Category: Media Appearances

In this webinar I talk about the current Canadian Armed Forces hateful conduct policies and what we are developing through our project at the Centre on Hate, Bias, and Extremism. As the policy is currently more punitive in nature, we are recommending a policy that is more cultural in nature to ensure that our military personnel can learn how to recognize, combat, and be aware of hateful conduct and extremism through every step of their career within the military.

Dr. Carmen Celestini, an adjunct professor at the University of Waterloo, said racism was heavily entrenched in the pandemic, due to misinformation and conspiracy theories (mainly online) about the origins of the COVID-19 virus and its spread into society.

“People, when they’re afraid or they have a sense of injustice or, a sense of loss of freedom, they tend to turn to conspiracy theories or ideas of something outside of themselves being in control,” said Celestini, who is also a post-doctoral fellow at The Centre on Hate, Bias and Extremism.

Watch the full report by Emerald Bensadounon on Global News.

In this in this episode of Shane Hewitt’s podcast, Shift, we talk about how individuals can be attracted to conspiracy theories. Looking specifically at the rise of conspiracy adherence throughout the COVID lock downs, Shane and I discuss the most prevalent conspiracies such as QAnon and The Great Reset, and how these theories help to “explain” what is occurring within the contemporary political upheavals.

Listen to this episode of Shift. My segment starts at 28:54.

For this special report by Global News, I was interviewed by Stewart Bell for my perspective on how family members can interact with individuals who have become adherents to conspiracy theories during the pandemic. Interwoven with tales of family turmoil and chaos I explain why conspiracy theories have become so prominent during the pandemic and their role in understanding the fears many people face during such turbulent times.

Watch the full report by Stewart Bell on Global News.

I talked with Jeff Semple of Global News about how the pandemic produced a perfect storm for conspiracies, and how Canadians can break the chain of lies.

See the full report on Global News. My segment begins at 2:41.

While some ideas are far-fetched, Carmen Celestini, a University of Waterloo academic who studies the history of conspiracy thought, says it may cause more harm to brush them off—legitimate fears often underpin these beliefs. “As a society, I think that it’s time for us to stop dismissing people who do believe in conspiracy theories.”

Read the full article by Lauren Scott on The Cambridge Times.