Featured Events - Updated Weekly

"UnPresidented" Book Talk - A Discussion with Author and Journalist Jon SopelThursday, February 25, 2021

5:30pm Eastern 

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In UnPresidented: Politics, Pandemics and the Race That Trumped All Others, BBC North America Editor Jon Sopel presents a diary of an election like we've never quite seen before.

Experience life as a reporter on the campaign trail, as the election heats up and a global pandemic slowly sweeps in. As American lives are lost at a devastating rate, the presidential race becomes a battle for the very soul of the nation - challenging not just the Trump presidency, but the very institutions of American democracy itself.

In this highly personal account of reporting on America in 2020, Jon Sopel takes you behind the scenes of a White House in crisis and an election in turmoil, expertly laying bare the real story of the presidential campaign in a panoramic account of an election and a year like no other.

This book discussion will be moderated by Amy K. Dacey, Executive Director of the Sine Institute of Policy & Politics. Opening remarks by Dr. Laura DeNardis, interim Dean of American University's School of Communication.

2021 Annual Tri-School Ph.D. Research ConferenceFriday, March 5, 2021

11:00 am - 4:00 pm Eastern 

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The Third Annual Tri-School Ph.D. Research Conference, hosted by Ph.D. programs in AU’s School of Communication, School of International Service, and School of Public Affairs will be held on March 5, 11am-4pm. The conference will showcase research from 11 Ph.D. students from SIS, SOC, and SPA on three broad topics—citizens and the state, lawmakers & policymaking, and international conflict, cooperation, & migration. Student panels will be moderated and discussed by esteemed AU faculty. Keynote Speaker, Dr. Payal Arora, Professor and Chair in Technology, Values and Global Media Cultures at Erasmus University, Rotterdam, will give a talk entitled “From Domain to Design thinking: The role of interdisciplinarity in academia.”

On the Othered Hand: Tactility, Music, and Marginalized UsersThursday, March 11, 2021

3:00pm Eastern 

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How might user interfaces – the process of their development, their design, and the stories we tell about them – be informed by principles of social justice? Why is music touchscreen technology an important case study to unpack the normative accounts of the envisioned end-user? Join AU professor Victoria Simon for a talk that demonstrates the little-known role that theories of users and universal interface design in music technology have played in the cultural formation of smartphone and tablet technology reliant on AI. The event will be moderated by AU professor Aram Sinnreich.

Charting a Path: How to Bring Diverse Approaches to Investigative ProjectsWednesday, March 24, 2021

6:00pm Eastern 

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The Investigative Reporting Workshop, American University's Journalism Division and Morgan State University's School of Global Journalism & Communication present, "Charting a Path: How to Bring Diverse Approaches to Investigative Projects," a virtual seminar about the role of journalists of color in investigative reporting. 

A panel discussion will be followed by breakout sessions with mentors. Those who have ideas or are actively working on an in-depth story but need help can submit a pitch to compete for small awards to help complete their stories.

Recent Past Events

Internet Governance Lab TPRC48 Online Graduate Research SymposiumThursday, February 18, 2021

Talking Tech Transitions: Engineering New Paths for Public MediaFriday, February 12, 2021

Click here to watch a recording of the event.

The Future of Internet Freedom, Part 2: Policy and Priorities in the New AdministrationThursday, February 11, 2021

Click here to watch a recording of the event.

Investigations and the Law: What Journalists Need to Know Tuesday, February 9, 2021

What Does the CASE Act Mean for Filmmakers and Fair Use?Friday, February 5, 2021

Click here to watch a recording of the event.