Mariano Viola

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The Year of Data

The year to support journalism

2018 was the year of data. Data that isn’t always infallible and objectively true, data that human beings struggle to read and understand if they aren’t narrated. Data stolen and used to change our behavior of citizens, data sold and used to teach unscrupulous robots to watch and discriminate against persons, data used to fabricate fake news, and data used to automate surveillance, repression, censorship, and disinformation making them more efficient.

Data recounted and visualized by our guardians, journalists who helped us to clarify these and other issues, which try to keep our democracies healthy between political power and economic interests. Guardians under attackincreasingly less influential, more fragile, in transition between different ways of doing journalism and squeezed between overbearing governments and technological giants unaware of their responsibilities.

Considering all the above, in 2019 I will try to support journalists in their mission by using my knowledge and spare time to develop ideas and tools to support their activities, pay at least one subscription, and vote in the next European elections. Supporting freedom of the press and freedom of speech goes through the right and duty to be represented by people who believe in a united Europe, strongest enough to be able to protect itself.

The biggest crime is to just sits around.