Stories shape culture. From television dramas to online video, entertainment media influences how billions of people understand relationships, gender roles, health behaviors, and social norms. Experimental evidence shows that well-designed storytelling can produce measurable social impact. New advances in AI are now enabling researchers to map narratives across global entertainment ecosystems, revealing patterns in how norms are portrayed and where opportunities exist to promote positive change. This session explores how creators, researchers, and development institutions can collaborate to harness the power of storytelling and data to shape culture and improve lives at scale.
Speakers:
- Renos Vakis, Lead Economist, Development Impact, World Bank
- Victor Orozco Olvera, Senior Economist and Program Lead, Edutainment Program, Development Impact, World Bank
- Sharath Guntuku, Associate Professor, Department of Computer and Information Science, University of Pennsylvania
- Temina Madon, Co-Founder, the Agency Fund
- T. Oluwaseyi Isola, Research Consultant and Program Co-Lead, Edutainment Program, Development Impact, World Bank