'Staying Real: The War on Truth—And How to Win It'

Disinformation, trolling, conspiracies and social media "pile-ons" make distinguishing fact from fiction and elevating truth above falsehood a challenge in America today.

Jonathan Rauch
Rauch

Brookings Fellow Jonathan Rauch will address this issue in his talk "Staying Real: The War on Truth—And How to Win It." The virtual Zoom talk is sponsored by Cornell's Freedom and Free Societies program and will take place at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 9. The talk is free and the public is invited, but registration is required.

"A rigorous and eloquent speaker, Jonathan Rauch will examine a vital question for a democracy: how to have a constructive debate between experts and the public without falling prey either to mob rule or elite aloofness," said Barry Strauss, director of Freedom and Free Societies and the Bryce & Edith M. Bowmar Professor in Humanistic Studies in the College of Arts and Sciences. 

A senior fellow of the Brookings Institution in Washington and contributing writer of The Atlantic, Rauch has written eight books on a wide range of topics. His most recent, "The Constitution of Knowledge: A Defense of Truth," is a spirited and deep-diving account of how to push back against disinformation, canceling and other new threats to our fact-based epistemic order.

He published "The Happiness Curve: Why Life Gets Better After 50" in 2018 and "Gay Marriage: Why It is Good for Gays, Good for Straights, and Good for America" in 2004. Peter Wehner, a fellow of the conservative think tank Ethics and Public Policy Center, called his writings "the most formidable and persuasive voice for same-sex marriage."

His articles on policy, culture and government appear in many notable periodicals, including Harper's, The New York Times and The Advocate, and he is a frequent guest on radio and TV. His work has received many awards, including the National Magazine Award and the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association prize for excellence in opinion writing.

The event is possible because of support of the Freedom and Free Societies Program from Michael J. Millette '87 and the Millette family. Register at this Zoom link. 

More News from A&S

McGraw Hall