Line Edit, supported by the John Templeton Foundation and hosted by long-time editor James Ryerson, is a show about writing short pieces for wide audiences about the big questions. Ryerson has been an editor at the New York Times since 2003, and before that, edited pieces for Legal Affairs, Lingua Franca, and Feed. On each episode of Line Edit, Ryerson sits down with an academic to discuss the life cycle of a popular piece they've published, from conception to pitching, writing, editing, publication, and response. Along the way, they'll discuss advice for academics looking to communicate their work to the public, and dive into the details of the academic's background, current, and future work.
Kwame Anthony Appiah on the nuances of public philosophical writing, pop culture, the narrative (or lack thereof) aspect of thought experiments, and more
Kwame Anthony Appiah is, among many things, a Professor Of Philosophy And Law at New York University. He has published widely in literary and cultural studies, with a focus on African and African-American culture. You can read his popular writing in the New York Times, where he is currently the weekly Ethicist columnist. On this episode, he sits down with James Ryerson to discuss his career as a thinker and writer, his thoughts on public philosophical writing and its complexities and simplicities, and his New York Times piece, "What Does It Mean to ‘Look Like Me’?", published in September 2019. You can find Prof. Appiah on Twitter at @KAnthonyAppiah, Line Edit at @the_line_edit, and Joseph Fridman at @joseph_fridman.
4 Feb 2021
Dave Nussbaum on the art of producing and pitching op-eds, the structure of the ideas piece, and the opportunities and challenges of writing popular social psychology
David Nussbaum is a social psychologist who works at the Booth School of Business at the University of Chicago. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, the Guardian, and other outlets, and he is the editor of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology blog, Character and Context, as well as a co-founder and President of the nascent non-profit, Psychgeist. He has for years supported psychologists and other academics as they work to develop, pitch, and publish their popular writing. On this episode, he sits down with James Ryerson to discuss the origin of this niche which bridges the worlds of media and scientific research, his thoughts on how to pitch and frame op-eds, and the common structures (and pitfalls) of the "ideas" piece. You can find Prof. Nussbaum on Twitter at @davenuss79, Line Edit at @the_line_edit, and Joseph Fridman at @joseph_fridman.
1 Feb 2021
Priyamvada Natarajan on astronomy and the imagery of black holes, philosophy and science studies, and her journey as a writer and intellectual
Priyamvada Natarajan is a Professor in the Departments of Astronomy and Physics at Yale University. She is a theoretical astrophysicist interested in cosmology, gravitational lensing and black hole physics. Her research involves mapping the detailed distribution of dark matter in the universe exploiting the bending of light en-route to us from distant galaxies. You can read her writing in the New York Review of Books, the Wall Street Journal, and the New York Times. On this episode, she sits down with James Ryerson to discuss her career as a scientist and writer, her thoughts on science communication and the philosophy of science, and her New York Times piece, "At Long Last, a Glimpse of a Black Hole", published in April 2019. You can find Prof. Natarajan on Twitter at @SheerPriya, Line Edit at @the_line_edit, and Joseph Fridman at @joseph_fridman.
28 Aug 2020
Agnes Callard on engaging in public philosophy, her work as a columnist, and whether or not we can learn to believe in God
Agnes Callard is an Associate Professor in the University of Chicago's Department of Psychology, where she is Director of Undergraduate Studies. She received her BA from the University of Chicago in 1997 and her PhD from Berkeley in 2008. Her primary areas of specialization are Ancient Philosophy and Ethics. Prof. Callard has a regular column in The Point, a "magazine of philosophical writing on everyday life", and has written many essays for the New York Times. On this episode, she sits down with James Ryerson to discuss her career as a philosopher and popular writer, her thoughts on the possibility of public philosophy, how she cultivates ideas and her authorial voice, and her first New York Times piece, "Can We Learn to Believe in God?", published in Jan 2018. You can find Prof. Callard on Twitter at @AgnesCallard, Line Edit at @the_line_edit, and Joseph Fridman at @joseph_fridman.
21 Feb 2020
David Kaiser on writing about quantum entanglement
David Kaiser is Germeshausen Professor of the History of Science in MIT's Program in Science, Technology, and Society, Professor of Physics in MIT's Department of Physics, and also Associate Dean for Social and Ethical Responsibilities of Computing (SERC) in MIT's Schwarzman College of Computing. Kaiser's historical research focuses on the development of physics in the United States during the Cold War, looking at how the discipline has evolved at the intersection of politics, culture, and the changing shape of higher education. His physics research focuses on early-universe cosmology, working at the interface of particle physics and gravitation. He has also helped to design and conduct novel experiments to test the foundations of quantum theory.He is presently Chair of the Editorial Board of MIT Press, and also serves on the advisory boards for Nautilus and Undark magazines. Kaiser's work has been featured in such venues as Nature, Science, and Scientific American; the New York Times, the New Yorker, the Huffington Post, and the London Review of Books; and on National Public Radio, BBC Radio, and NOVA television programs. On this episode, he sits down with James Ryerson to discuss his career, the nature of quantum entanglement, and the life and afterlife of a New York Times piece he wrote about the history and science of physics in November 2014.
14 Feb 2020
Matthew Liao on writing about whether we have a moral duty to leave Facebook
S. Matthew Liao is Director of Center for Bioethics at New York University, where he is Arthur Zitrin Professor of Bioethics. He has also given a TED talk in New York and been featured in the New York Times, The Atlantic, The Guardian, and other numerous media outlets. The author and editor of four books, Dr. Liao provides the academic community with a collection of human rights essays. In this episode of Line Edit, he speaks with New York Times opinion editor James Ryerson about a piece titled “Do You Have a Moral Duty to Leave Facebook?”, the experience of being commissioned to write a piece in 48 hours, advice for academics appearing on TV, and his work as a moral philosopher in the analytic tradition.
7 Feb 2020
Dave DeSteno on writing about what science can learn from religion
David DeSteno is a professor of psychology at Northeastern University, where he directs the Social Emotions Group. David is a fellow of the Association for Psychological Science and the American Psychological Association, for which he served as editor-in-chief of the journal Emotion. His work has been repeatedly funded by the National Science Foundation and has been regularly featured in the media, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, CBS Sunday Morning, NPR's Radiolab and On Point, and USA Today. In this episode of Line Edit, he speaks with New York Times opinion editor James Ryerson about a piece titled "What Science Can Learn from Religion", the process of interviewing other scholars for his writing, and his advice for scholars looking to balance research with popular writing.
31 Jan 2020
Lisa Feldman Barrett on writing about what emotions are (and aren't)
Dr. Lisa Feldman Barrett is a University Distinguished Professor of Psychology at Northeastern University, with appointments at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital. She's published over 200 peer-reviewed journal articles and has contributed almost a dozen op-eds to The New York Times. In this premiere episode of Line Edit, she speaks with New York Times opinion editor James Ryerson about one of the first pieces she wrote for him, What Emotions Are (And Aren't), the process of writing her first book, How Emotions are Made, and the nuances of writing popular science for the public.
29 Jan 2020
Introducing: Line Edit with James Ryerson
Line Edit, supported by the John Templeton Foundation, is a new podcast where long-time editor James Ryerson talked to academics who have written short pieces for wide audiences about the big questions.
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