Business programme

The problem of fakes is particularly pronounced in times of troubles, such as those under COVID-19 and a tense geopolitical situation – people make rash decisions based on unreliable information, and the consequences can be serious and even fatal. Society was unprepared for the resulting flood of fakes and unable to critically evaluate misinformation on such a grand scale, the direct result of a polluted information environment. The digital literacy of all must be improved, from that of schoolchildren to senior citizens, if we are to create a safe digital environment. This includes connecting the industry to self-regulation, as in the Memorandum on Countering Misleading Information. Who creates and disseminates fakes? How do they influence government policy? How can fakes lead to deaths? And what do the statistics on fakes look like in the special operation in Ukraine?

Moderator
Petr Lidov-Petrovskiy, Director of Communications, Rossiya Segodnya International Information Agency

Panellists
Maria Zakharova, Director, Department of Information and the Press, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation
Vovan and Lexus, Prankers
Peter Lаvelle, Anchor, RT TV Channel
Kristina Potupchik, President, Open New Democracy Fund (FUND)
Vladimir Tabak, General Director, Dialogue ANO; General Director, Dialogue Regions ANO
Aleksandr Khinshtein, Chairman of the Committee of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation on Information Policy, Information Technology and Communications

Maria Zakharova

Director, Department of Information and the Press, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation

Born December 24, 1975, in Moscow
Graduated from Moscow State Institute of International Relations in 1998 in the field of international journalism. Has the diplomatic rank of Envoy extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the first class.
Joined the Russian Foreign Ministry after graduation. Worked as an editor of the monthly magazine “Diplomatic bulletin”. Acted as the head of the Media operational monitoring department of the Information and Press Department. Worked as Head of the press service of the Permanent Mission of Russia to the UN in New York from 2005 to 2008. Held various positions in the Central Office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 2008 to 2011. Worked as Deputy Director of the Information and Press Department of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 2011 to 2015.
Appointed Director of the Information and Press Department of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in August 2015.
Candidate of Historical Sciences.
Member of the Council on Foreign and Defense Policy of Russia, a member of the Board of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Speaks English and Chinese fluently.

Peter Lаvelle

Anchor, RT TV Channel

Peter John Lavelle is a senior journalist and host of “CrossTalk”, presented by the English-language channel RT, a global multilingual television news network (formerly "Russia Today"). Lavelle, from California, is now based in Moscow. Prior to “CrossTalk”, Peter Lavelle hosted RT's programs “IMHO” (In My Humble Opinion), “In Context”, and a business program called "On the Money."
Lavelle received a B.A. in International Economic Relations, an M.A. in European history, and completed Ph.D. courses in Studies in European Economic History from the University of California, Davis. He was a Fulbright Research Fellow at the Institute of Political Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw, Poland. He has been living in Eastern Europe and Russia for over 25 years, working as a lecturer at the University of Warsaw, a market researcher for Colgate-Palmolive, and an investment analyst for brokerage firms, including Russia’s Alfa Bank.
Lavelle has contributed articles to a number of publications including Asia Times Online, The Moscow Times, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, United Press International, The National Interest, and Current History. Lavelle also was the author of "Untimely Thoughts", an electronic newsletter.

Kristina Potupchik

President, Open New Democracy Fund (FUND)

President of the Open New Democracy Fund, public figure, member of the 5th Civic Chamber, literature blogger.
During her tenure in the Civic Chamber, she sought the adoption of the law on responsible treatment of animals. Currently, a popular blogger and social activist. Potupchik is featured on Vzglyad, Ekho Moskvy, Dni.ru and other media outlets.
Author of several books on the contemporary Internet ‘Power Over the Network’, ‘Forbidden Telegram. Guide to the Scandalous Messenger’.

Vladimir Tabak

General Director, Dialogue ANO; General Director, Dialogue Regions ANO

Front row participants
Сергей Bochkarev, Head of the Main Civil Judicial Department, General Prosecutor's Office of the Russian Federation
Максим Iksanov, General Director, News Media
Alexander Malkevich, First Deputy Chairman, Commission for the Development of the Information Society, Mass Media and Mass Communications, Civic Chamber of the Russian Federation; General Director, Saint Petersburg TV Channel
Anton Nazarov, Advisor to the Minister of Education of the Russian Federation
Daria Penchilova, Digital Development Director, Russian News Agency TASS
Konstantin Prydybailo, Special Correspondent, RT TV Channel
Mikhail Shakhnazarov, Journalist, Publicist

Alexander Malkevich

First Deputy Chairman, Commission for the Development of the Information Society, Mass Media and Mass Communications, Civic Chamber of the Russian Federation; General Director, Saint Petersburg TV Channel