the gaming environment?
  • What can campuses do to prevent and respond to online hate speech and online harassment, and what are some of the legal considerations to keep in mind?
  • How can campuses more safely integrate games and other social media into the classroom and campus culture?
  • What tools can campuses use to encourage the reporting of hate incidents that occur in gaming spaces?
  • how can members of the campus community work with technology companies, scholars, and non-profit organizations to make online environments more secure and productive places for all members of the campus community?

Ultimately, the goal of the session is to equip participants in their professional capacity--and potentially as a member of multiple teams--to both assess and strengthen their campus’ existing bias prevention and response initiatives. The session will particularly benefit professionals who are seeking to address, in comprehensive fashion, hate incidents in the campus environment. Participants who attend this session should have a working knowledge of or strong interest in policies and practices related to inclusive campus climate or bias incident response.