I’m contributing to a book! Specifically, I am sharing my theoretical (and some empirical) work on how we can see disinformation through a lens of play. I got a chance to present some of this at the University of Waterloo on April 27, 2023. Thanks to support from the Cybersecurity and Privacy Institute, the other authors and I got to talk about “The Weaponization of Disinformation in Canada”. While I will save some things for the book, I thought it was only fair that I discuss what I mean when I say that we can understand Disinformation through a framework of play.
Before you get too quizzical on me, let's go over some basics. I suspect not everyone has read countless texts on the concepts of disinformation or play, so let me offer the quick notes.
So with regard to disinformation:
1. It is typically defined by intent
2. It is successful when it content, "sounds about right"
3. It builds and connects to our worldviews
4. It requires interaction
Let's expand on those points a bit.
When I say disinformation, you might think of a fake news article, or the general idea to not believe everything you read online. That isn't wrong, but it goes a bit further than that. Disinformation is intentionally false content, designed to pull at our emotions, target particular individuals, or just generally sew chaos. But this content does not matter if people don't engage with it.
Image for a second you are a devious and malicious person who wants to spread all the lies. So, you make a fake news story and post it online. Great, you're so evil. But guess what, maybe like 10 people looked at it. The post got no visibility, it got no interaction. Then did you really spread disinformation? Technically yes, but not enough to worry anyone.
False information becomes a problem when it gains visibility. When it grows into something that starts to spread and shift or reinforce perspectives. To do this, it relies on people clicking on it, reading it, sharing it, and/or commenting on it. The most effective way to do this? Target particular groups and make content that is surprising, emotional, or captivating.
In short, disinformation works and becomes a problem when it connects to the way we see the world. When we want to believe something, it becomes easier to believe false ideas. Each and everyone of us has a worldview, a set of beliefs, experiences, and knowledges that drive how we understand the world around us. Disinformation is dangerously effective not because it is janky, but because it can align with how we see the world. In other words, if you read something online and say, “That sounds about right”, disinformation has done its job.
So what does this have to do with play?
Well let's establish some basics there too:
Play is a series of actions/behaviours
Play is not always fun for everyone, and can be quite dark or hurtful
Play is one way we communicate with others and the world
Play is exploratory
Unlike games (which are systems or structures) when we play we are doing something. Typically, you might think of something fun, like children playing games or using an instrument. These are playful moments, but sometimes play can also be rough, tough and dark. There are tons of times when we can be playing but not having fun.
During games we can have spoilsports, cheaters, and moments of aggravation that turn play into something frustrating and tough. We witness this within toxic videogame communities, but I urge us to take this a step further and think about how play can be one-sided. Jaako Stenros (2019) gave the example of a bully playing with their victim of one space where play can be transgressive, and Aaron Trammell (2023) has gone as far as discussing torture as a form of play (a fantastic argument I urge any game scholar to read).
Understanding these darker dimensions to play is important. It urges us to define the concept around how it lets us communicate, subvert or challenge rules, and rely on how each player interprets what is going on. Play is a way that we explore and interact, and if you ever watch a child, you will also know that play is a way we make sense of the world.
Let's try to put this together. Disinformation requires interaction and works to connect with our worldviews. Play is a means of interaction that builds from and builds up our worldviews. Disinformation wants to be felt, to subvert and communicate with us and our worldviews. Play is an embodied action, one that involves us writing our worldview into our actions. When we play (whether we are aware of it or not) we are testing possibilities, exploring what we can and cannot do in a space, and forming new knowledge and experiences in the process.
So when in the title when I said that disinformation weaponizes play, I was referring to this interaction. That disinformation can rely on content like memes, short videos, and humourous graphics to wrap up false ideas into fun playful content. Disinformation can play with us, by hiding in the content we encounter, and we can be played by disinformation in how it targets and manipulates users.
The chapter goes into some examples, a larger breakdown, and what this all means, but for now I encourage you to think about, "How am I being played by disinformation and what can I do about it?"
The easy answer is to be a critical thinker, but that is a whole other can of worms I will write about another time. In the meantime, try the SIFT method and keep your eyes peeled for the truth (and the lies).
References:
Stenros, Jaakko. “Guided by Transgression : Defying Norms as an Integral Part of Play.” Transgression in Games and Play, 2019. https://doi.org/10.7551/mitpress/11550.003.0004.
Trammell, Aaron. Repairing Play: A Black Phenomenology. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 2023.
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