New York Times journalist Matt Richtel, who won the 2010 Pulitzer Prize in national reporting for stories on distracted driving, will discuss how high-tech gadgets alter our brains when he lectures at 11 a.m. March 25 at California State University, Fresno.
Richtel’s presentation, “Death by Mobile Phone: How Texting Killed Two Rocket Scientists and Is Changing Your Brain,” is scheduled at the Satellite Student Union. It is open to the community and there is no admission fee.
The lecture will be followed by a panel discussion moderated by author and journalist Mark Arax, the Roger Tatarian Chair in Fresno State’s Department of Mass Communication and Journalism. Joining Richtel on the panel are media effects expert Dr. Tamyra Pierce, chair of the Department of Mass Communication and Journalism, and Fresno State director of social media relations Katie Johnson.
The discussion, scheduled to conclude at 12:45 p.m., will include with a question-and-answer session with the audience.
Richtel’s appearance on campus is sponsored by the department and is part of the Tatarian Symposium series.
Richtel will discuss how heavy technology use changes behavior and even the structure and function of our brains. He covers technology and its impacts on society for the New York Times and writes tech-thriller novels, the first of which was the critically-acclaimed “Hooked,” published in 2007. A sequel, “Devil’s Plaything,” will be published in May.
Pierce has conducted groundbreaking research on cell phones and texting, video-game violence, school shootings and social networking sites.
Johnson is responsible for assisting students via Facebook and Twitter and for generating engaging content for the school’s online and social communities through the Office of University Communications.
For more information, call 559.278.2087.
