Cindy Luk

Sweet Talk - Digital Media Manipulation

My thesis is an exploration of how digital media platforms serve as a tool for partisans to spread biases, misinformation, advertisements and more. With the success of spreading biased ideas, partisans could impact and manipulate the online community as users are not aware of the concept of media manipulation and assume the truthfulness of information easily. The focus here is on the relationship between digital media and its users, and how manipulators use this relationship against users for manipulative purposes. To help the audience to understand better, a sweets company branding, Sweet Talk, is created, along with different types of products to represent different forms of media manipulation; which are medical, bullying, politics and insecurity. However, none of the sweets are edible, which is to represent the idea that none of the misinformation online is helpful to its audience.