The American science fiction author Philip Dick wrote the templates for cult films like Blade Runner and Minority Report, envisioning scenarios with prophetic insight and great imagination, where our present becomes a nightmare through targeted manipulation. Covert influence, which refers to all processes that control the experiences and behaviors of individuals and groups without their knowledge and consent, is what we call manipulation. It is the opposite of insight and knowledge-based opinion. How much has science fiction caught up with reality? How freely do we make our decisions? To what extent do we rely on knowledge and facts, and how much on supposed certainties and controlled opinions? "Manipulation - how free are we really?" was the question posed during the Studium Generale in the summer semester of 2016.