Book Bans: How Can We Prepare For The Next 5 Years? A USA/UK Dialogue On Protecting The Freedom To Read for Banned Books Week
Monday 14th September @ 5:30pm (Online) (Free Event)
Join Index on Censorship and Pan Macmillan for a timely online discussion exploring how librarians, publishers and free expression advocates can respond to rising concerns around book bans and challenges to the freedom to read. Taking place on 14 September, 5.30–6.30pm, the event will bring together UK and US perspectives and look ahead to what the next five years may demand from those working to protect diverse collections and intellectual freedom.
Speakers include Alice Leggatt, Co-Chair of the CILIP School Libraries Group and secondary school library manager; Joanna Prior OBE, Chief Executive of Pan Macmillan; and Jon Yaged, Chief Executive Officer of Macmillan Publishers. Designed primarily for librarians, the session will offer practical insight into preparing for future censorship pressures and supporting access to a wide range of voices, stories and ideas.
You must be Librarian to attend this event. Bookings close on Sunday 13th September
Supporting Information Literacy in the Age of Deep Fakes: the Deep Truth Project
Thursday 8th October @ 3:45pm (Online)(Free Event)
As AI-generated content becomes increasingly sophisticated, school librarians have an important role to play in helping pupils develop the critical thinking and information literacy skills they need to explore the online world with confidence.
Join the Deep Truth Project, in collaboration with Wikimedia UK, the School Library Association and CILIP School Libraries Group, for a train-the-trainer session that will give you the skills to educate your pupils about deepfakes.
As deepfakes become harder to identify, giving pupils the ability to question, verify and evaluate the information they encounter online is essential. This session will provide you with exclusive early access to the Deep Truth Project’s new Deepfake Literacy lesson pack and, through real-world examples and case studies, share practical strategies for helping young people become informed, responsible digital citizens.
• What deepfakes are, how they are created and why they are becoming increasingly difficult to detect
• The difference between deepfakes and other forms of manipulated content, including ‘cheapfakes’
• Practical ways to help pupils evaluate online information using the SIFT verification framework
• Strategies for supporting information literacy, media literacy and responsible digital citizenship across your school
This session is ideal if you deliver information literacy or research skills sessions, collaborate with teaching staff or support your school’s wider digital literacy strategy. At the end of the session, you will be able to deliver lessons on deepfakes in your school.
Ashmita Rajmohan leads the Deep Truth Project (deeptruthproject.org), a charity promoting deepfake and synthetic media literacy in the UK. She also hosts The Deepfake Dialogues, a podcast exploring the
societal implications of the technology.
Dr Sally Latham is Education Lead at Wikimedia UK , where she works on delivering media and information literacy in schools. She is an executive member of the Children’s Media Foundation. She previously taught philosophy in Further Education.
To book your place for this event. You will need to create an account on the School Library Association Site.
SLG Shout Out UK: Prebunking the Feed: Shielding The Next Gen from Online Extremism and Disinformation
SLG are pleased to present a talk given by Matteo Bergamini, the founder of Shout Out UK whose book Man Enough: protecting boys from online misogyny will be published on 14 September 2026.
In today’s digital landscape, young people are increasingly exposed to harmful online content, from AI-generated deepfakes to algorithmic echo chambers that amplify extreme views. The number of children involved in terrorism-related arrests has risen significantly, making up 20% of cases in 2024.
Led by Matteo Bergamini, MBE, CEO and Founder of Shout Out UK (SOUK), this session delves into the mechanics of online radicalisation and the manipulative techniques used by bad actors. Rather than just reacting to disinformation, attendees will learn the proactive techniques of “prebunking” to build cognitive immunity against harmful content.
Thursday 12th November@ 4pm (Online)(Free for CILIP Members & £15 for Non CILIP Members)
Speaker – Matteo Bergamini MBE
Matteo is the Founder and CEO of Shout Out UK, a multi-award winning social enterprise that provides impartial Political and Media Literacy training and campaigns focused on democratic engagement and combatting disinformation online, tailored to local circumstances and culture.
He was made an MBE by King Charles III for Services to Charity, Social Enterprise and Education in the 2023 King’s Birthday Honours.
Alongside establishing his organisation, aged 22, Matteo was appointed to NewsGuard’s Board of News Literacy Advisors in 2023, is a member of Meta’s EU Digital Working Group, since 2022, and is a member of the Editorial Board for the The Digital Citizenship Map, an initiative of the Lisbon Council and the Digital Citizenship Working Group.
He was selected in 2018 by the US embassy in London to take part in the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) run by the US State Department and was added to the Forbes Under 30 Social Impact list in 2021.
In 2020, Matteo orchestrated London Voter Registration Week for the Greater London Authority, a now yearly campaign that brings together all 33 local authorities and a wide civil society coalition. A report from the Electoral Commission confirmed that Voter Registration Rates had increased from 76% in 2018, to 82% in 2022.
Matteo took part in the Verified UN anti-disinformation campaign, has given evidence before House of Lords select committees, and was the driving force behind the Channel 4 Youth Leaders’ Debate in 2015 and the APPG on Political Literacy, launched in 2021.
He has a BA in Politics & History and a Graduate Diploma in Law.