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Join us for a fireside chat between YaÑ‘l Eisenstat and Laura Edelson as they discuss the evolving role of social media and online platforms in today’s political landscape. With digital spaces increasingly influencing public discourse, recent shifts in content moderation policies and speech regulations raise urgent questions about online safety, free expression, and the integrity of democratic processes. This event is part of The Speaker Series on Misinformation, which invites academic experts in the fields of mis- and disinformation research to present their research. The series is co-sponsored by the Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy at Harvard’s Kennedy School, the NULab at Northeastern University, and the Internet Democracy Initiative.

Yaёl Eisenstat, a leading voice on technology and democracy, and Laura Edelson, an expert in platform transparency and online misinformation, will explore the implications of these changes. They will discuss the current landscape of social media and online platforms in today’s political environment, as well as the broader question of tech accountability—what do recent content and speech policy changes mean for online safety and democracy? And what does the future of tech accountability look like against this backdrop?

They will consider how emerging regulations could reshape the relationship between technology, users, and democracy, as well as how this relationship has developed over time.

 has spent over two decades combating extremism, polarization and anti-democratic behavior both on- and offline. She is currently The Director for Policy and Impact at Cybersecurity for Democracy, working on policy solutions for how social media and online platforms affect political discourse, public safety, and democracy. Previously, she was Vice President at the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), heading the Center for Technology and Society, where she led ADL’s efforts to hold tech companies accountable for the proliferation of hate and extremism on their platforms.

YaÑ‘l joined ADL in 2022 after a career in both public service and the tech industry, including as an intelligence officer, diplomat and special advisor to (former) Vice President Biden. She joined Facebook in 2018 as the head of global elections integrity for political ads, following several years as a vocal critic of the harms that social media has inflicted on democracy and societies worldwide. After leaving Facebook six months later, she  about the company’s inability to meet its responsibility to secure elections, and she has continued to push for changes in the tech industry ever since.