Michelle ShephardAward-winning journalist and filmmaker Michelle Shephard will discuss telling stories that matter despite barriers in a free public lecture Thursday.

Challenges of reporting subject of lecture

Author, filmmaker, podcast host, and producer Michelle Shephard will talk about how journalists and filmmakers can continue their work as the presence of AI technology, shortening attention spans, and political partisanship make it harder to determine fact from fiction in a free public lecture “Telling the Truth in a Post-Truth Era,” in the SoCA Armouries Performance Hall on Thursday, Feb. 29.

During her two decades at the Toronto Star, Shephard reported from more than 20 countries, including Somalia, Yemen, Syria, and Pakistan. She is a three-time recipient of the National Newspaper Award and was awarded the Governor-General’s Michener Award for public service journalism.

Among her films, Shephard was the co-director and producer of the Emmy-nominated documentary Guantanamo’s Child, which won Canada Screen Awards for best direction and the Donald Brittain Award for Best Social or Political Program. Her films The Perfect Story and The Way Out received Canada Screen Award nominations and she contributed to the Peabody Award-winning Under Fire: Journalists in Combat.

In addition, she is the author of Guantanamo’s Child: The Untold Story of Omar Khadr, and Decade of Fear: Reporting from Terrorism’s Grey Zone. Shephard is currently co-writing a memoir for FBI agent Scott Payne, who spent more than 20 years going undercover to infiltrate the Klu Klux Klan, outlaw motorcycle gangs, and a neo-Nazi accelerationist group.

Hosted by the Humanities Research Group, the event will begin at 5 p.m. in the Armouries building at 37 University Ave. East.