On the Front Lines of Democracy

Joel Simon, Heidi Ewing, and Rachel Grady In conversation
Monday, Nov 14, 2022 | 7:30pm Mark Taper Auditorium-Central Library

The author of The Infodemic, Joel Simon, and the directors of the HBO documentary Endangered, Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady, describe how lies, censorship, and attacks on journalists are undermining democracy in the US and around the world. The Infodemic: How Censorship and Lies Made the World Sicker and Less Free, co-authored by Simon and Robert Mahoney, chronicles the ways in which governments cracked down on dissent and usurped power during the COVID19 pandemic, under the guise of protecting public health. Endangered, produced by Loki Films and Ronan Farrow, tells the story of four journalists confronting violence and tackling misinformation as they fight to report the truth. The discussion is moderated by David Kaye, a law professor and leading free expression expert.

Joel Simon

Joel Simon is an author, journalist, and press freedom advocate. He is currently a Fellow at the Tow Center for Digital Journalism at Columbia University and a Senior Visiting Fellow at the Knight First Amendment Institute, also at Columbia. He is the author of four books, including The Infodemic: How Censorship and Lies Made the World Sicker and Less Free, coming on April 26 from Columbia Global Reports. From 2006 until 2021, Joel served as executive director of the Committee to Protect Journalists.

Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady

Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady are the co-directors of “Jesus Camp” (Academy Award nominee), “The Boys of Baraka” (Emmy nominee), “12th & Delaware” (Peabody Award winner), “DETROPIA” (Emmy winner), “Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You” (2016 Sundance), “One of Us” (2017 Toronto International Film Festival), and “Love Fraud” (2020 Sundance).
“Endangered” (HBO) is Ewing and Grady’s 6th feature documentary collaboration and will be premiering at the 2022 Tribeca Film Festival before airing on HBO June 28th.

David Kaye

David Kaye is a clinical professor of law at the University of California, Irvine, and the former United Nations Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression (2014-2020). His 2019 book, Speech Police: The Global Struggle to Govern the Internet (Columbia Global Reports), explores the ways in which companies, governments and activists struggle to define the rules for online expression.

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