Advocation and research about media, technology and democracy are the main focuses of Justin Hendrix, CEO and editor of Tech Policy Press.
Hendrix, who lives in Brooklyn, N.Y., visited the University of Mississippi during the Jordan Center for Journalism and Advocacy and Innovation inaugural symposium to share his thoughts in a talk titled “Artificial Intelligence, Disinformation, ‘Censorship,’ and the Next Five Years.”
Hendrix holds a bachelor’s degree in English and philosophy from the College of William and Mary as well as a master of science degree in technology commercialization from the University of Texas at Austin
Working at The Economist, Hendrix developed an interest in the connections between technology and media.
“I started at The Economist, and I spent about a dozen years there,” Hendrix said. “Of course, I got a very good grounding in news and media there and how people come to know about international affairs, technology, policy, science, arts, etc. But, as I kind of carried on, I got more and more interested in tech and more and more interested in the intersection of tech and media.”
These interests then came together with Hendrix’s concerns about democracy to build his current focus.
“For me, that intersection of tech media and ultimately tech policy collide with my concerns around democracy. That’s kind of what I’m focused on now,” Hendrix said.
After leaving The Economist, Hendrix spent more than seven years as the executive director of NYC Media Lab. Currently, Hendrix is an associate research scientist and adjunct instructor of integrated digital media at the NYU Tandon School of Engineering.
Hendrix hopes that people will explore the issues addressed by Tech Policy Press, a nonprofit media organization he co-founded with Brian Jones that publishes opinions and analysis about democracy in technology and tech policy.
“What we do does not appeal to everyone. It’s not a general purpose publication in many ways, but increasingly, we do find an interested public who recognizes the problems at the intersection of tech and society. Tech and democracy are really crucial,” Hendrix said. “So, I would encourage folks to come and check that out and find ways to engage with those ideas and see how they might be valuable.”
Hendrix encourages people to interact with topics and share their visions about technology so they can influence how things will affect their lives and society as a whole.
“I do think it is important for some of us to take the initiative to say, ‘Listen, I have a say in the future. I have a vision for the future,’” Hendrix said.
Hendrix believes that this sharing of different perspectives is important to prevent society from being limited to the ideas of a select few individuals.
“Maybe my vision is different from Sam Altman’s vision for the future or Mark Zuckerberg’s vision or Elon Musk’s vision for the future,” Hendrix said. “We need those futures to come to the floor rather than all of us being led in the direction that those individuals want to take us.”
Although Hendrix sees technology, particularly AI, as a helpful tool for journalists, he is concerned with how its use may compromise the benefits that come from the struggles within the writing process.
“Sometimes that pain you feel in doing (journalism), that is actually the process; that’s the point. And if you remove that, then you actually remove the entire point of writing to begin with,” Hendrix said.
While Hendrix recognizes that journalism is a hard industry to work in because of changes in public perception and job availability, he also sees the necessity of dedicated journalists.
“We just need you all desperately to help explain and report and uncover and introduce new information into the world,” Hendrix said.
Hendrix hopes that the Jordan Center will continue to facilitate learning opportunities for people to better understand journalism, especially students.
“If the center becomes a locus for that activity, a pull of gravity for expertise and other people from outside of the community right here at Ole Miss to come in and bring ideas to enrich the already healthy stew of ideas you’ve got here, I feel that’s a very valuable thing,” Hendrix said.
