Transforming society through digital technologies

Experts and activists will debate the new world of digital data at a Cardiff University conference this Friday (30 January 2015), which will identify the challenges and opportunities of digital media for citizens and society.

From social media campaigns to data-driven journalism, digital transformation is changing our lives, our role as citizens, and the information we get about the world.

At the same time, online censorship and digital surveillance challenge and restrict new opportunities, as the Snowden revelations and its repercussions have demonstrated.

'Coding for Social Change' will see Guardian Editor Alan Rusbridger and Electronic Frontier Foundation Director Jillian C. York set out their thoughts on a future where citizens can change society through creative uses of new digital technologies.

Speakers from Twitter, the BBC, the Red Cross, and organisations such as Change.org and the Open Rights Group will explain how digital media are used to transform society.

Cardiff University's Director of the Centre of Journalism, Professor Richard Sambrook said: "This conference will discuss the interface between digital technologies, journalism and society.

"It will cover everything from how people consume news and information today, the technologies that allow us to sift the huge wealth of data and information available, technologies which are revealing more about the world and how we live, to the ethical issues over free speech, privacy, government surveillance and corporate use of personal data."

The event will be held at Cardiff University's School of Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies and will mark the official launch of two new Master programmes in digital media, the MA Digital Media and Society and the MSc Computational Journalism. The programmes will place graduates at the forefront of current developments in public debate and the employment market.

Director of Cardiff University's 'Digital Media and Society' research group Dr Arne Hintz said: "The new degrees will be excellent opportunities for students to prepare themselves for the future. Digital media is at the core of public debate - from 'Twitter Revolutions' to digital business, from the Snowden revelations on mass surveillance to cybercrime, and from 'politics 2.0' to new forms of online journalism.

"It is paramount for students to develop an informed understanding about these broader social transformations and to acquire the necessary skills for next-generation jobs."

Cardiff University is widely known for its world-leading expertise in journalism. Now the MA Digital Media and Society and the MSc Computational Journalism will position Cardiff at the leading edge of the digital debate and of academic study. In the 2014 Research Excellence Framework, undertaken by the UK funding councils, the School's research was ranked 2nd in the UK for quality where 99% of its submitted research was rated at least of international standard with 89% classed as internationally excellent or world-leading.