[Chan Sek Keong Professorial Lecture in Public Law] Free Speech on the Internet: The Crisis of Epistemic Authority
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- [Chan Sek Keong Professorial Lecture in Public Law] Free Speech on the Internet: The Crisis of Epistemic Authority
August
30
Wednesday
Speaker: | Professor Brian Leiter University of Chicago Law School |
Moderator: | Professor David Tan NUS Law |
Time: | 5:30 pm to 7:00 pm (SGT) |
Venue: | Wee Chong Jin Moot Court NUS Bukit Timah Campus 469 Bukit Timah Road |
Type of Participation: | Open To Public |
Description
Much of our knowledge of the world comes not from direct sensory experience, but from reliance on epistemic authorities, individuals or institutions that tell us what we ought to believe. For example, what most of us believe about natural selection, climate change or the Holocaust comes from our reliance on epistemic authorities (scientists, historians). Sustaining epistemic authority depends, crucially, on social institutions that inculcate reliable second-order norms about whom to believe about what. The traditional media has been crucial in promulgating and sustaining such norms.
The Internet has obliterated the intermediaries who made that possible, and, in the process, undermined the epistemic standing of actual experts. This has been a particularly acute problem in the United States. I consider some possible changes to existing free speech doctrine in the U.S. to remedy the epistemological crisis brought about by the Internet, and offer some thoughts about Singapore’s approach to related problems.
Fees Applicable
Complimentary
Registration
Visit https://bit.ly/42Uy4kC to register by 23 August 2023 (Wednesday) 5.00 PM.
CPD Points
1
Practice Area: Contemporary Issues in Legal Practice
Training Level: Foundation
Participants who wish to obtain CPD Points are reminded that they must comply strictly with the Attendance Policy set out in the CPD Guidelines. For this activity, this includes signing in on arrival and signing out at the conclusion of the activity in the manner required by the organiser, and not being absent from the entire activity for more than 15 minutes. Participants who do not comply with the Attendance Policy will not be able to obtain CPD Points for attending the activity. Please refer to http://www.sileCPDcentre.sg for more information.