2025 APSA Virtual Research Meeting Keynote: But What Is Virtual? The Perils and Potential of Platforms in Politics
Keynote Speaker: Dr. Sanjana Hattotuwa
Join us for the 2025 Virtual Research Meeting Keynote Address, following an introduction from APSA Executive Director, Dr. Kimberly A. Mealy. This year’s keynote will explore the 2025 conference theme, “Political Science Research in a Virtual World,” exploring both the opportunities and challenges of conducting research and examining politics in an increasingly digital landscape. The talk will conclude with an audience Q&A.
2025 Virtual Keynote Address w/ Dr. Sanjana Hattotuwa
Thursday, April 10
9:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. ET
Dr. Sanjana Hattotuwa (Ph.D, University of Otago, New Zealand) did his doctoral research on the intersection of social media, political communication, propaganda, and information disorders in Sri Lanka, as well as how New Zealand’s Christchurch massacre in March 2019 was represented on Twitter. Specialising in and advising on social media communications strategy, digital security for journalists and human rights defenders, social media activism, online advocacy, and grounded, mixed-methods social media research, Hattotuwa’s experience in studying, negotiating, and developing policies against information disorders spans two-decades, and work in South Asia, Southeast Asia, North Africa, the United States, Europe and the Balkans.
He founded Groundviews, Sri Lanka’s first award-winning civic media website, in 2006 and curated it until June 2020. From July 2021 through October 2024, he was the Director of Research at The Disinformation Project, based in New Zealand. Since 2006, he has remained a Special Advisor at the Switzerland-based ICT4Peace Foundation. Sanjana regularly advises leading social media companies on how they can strengthen platform integrity, better identify inauthentic behaviours, malevolent constellations, and prevent the abuse of products.
