Note to Correspondents

United Nations Academic Impact to Host 11 July Debate on Role of Social

 

 Media as It Launches Current Affairs Discussion Forum

The United Nations Academic Impact is launching a lunch-time discussion forum at Headquarters to stimulate wide-ranging discussion of current issues and global responses.

Called “ Point Counter-Point”, the discussion will take the form of a debate, with panellists arguing in favour of a motion or against, and an audience opinion tally taken to see if the arguments have been able to change minds.  The first such forum, on the topic “Social media is anti-social”, will take place in Conference Room 6 of the North Lawn Building on 11 July from 1:15 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Speaking in defence of the motion will be Tracy A. Dennis, Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at Hunter College, and B J. Mendelson, journalist, author and entrepreneur.  Speaking against the motion will be Abdullah Hussain Haroon, Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the United Nations, and Nadia Mostafa, a graduate student at New York University.  Kathleen C. Haspel, Ph.D., an Associate Professor in Communication Studies, Fairleigh Dickinson University, will serve as an expert commentator.

The forum is open to delegates, the academic community, non-governmental organizations, media and United Nations staff.  Seating is limited, and those interested in attending are requested to register at academicimpact@un.org (please mention in the subject line:  Point Counter-Point).

To be webcast live, the forum will be available at webtv.un.org.  Viewers may also send questions to the panel members or share a comment on the United Nations Academic Impact’s Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/ImpactUN.

The United Nations Academic Impact, an initiative launched by the Secretary-General, is situated in the Department of Public Information.  It aligns schools of higher learning and research with the Organization and with each other to promote the world body’s goals and objectives.  More than 850 universities and organizations in 117 countries are now members of the United Nations Academic Impact (http://outreach.un.org/unai).

For further information, please contact academicimpact@un.org or Hasan Ferdous at +1 212 963 6555.

* *** *

For information media • not an official record