Let’s stop being DISMISSED: Political and media literacy education for the 21st century

The profile of someone that is at risk of radicalisation tends to be someone that feels isolated and powerless in society and is also someone unable to tell fact from fiction, making them easy prey for disinformation propagators online. This is compounded by a lack of information on how their democracy functions, how they can get involved as well as a clear understanding of their collective democratic journey. Matteo Bergamini MBE, founder & CEO of Shout Out UK (SOUK) explores how delivering Media and Political Literacy programmes safeguard democracy by negating nefarious actors from exploiting people's sense of alienation and marginalisation to radicalise them.

Accessibility

An access guide to Birkbeck Room B34 can be found on AccessAble.

About the speaker

Matteo Bergamini MBE is the Founder and CEO of Shout Out UK, a multi-award winning social enterprise that provides impartial Political and Media Literacy training and campaigns focused on democratic engagement and combatting disinformation online, tailored to local circumstances and culture.

He was made an MBE by King Charles III for Services to Charity, Social Enterprise and Education in the 2023 King’s Birthday Honours. Alongside establishing his organisation, aged 22, Matteo was appointed to NewsGuard’s Board of News Literacy Advisors in 2023, is a member of Meta’s EU Digital Working Group, since 2022, and is a member of the Editorial Board for the The Digital Citizenship Map, an initiative of the Lisbon Council and the Digital Citizenship Working Group. He was selected in 2018 by the US embassy in London to take part in the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) run by the US State Department and was added to the Forbes Under 30 Social Impact list in 2021.

In 2020, Matteo orchestrated London Voter Registration Week for the Greater London Authority, a now yearly campaign that brings together all 33 local authorities and a wide civil society coalition. A report from the Electoral Commission confirmed that Voter Registration Rates had increased from 76% in 2018, to 82% in 2022. Matteo took part in the Verified UN anti-disinformation campaign, has given evidence before House of Lords select committees, and was the driving force behind the Channel 4 Youth Leaders’ Debate in 2015 and the APPG on Political Literacy, launched in 2021.

He has a BA in Politics & History and a Graduate Diploma in Law.

About this event series

Political turning points, 2024-2025: Causes, consequences, solutions

2024 and 2025 are crucial years for global politics, with a number of highly anticipated elections (in India, the United Kingdom, the United States and elsewhere). These elections are coming at a time ofcoinciding with major armed conflicts (especially in Ukraine and Gaza), as well as rising levels of income inequality (globally and nationally), deflated living standards that still have not recovered to pre-Covid levels, crumbling healthcare systems, and fierce culture wars that are tearing up the fabric of our societies.

The sense of uncertainty and volatility is overwhelming and there is no way to predict what world we will live in two years from now. How can we understand thisthe causes and consequences of this overwhelming uncertainty and volatility? and what are the different components that define its causes and consequences? What is being done to mitigate for its effects and address the different challenges that emerge in it?

This series of Director’s Seminars and Soundbites will approach the question of uncertainty by exploring the complex range of practices and processes that define it today as a condition that is closely interlinked with economic, cultural, and environmental challenges.

Soundbites are a platform for professionals and entrepreneurs who are leading in their field. Speakers are innovators and inspiring actors working in new and traditional sectors, outside of academia. The Soundbite gives the audience an insight into how their organisation contributes to sustainable and inclusive prosperity.

For more events in this series visit the series page ►