Smart Talk Interviews

Smart Talks

Smart Talks are informal conversations with leading thinkers about new media, information-seeking behavior, and the use of technology for teaching and learning in the digital age. The interviews are an occasional series produced by PIL, and are open-access with each publication having a Creative Commons license.

Featured Interview

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Whitney Phillips and Ryan M. Milner: Thinking Ecologically about Our Polluted Information Network

Our media landscape is a confusing place. Social platforms invite a flurry of new forms of cultural production and expression. Rifts between extremist and mainstream media widen, leaving no common ground between them. The old days of broadcast news and broadsheet journalism have given ground to streams of information from sources that morph and shape-shift at a dizzying speed. How can we get a handle on what is going on? Media scholars Whitney Phillips and Ryan M. Milner have mapped this territory and studied its ecology. Each has explored the ways we communicate online, through studying trolling and mainstream culture and unpacking current trends as well as the ways memes influence public conversations. We caught up with Whitney and Ryan in March 2022 to ask about their research and how we can think about and repair a landscape that has been overrun with disinformation and conspiracy theories. (Interview posted: April 6, 2022).

Shannon Mattern: Acknowledging Interconnections

What can we find in a toolkit, and what is missing from the dashboard? Is it possible to map spaces that are unknown or erased? What roles do art and design play in libraries, and what contribution could archivists and librarians make to urban planning? These are among the questions Shannon Mattern explores in her wildly inventive interdisciplinary research. We spoke with Shannon in October 2021 to ask about her research into urban planning, data, design, and libraries, and to learn more about her latest book, The City is Not a Computer: Other Urban Intelligences. (Interview posted: November 4, 2021).

Francesca Tripodi: Ideological Fissures, Multiple Internets

In a time of deep social and political division, many are mystified about how fellow citizens can have such different ways of seeing the world. Dr. Francesca Tripodi used her training as a sociologist and media scholar to explore this divide. She went into the field, observing how conservatives seek news and information through an ethnographic lens as well as studying the places where information has been deleted from sites where participants decide what topics aren’t of value. These erasures tell us much about how information systems are shaped by social factors and power relationships. We spoke with Francesca in August 2021 to ask about her research into the media literacy practices of conservative Americans, what she has learned by paying attention to information deleted from the web, and her forthcoming book on how propagandists work the system. (Interview posted: September 1, 2021).

Jenae Cohn: Meeting the Challenge of Deep Reading in a Digital World

College professors rarely discuss how to read effectively. Often, students are expected to figure out college reading expectations on their own, leaving many feeling overwhelmed, especially when accessing nearly all their reading on digital devices. Jenae Cohn can relate. Combining expertise in writing and rhetoric with leadership in academic technology, Jenae began to develop techniques that would help students manage the challenges of reading in a digital world, resulting in her book Skim, Dive, Surface: Teaching Digital Reading. We spoke with the writer and educator in June 2021 about how we can help students read deeply, especially when so much of what we read now comes to us in digital form. (Interview posted: June 15, 2021)

Justin Reich: Tinkering Toward Networked Learning: What Tech Can and Can’t Do For Education

In the midst of COVID-19, schools are relying on technology to an extent that has never been attempted. ​But has this disrupted traditional education models or led to more “yawning gaps” between more and less affluent learners? As an assistant professor and Executive Director of the Teaching Systems Lab at MIT as well as author of the timely Failure to Disrupt: Why Technology Alone Can’t Transform Education, Justin Reich has been studying the effects of technology on teaching and learning for many years. We spoke with the writer and educator in December 2020 about his latest work and how the global pandemic has revealed the affordances and limits of educational technology. (Interview posted: December 1, 2020)

Kyle Jones: The Datafied Student and the Ethics of Learning Analytics

Big Data can be used by higher education institutions with the best intentions to “improve services to increase retention.” ​But this can come “at the expense of creating a pretty significant surveillance system. As a former librarian and now an LIS educator focused on information ethics and policy, Kyle Jones has published widely on the ethical dimensions of using student data in higher education. We spoke with the writer and educator in October 2019 about his work in learning analytics and why he thinks it’s important to balance the value of privacy against the benefits of predictive analytics. (Interview posted: October 14, 2019)

Mike Caulfield: Truth is in the Network

With an aim of “radically rethinking how information literacy is taught,” Mike Caulfield has reached thousands of students through his work as the director of Blended and Networked Learning at Washington State University Vancouver. He also directs the Digital Polarization Initiative (Digipo), a cross-institutional initiative to improve civic discourse by developing digital literacy skills in college undergraduates as part of the American Democracy Project. We spoke with the blogger and author in May 2019 about making good decisions in an era when information is abundant and attention is scarce. (Interview posted: May 31, 2019)

Shyam Sundar: Interactive Media, Bandwagon, FOMO, and Engagement with AV and VR

With a background in engineering and journalism, Shyam Sundar has a fascination with people’s responses to media and the affordances of technology. We spoke with the Penn State Distinguished Professor and co-director of the Media Effects Research Lab in February 2018 to discuss how people are adapting to a parade of changing technologies. (Interview posted: March 19, 2018)

Renee Hobbs: Media and Meaning-Making in the Fake News Age

Long before “fake news” became a household word, Renee Hobbs was developing media literacy curricula programs for U.S. classrooms. What set her work apart from other educators was her interest in how students – and teachers – acquire and develop media literacy competencies. In December 2017, we caught up with Renee to ask her about how media literacy and digital literacy have evolved, and why these two competencies are essential life skills in the digital age.  (Interview posted: January 30, 2018)

Robert Lue: Forging the New Frontier of Teaching and Learning

Rob Lue knows Harvard University from both sides of the classroom. As an early advocate of online education and MOOCs, Rob became the first faculty director of HarvardX in 2012, a position that he still holds. Undeniably, Rob is an innovative educator — this makes it all the more fitting that he has been the Faculty Director of Harvard’s Derek Bok Center for Teaching and Learning since 2013. We caught up with Rob in September 2017 and asked him how teaching is changing, and why engagement in college classrooms is more important to teaching and learning than ever before. (Interview posted: November 16, 2017)

P. Takis Metaxas: Separating Truth from Lies

Is it a hoax, a conspiracy theory, a viral meme? Can you tell real information from fake? Meet P. Takis Metaxas. Takis is a professor of computer science at Wellesley College whose research helps users answer these questions to avoid the dangers of online fraud and deception in what many have begun to call the “post-truth era.” As his research continues to take on new significance, we asked Takis about the rising tide of fake news, the impact of social media on disinformation for political gain, and ways of navigating the ever-changing information landscape of the digital age. (Interview posted: February 21, 2017)

Joan Lippincott: Libraries as the Intellectual Crossroads of a Campus

Joan Lippincott knows the challenges academic libraries face. Serving as Associate Executive Director of the Coalition for Networked Information (CNI), she has worked extensively with librarians and developed the gold standard for leadership programs in academic libraries. We interviewed Joan in October 2016 to discuss library learning spaces and how those spaces drive the transformation of curriculum across campuses everywhere. (Interview posted: December 6, 2016)

Mary-Ann Winkelmes: Transparency in Teaching and Learning

Mary-Ann Winkelmes has posed some of the most important questions in higher education today. As the director of the Transparency in Teaching and Learning in Higher Education Project, she urges faculty to think about how they teach by asking their students to think about how they learn. We interviewed Mary-Ann in August 2015 to discuss teaching and learning, and how greater intentionality can deepen student learning and boost student success. (Interview posted: September 2, 2015)

Dan Rothstein: The Necessity of Asking Questions

Dan Rothstein, Luz Santana, and colleagues created the Right Question Institute over 20 years ago as they began to develop a strategy for helping people in low-income communities learn to advocate for themselves. We interviewed him in April 2015 to ask about how necessary it is for lifelong learners to be able to develop and ask the “right questions.” (Interview posted: April 21, 2015)

S. Craig Watkins: The Promise of Connected Learning

In the next minute, 433,000 tweets will be composed and shared, up from 278,000 in 2013. Who are these tweeters and how are they accessing this space in the digital world? Sociologist S. Craig Watkins is drawn to these questions and we interviewed him in February 2015 to ask about the growing role social media plays in youth culture and how to harness its power in the classroom. (Interview posted: March 5, 2015)

Zach Sims: Learning Real Life Skills That Matter

​Zach Sims co-founded Codecademy after dropping out of Columbia University during his junior year. Codecademy is premised on the idea that everyone can — and should — learn how to code. Now with over 25 million users worldwide, Codecademy is offering free classes in programming languages such as JavaScript, Python, and markup languages like HTML and CSS — “hard, employable skills” for today’s workplace. (Interview posted: January 12, 2015)

Sari Feldman: Making Public Libraries More Relevant Than Ever

​Sari Feldman has run one of the best and busiest libraries in the nation for more than 10 years as the executive director of the Cuyahoga County Public Library. We interviewed Sari in August 2014, asking her about how she believes public libraries can collaborate and keep themselves relevant to users in a time of turbulent and inevitable change. (Interview posted: September 3, 2014)

Katie Davis: Who is the Learner of Tomorrow?

Katie Davis is an assistant professor at the University of Washington’s iSchool, a researcher, and co-author (with Howard Gardner) of the acclaimed, “The App Generation: How Today’s Youth Navigate Identity, Intimacy, and Imagination in a Digital World.” She investigates the role of digital technologies in the academic, social, and moral lives of today’s youth, bringing this research into practice with educators, parents, business leaders, and policymakers throughout the U.S. We interviewed Katie in June 2014 to discuss how technology is changing the nature of learning, for better and for worse. (Interview posted: June 10, 2014)

Eric Gordon: How Games Promote Lifelong Learning and Civic Engagement

Eric Gordon studies civic media, mediated cities, and playful engagement as an associate professor in the Department of Visual and Media Arts at Emerson College in Boston and as Executive Director of the Engagement Lab. We talked to him about his investigations into games and social media and asked, “Can playing a game lead to civic change?” (Interview posted: May 1, 2014)

David Conley: Deconstructing College Readiness

David Conley is a policy analyst and professor of educational policy and leadership at the University of Oregon. We asked him what it means to be college ready today and how students can acquire research skills for succeeding in college and their careers. (Interview posted: December 5, 2013)

Cathy Davidson: How Disruption and Distraction are Remaking Learning

Cathy is an author, professor at Duke University, and co-founder of HASTAC (Humanities, Arts, Science, and Technology Alliance and Collaboratory). We asked her why distraction and disruption help to re-envision the K-20 classroom and learning and how “collaborative thinking” drives individuals’ motivation and creativity in both education and the workplace. (Interview posted: February 25, 2014)

Char Booth: A DIY Approach to Re-Imagining Libraries

Char Booth is an inspirational academic librarian at Claremont Colleges (CA), who integrates design, Web 2.0 learning technologies, and pedagogy and produces stand-up-and-take-notice results. We asked her about generating ideas for using new learning technologies for expanding students’ access to information as users and contributors. (Interview posted: September 27, 2013)

Howie Schneider: Navigating the Rising Tide of News

At a time when YouTube users upload 48 hours of video and Twitter users send over 10,000 tweets each minute, how can students wade through this flood of information to become discerning consumers of the news? We asked Howie Schneider, a veteran newsman, about teaching the nation’s first course on News Literacy at the Journalism School at Stony Brook University. (Interview posted: June 4, 2013)

Peter Suber: The Imperative of Open Access

Peter Suber, Director of the Harvard Open Access Project, is the undisputed authority on open access. He is also the unofficial, though widely acknowledged, leader of the worldwide movement to make published scholarly works—books and journals—open access, so they are “digital, online, free of charge, and free of most copyright and licensing restrictions.” (Interview posted: March 27, 2012)

Ken Bain: Deep Learning and Pursuing Questions That Are Important, Intriguing, or Just Beautiful

Ken Bain is the Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs at the University of the District of Columbia and a Professor of History and Urban Education. He is an acclaimed educator who has lectured at over 300 universities and founded and directed four major teaching and learning centers. In this PIL interview, we talked to Ken about his latest book, What the Best College Students Do (Harvard University Press, 2012) and “reframing the very nature of education.” (Interview posted: October 10, 2012)

Barbara Fister: Playing for Keeps: Rethinking How Research is Taught to Today’s College Students

Barbara Fister is a Professor and Academic Librarian at Gustavus Adolphus College, a small liberal arts college near Minneapolis. In this PIL interview, we talked to Barbara about why the research paper is a flawed pedagogical practice but continues to be assigned, and what rethinking of research as “play” may mean to teaching today’s college students. (Interview posted: July 26, 2012)

David Weinberger: Why Networked Knowledge Makes Us Smarter Than Before

David Weinberger, a senior researcher and Co-Director of Library Innovation Lab at Harvard, is a leading thinker about the impact of the Internet on society, markets, and the production of knowledge. We talked to David about his latest book, Too Big to Know (Basic Books, 2012), and what the rise of networked knowledge means for educators, librarians, print publishing and the very act of knowing, itself. (Interview posted: April 20, 2012)

Jeffrey Schnapp: Envisioning Biblotheca 2.0: One of the Most Exciting Design Tasks of Our Era

Jeffrey Schnapp, a cultural historian and pioneer in digital humanities who is faculty at Harvard, co-teaches a seminar in the architecture school on the past, present, and future of libraries. In this PIL interview, we talked to Jeffrey about what we can learn from the design of libraries from a course talk to in the architecture school about libraries, the “physicality of space,” and the tangible elements, as envisioned by design students and librarians, that could be central to the library of the future. (Interview posted: January 18, 2012)

Russell Poldrack: May I Have Your Attention? The Brain, Multitasking, and Information Overload

Dr. Russell Poldrack, a renowned neuroscientist, who heads the Imaging Research Center at the University of Texas at Austin where he and his team use MRI scanners with the inordinate power to study the human brain, multitasking, learning ability, and the effects of information overload. In this PIL interview, we talked to Russ about new discoveries about the effects of multitasking on the human brain and the capacity for “deep learning.” (Interview posted: October 12, 2011)

Sandra Jamieson and Rebecca Moore Howard: Unraveling the Citation Trail

Sandra Jamieson and Rebecca Moore Howard direct The Citation Project, a national study providing open access empirical data about how college students use sources when writing papers for composition courses. In PIL’s interview, the researchers say of their latest results: “If your focus is on procedure and correct format, these papers are a great success. But if you look at this another way and remember for most of us, ‘research’ is about the discovery of new information and ideas, and synthesis of those ideas into deeper understanding, the majority of the papers failed.” (Interview posted: August 16, 2011)

Lee Rainie: Why New Media are Becoming Your New Neighborhood

Lee Rainie has headed up the Pew’s Internet & American Life Project since it’s inception in 2000. He and his colleagues conduct large-scale periodic surveys, which both scholars and the press often rely on to stay current and monitor the impact of the Internet and other new media on life in America. In this PIL interview, Lee talks about the impact of new media on “collaborative learning” in the academy, which studies Lee has always wanted to do at Pew, but has not, and the seismic changes to social order caused by what he calls the “new operating system.” (Interview posted: June 8, 2011)

Nicholas Carr: The Age of Perpetual Distraction

Nick Carr is an author and blogger who has written three books about the impact of technology on society, culture and business. In this PIL Interview, Nick discusses what the “intellectual ethic” of the screen is, and how much it differs from the intellectual ethic of the book. He also discusses an incipient anti-Net backlash, which is a “tiny eddy in the broader cultural current.” (Interview posted: April 4, 2011)

Howard Rheingold: Crap Detection 101: Required Coursework

Howard Rheingold has been a chronicler of the political, cultural, and social impact of new technologies for almost two decades. In this PIL interview, Howard discusses what he calls “the myth of the digital native,” the use of social media in learning environments, and what digital literacy has come to mean for preparing students in the 21st century. (Interview posted: January 3, 2011)

Dale Dougherty: Web 2.0 and the Social Context of Learning

Dale Dougherty, co-founder of O’Reilly Media, first coined the phrase “Web 2.0” in 2004. In this PIL interview, Dale discusses the impact of Web 2.0 capabilities on education, especially how information is shared, knowledge is created, and learning occurs and what it means to educators, students, and publishers. (Interview posted: November 1, 2010)

John Palfrey: Rethinking Plagiarism in the Digital Age?

John Palfrey, co-director of Harvard Law School’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society, is the co-author of Born Digital: Understanding the First Generation of Digital Natives (2008). In this PIL interview, John discusses the changing nature of plagiarism, policy implications, and the rise of the “copy and paste culture” on campuses. (Interview posted: September 1, 2010)

Andrea Lunsford: Writing and the Profound Revolution in Access

Andrea Lunsford, the director of Stanford University’s Program in Writing and Rhetoric (PWR), is the force behind the “Stanford Study of Writing,” a longitudinal study that investigates how today’s students write, including everything in-class assignments, formal essays, and journal entries to emails, blog posts, and chat sessions. In this PIL interviews, Andrea discusses how college students integrate writing with research and learn the process of critical inquiry. ((Interview posted: July 12, 2010)

Peter Morville: Search and the Paradox of Choice

Peter Morville co-authored the IA Bible–“Information Architecture for the World Web” (1998) back when most of us were still learning HTML. In this PIL interview, Peter discusses “the relationship between search, learning, and decision making,” and why difficulties arise with the search process. (Interview posted: June 1, 2010)