Interview with Renana Keydar

 

In a few words, can you tell us about yourself and how you found your way to the academic field?

I am an assistant professor in the Faculties of Law and Humanities (digital humanities) in HUJI. I completed a PhD at Stanford University in comparative literature analyzing different mechanisms of justice in the aftermath of mass atrocity, from an interdisciplinary perspective of international law and literary criticism. I hold an LLB in law and BA in political science and worked as an advocate in the Israeli General Attorney High Court of Justice Department.

What is the main core of your research? Can you give an example or two? How is it related to cyber security?

I am interested in the many intersections between law and data: How is data impacting legal decision making, what are the implications of algorithmic decision making to human rights law and how data and computational means are used in legal research. Within the framework of cyber security I am interested in the relationship between online content moderation and free speech regulation

Why did you choose this area over all others? Did your personal or professional background lead you to it?

I was always interested in how narratives work within the legal system: in testimonies, judgments, constitutions etc. My research is focusing on analyzing the many ways in which stories and texts work within the legal system. These stories and narratives, laws, regulations and verdicts form the data that is underlying the legal field.

Do you think that in this cyber age these issues are even more complex compared to other times in history? If so – in what ways?

In the era of big data, understanding snd researching textual data in the legal system is becoming infinitely more complex and also more satisfying.

After explaining the main core of your research, what do you think is the solution? What is the proper model for that? Is it applicable?

Together with colleagues from the Department of Computer Science, I am developing models for analyzing large quantities of textual data in legally meaningful and interpretable way.

What is the next phase in your professional life?

Establishing the Law, Culture and Humanities Lab with an interdisciplinary team of researchers, and teaching a first-of-its-kind course on "law and data" in the Law Faculty.

What is your message to the public?

The internet is the new public arena, our virtual "market square." We must find ways to guarantee meaningful freedom of expression and build an informed citizen society, while balancing the foundational rights of individuals and groups in the digital era.