Fort Lewis College Professor Justin McBrayer has won a prestigious award from the Fulbright Program. McBrayer will spend a term in Italy both conducting research and teaching at the University of Genoa, Italy in 2025. This is the second time McBrayer has received an award from the prestigious Fulbright Program, which is “devoted to increasing mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.” McBrayer said the award will allow him to continue exploring the issue of misinformation and fake news. By Connor Shreve. This story is sponsored by Kroegers Ace Hardware and Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers.
Transcript
A philosophy professor at Fort Lewis College is celebrating a prestigious academic honor. Justin McBrayer is now a two-time Fulbright scholar. You’re watching the Local News Network brought to you by Kroegers, Ace Hardware, and Freddy’s Frozen Custard and Steak Burgers. I’m Connor Shreve. Professor McBrayer is appreciative of his second Fulbright Award.
I couldn’t believe it. It’s like lightning struck twice in the same place. I was fortunate enough to get a Fulbright Scholarship back in 2016 to the University of Innsbruck in Austria, and there’s a specified period you have to wait before applying again. And I had waited that period and I thought, “Well, you know, it’s such a great opportunity to go for it.”
The author of a book on the topic of fake news, McBrayer has studied misinformation before. He says the rapidly changing landscape makes it an evolving field, which is a function of our technology.
We have outlets that are just inundating us with stories and news and photographs and video in ways that we never have before. So while our nature hasn’t changed, our informational environment has changed, and that’s given us plenty of opportunity to indulge our informational vices, if you will.
This marks the second time McBrayer has won a Fulbright Award. His focus will be how a free society operates with the risks of misinformation.
And so that’s the question, you know, what kind of things could we do in the United States? What kind of things could those in power and a liberal democracy do to, on the one hand, try to incentivize citizens to consume information more responsibly? And on the other hand, you know, not infringe on their rights to believe what they want or say what they want, or write what they want.
In the spring of 2025, McBrayer will spend a term Italy conducting research and teaching at the University of Genoa. His work will include research, teaching both undergraduate and graduate level classes.
I’ll also be doing a graduate level course for students, graduate students who are involved in a philosophy and public policy master’s degree. And I get to design my own course on liberal democracies and fake news, and I’m really excited about that, to work with, you know, these engaging, bright graduate students who are writing their own research in these areas.
Learn more about these and other stories online at durangolocal.news. Thanks for watching this edition of the Local News Network. I’m Connor Shreve.
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