The Phil Lind Initiative Presents: Ed Yong

UBC’s School of Public Policy and Global Affairs is proud to host Ed Yong, Pulitzer Prize-winning science staff writer for The Atlantic, part of our 2022 Phil Lind Initiative series on “The Future of Media.”

Ed Yong will be speaking on “The Art of Science Journalism.” Speaking from his experience writing before and during the Covid-19 pandemic, Yong explores the core of what it means to be a science journalist, how inseparable science is from the rest of society, and how it is shaped by our culture, our social norms, and our collective decisions.

Welcome remarks: Dr. Allison M. Macfarlane, Professor and Director, School of Public Policy and Global Affairs, UBC

Venue: Jack Poole Hall (2^nd floor), Robert H. Lee Alumni Centre, 6163 University Blvd, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z1

Please register in advance. Your registration includes a seat at our venue. This indoor event follows current orders from the Provincial Health Officer as well as in accordance with UBC policies.  Please bring your proof of vaccination and a face mask.

If you prefer to connect via live stream, please indicate this during registration to help us plan. Registrants will receive the link by email. Thank you.

Learn more about the 2022 “The Future of Media” series, held in person on the UBC Vancouver campus, with live streaming available. Each event is open to the public and free to attend.

Series Theme: Media is at a crossroads. Full-time journalists and long-form reporting have been forced to cede public space to click bait news articles, online echo chambers, and disinformation campaigns. It has never been more challenging to inform the public, to bridge political divides, and to stimulate healthy debate.

Yet trust in mass media has never been lower, with only 9% of Americans trusting the media “a great deal” and 60% having “little to no trust at all.” From the rise of social media to the erosion of traditional business models to the deep political polarization in American society, how we as citizens consume information has fundamentally changed.

This series explores these changes, but more importantly asks where we go from here. How can we restore trust? How do we reconcile evidence-based reporting with the digital age? And above all, how can we reshape the media landscape in the face of these challenges to better society?

Find books authored by Ed Yong on the UBC Bookstore website.

Subscribe to our Phil Lind Initiative Newsletter for updates and details on how to register.

Phil Lind Initiative is hosted by the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs at the University of British Columbia