... and that rumor says that there's going to be a conference on rumors. At the ifk, they say. In June, it is said. But who knows for sure? Us?!? Not at all! A friend of our uncle’s co-worker  told us, that's all we know! Rumors are situated between truth and lies, knowledge and ignorance, fact and fiction. They lead an ephemeral existence—until they are proven to be true or not, just like this conference. Certain rumors remain persistent, even if they turn out to be false. While their media has changed historically, questions about the power and validity of rumors remain relevant. What used to be referred to as gossip, hearsay or even legend is today often categorized as disinformation or fake news. We’ll discuss all this at this conference that you heard from through the grapevine.
Rumors can be viral and dangerous. They can predict riots, as Gordon Allport and Leo Postman stated: »no riot ever occurs without rumors to incite, accompany, and intensify the violence.« Such things seem to be true of conspiracy plots and alternative facts these days, but there are also theories that claim that rumors actually stabilize society: A way for people to keep things the way they seem.
Will this conference really take place? No one knows for sure!

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THE CONFERENCE WILL BE HYBRID

To participate via Zoom, you need to register for the meeting with your name and email address. The Zoom link will then be emailed to you immediately. You can register for the individual days via the following links:

Wednesday, 4 JUNE 2025

Thursday, 5 JUNE 2025

Friday, 6 JUNE 2025

To participate in person, no registration is currently required.