Today, the MIT Press, MIT Technology Review, and Knowledge Futures Group announced the #SpreadingFacts: Communicating Science for a Better World event, which will take place on Tuesday, December 3, 2019, at the MIT Samberg Conference Center. #SpreadingFacts will bring together experts in the art and practice of science communication for a day focused on understanding and maximizing the public trust in—and the impact of—evidence-based research.
In order to create needed political and behavioral change, research must be communicated in a way that increases public understanding and moves people and institutions to action. Through short presentations, conversations, and interactive sessions, #SpreadingFacts will illuminate what works in science communication today, from the perspectives of journalists, funders, professional communicators, media companies, technologists, scientists, and researchers elucidating the science of science communication.
#SpreadingFacts is cohosted by Amy Brand, Director, The MIT Press and Cofounder, Knowledge Futures Group; Elizabeth Bramson-Boudreau, Chief Executive Officer and Publisher, MIT Technology Review; and Gideon Lichfield, Editor in Chief, MIT Technology Review.
The conference’s distinguished list of speakers includes:
- Dianna Cowern, Creator, Physics Girl
- Mariette DiChristina, Dean, Boston University College of Communication
- Arielle Duhaime-Ross, Host, Reset (a podcast from Recode by Vox)
- Linda Henry, Managing Director, Boston Globe Media Partners
- Dan Kahan, Elizabeth K. Dollard Professor of Law and Professor of Psychology, Yale Law School
- Marcia McNutt, President, National Academy of Sciences
- Ainissa Ramirez, Scientist and Author
- Sanjay Sarma, Vice President for Open Learning, MIT
- Doron Weber, Vice President and Program Director, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
- Ethan Zuckerman, Director, Center for Civic Media, MIT
Session topics that will be featured in the upcoming program include:
- Building a Trusted “Brand Name” for Science
- Major Media and Science News
- Communicating Science as Journalists
- Communicating Science as Researchers
- New Technologies for Public Understanding
- The Art and Practice of Science Communication
Click here to learn more, see the full conference agenda and list of speakers, and to register. Join the conversation on Twitter using #SpreadingFacts.
Media who would like to attend the event should reach out to mitp-events@mit.edu to learn more about obtaining press credentials.
About the MIT Press
Established in 1962, the MIT Press is a not-for- profit, university-based publisher aligned with the values and mission of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. With offices in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and London, the Press is one of the largest and most distinguished university presses in the world and a leading publisher of books and journals at the intersection of science, technology, art, social science, and design.
About MIT Technology Review
Founded at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1899, MIT Technology Review is a world-renowned, independent media company whose insight, analysis, reviews, interviews, and live events explain the commercial, social, and political impact of new technologies. MIT Technology Review derives its authority from the world’s foremost technology institution and from its editors’ deep technical knowledge, capacity to see technologies in their broadest context, and unequaled access to leading innovators and researchers. For over 100 years, MIT Technology Review‘s mission has been to equip readers with the intelligence to understand a world shaped by technology and the impact upon their careers and lives.
About the Knowledge Futures Group
The Knowledge Futures Group, established in 2018, is a community of technologists, information creators, and scholarly publishers that is committed to addressing a core set of pressing and complex issues within research-intensive institutions. The KFG builds sustainable knowledge infrastructure that serves society and researchers by ensuring that knowledge is a public good. The KFG began as a joint project of the MIT Press and the MIT Media Lab. It now focuses on product and tool development; promulgating open standards, protocols, and best practices; advocacy; and data collection and maintenance.
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