Big Tech Narrative Initiative

Online Convening

We will be convening for a one-day online event on Tuesday, 3 December, 2024 where we will gather to develop our collective knowledge and strategy moving forward. Throughout the conference, we will be highlighting the role storytelling has in shaping the way our societies interact and engage with Big Tech. We will focus on the intersections of Big Tech with democracy, human rights, national security, gender rights, youth political engagement, journalism, cultural spaces, and more.

Some of the topics we will be diving into include:

• What audiences are and are not receptive to when it comes to Big Tech storytelling
• What narratives and stories have not been picked up in the mainstream and what stories we need at this moment
• What resources and tactics can campaigners use to reach audiences and impact goals more effectively
• How Big Tech apparatuses impact citizens around the world in different ways - thinking about gender, national security, youth participation, and beyond
• What is known about Big Tech’s role across the many elections in 2024

We will be joined by experts including Maria Ressa, Chris Wylie, Karim Amer, and Carole Cadwalladr - stay tuned for the full lineup. We will hear further insights from technologists, policy makers, academics, researchers, campaigners, cultural organisations, news organisations, and other issue experts from the disinformation and technology spaces.

The goal of the event is to come together, geek out, and develop our collective knowledge on this issue area. Together, we will conceptualise and work towards a cultural shift in the way we tell stories about Big Tech, beginning our work towards co-creating a shared narrative strategy with storytellers, campaigners, impact practitioners, experts, and beyond.

Everyone is invited to register to attend the conference and join us as we embark on this think-in, developing knowledge, sharing ideas, and building strategy in community.

Click here to register for the event. Registration is open until 25 November 11:59 PM PST.*

*If you are an artist/storyteller with a project related to Big Tech, you will be asked for some information about your current project so Doc Society can better understand what projects are being made in this space. Your data will not be shared with other parties in the Big Tech Storyteller Community unless you state otherwise on the registration form.

The Showcase

During the conference, we hope to share a selection of stories being made around the world on Big Tech and Tech adjacent narratives with all attendees, with the aim of connecting creatives and facilitating more collaborations, funding, impact and distribution opportunities. The showcase will provide selected projects the opportunity to briefly present to a wide audience of funders, cultural organisers, distributors, storytellers, and other tech-interested attendees, highlighting the breadth of stories being made in this area around the world and demonstrating different narrative approaches to tackling Big Tech.

The showcase is open to all - documentary, fiction, podcast, VR/AR, video games, anything that is utilising storytelling as a tool to tackle this issue. We will be selecting up to 12 projects in a variety of genres and production stages to briefly share a bit about their project during the online conference and highlight connections and opportunities the teams are seeking. Sharebacks will be no more than 2-3 minutes. This is not a pitch - there will be no live feedback. Rather, this is a showcase of some of the brilliant work being made and stories being told about Big Tech - where we are aiming to drum up excitement, new ideas, and new partners for these stories. If you would like to apply for the opportunity to share your project during the online conference, please complete the online event registration and follow the additional link to our portal to submit your project for the showcase consideration.

Should you want to be considered to share your project, please register and apply before October 6, 2024 at 11:59pm PST.

Registration to attend the online event without showcase submission will remain open until November 25, 2024 at 11:59pm PST.

If you have any additional questions, please refer to the FAQ for further information.