Digital Authoritarianism

This podcast series, hosted by Dr. Janjira Sombatpoonsiri, Dr. Sangeeta Mahapatra, and PD Dr. Andreas Ufen, explores insights from the research project Digital Authoritarianism through Lawfare: Mapping and Strengthening Civil Society Responses in Asia.

Episode 2: The Role of Generative AI in Digital Authoritarianism

In the second episode of the GIGA podcast series on digital authoritarianism, Prateek Waghre, Head of Programs and Partnerships at the Tech Global Institute and Fellow at Tech Policy Press, examines how generative AI can reinforce existing authoritarian practices. He explores its use in shaping narratives, manipulating information ecosystems, and scaling propaganda. Waghre argues that these authoritarian applications of generative AI significantly heighten the challenges faced by civil society and policymakers, particularly in Global Majority countries, as they seek to regulate online content dominated by Big Tech. He calls for collective advocacy, cross-sector collaboration, and stronger corporate governance standards, emphasizing an ecosystem-level approach to rethinking both state and platform accountability.

Host: Sangeeta Mahapatra is a Research Fellow at the GIGA.

Guest: Prateek Waghre is Head of Programs and Partnerships at the Tech Global Institute, and Fellow at the Tech Policy Press.

Episode 1: Illberal Challenges to Disinformation Research

Following recent cuts in U.S. aid and development funding, civil society advocates for digital literacy and digital rights have taken a significant hit. In this first episode of the GIGA podcast series on digital authoritarianism, Jonathan Ong – Professor of Global Digital Media and Director of the Global Technology for Social Justice Lab (GloTech) at the University of Massachusetts Amherst – examines how resource imbalances between the Global North and the Global Majority shape funding for fact-checking organizations and debates on tech accountability. He discusses how reliance on Big Tech and Global North donors creates structural dependencies that can sideline local priorities, undermine media sustainability, and influence what “truth” gets verified. Drawing on his recent Global Majority knowledge exchange project at GloTech, Ong calls for structural change in how civil society coalitions are built and maintained, arguing that more inclusive, bottom-up approaches can unleash the Global Majority’s creative capacity.

Host: Dr. Janjira Sombatpoonsiri is a Research Fellow at the GIGA.

Guest: Prof. Jonathan Corpus Ong is a Professor of Global Digital Media at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.