Laura Edelson is a Postdoctoral Researcher at New York University with the Cybersecurity for Democracy project, which she co-directs with Damon McCoy. There, she leads the Ad Observatory and Ad Observer projects, which aim to increase public transparency of digital advertising, particularly during elections. Her research focuses on studying the spread of misinformation and other forms of harmful content in both paid and organic content on Facebook. Prior to her time in academia, Laura worked as a software engineer for many years, finishing her industry career with Palantir Technologies.
Laura Edelson
Postdoctoral Researcher, New York University
Participant In These Roundtable Discussions
Sat
Oct 15th
2022
Oct 15th
2022
Watch
Coding and the New Human Phenotype
This conference explores the concept of life, knowledge, and experience through the lens of “code,” examining how meaning is encoded, transmitted, and transformed across biological, digital, and cultural systems. Through five roundtables, it investigates how we reconstruct the past, navigate authenticity in a digital world, interpret fiction and ideas, engage with AI-generated language, and consider the possibility that reality itself may be fundamentally computational—together asking what is gained, and what may be lost, as code increasingly mediates our understanding of the world.
Sat
Oct 15th
2022
Oct 15th
2022
Watch
Coding and the Human Phenotype: Manipulated Perception?: Fakery, Authenticity, and the Birth of NFTs
This roundtable examines how truth and authenticity are defined in a digital age shaped by misinformation, decentralized systems, and algorithmic control. It considers the opportunities and risks of technologies that can both verify and fabricate perceived reality.