Prof. Dr. Matthias C. Kettemann is a guest on the podcast “Carls Future” by futurologist Michael Carl. In the interview, he discusses the challenges and opportunities of the digital information society. The focus is on how people can distinguish facts from false reports in an increasingly disinformative and emotionally charged media landscape.
Click here to listen to the podcast Carls Zukunft” [Carl’s Future]. The interview was conducted in German.
Summary by the Host
Matthias C. Kettemann notes that a communicative overload weakens our “cognitive immune system.” Amid constant digital stimulation, people react like allergy sufferers to too much pollen; they become unsettled, panicked, or angry. However, Matthias remains optimistic. He believes that education is the strongest antidote, not only in schools, but also throughout society, reaching even grandparents.
His warning against a self-fulfilling prophecy is striking: Those who talk too much about disinformation will soon see nothing else. The constant invocation of manipulation creates a climate of powerlessness — a state in which anger entrepreneurs offer simple explanations: “Foreigners,” “public broadcasters,” and “those at the top” are to blame.
The problem is not so much the fake news as it is the lost ability to deal with ambiguity. Matthias advocates for a new discourse ecology, in which platforms must be transparent about what they amplify. Algorithms should promote debate as well as clicks. Users — all of us — must understand our attention as a political commodity once again. The way out of digital numbness begins with self-criticism of our scrolling behavior, not with technology regulation. The off button is there. We just have to press it.