Harvard’s 300th Anniversary University Professor and former Dean of Harvard Law School Martha Minow discussed the constitutional case for saving the news, and what the government’s role should be in redressing news desserts, halting on-line amplification of misinformation, and ensuring independent, reliable journalism.

After her remarks, Professor Minow was joined by a panel of experts and practitioners, moderated by Shorenstein Center Director Nancy Gibbs, to discuss the dramatic shifts in our information ecosystem, which is being flooded with disinformation at the same time that the free and independent press is under threat. Panelists included Sewell Chan, Editor in Chief of The Texas Tribune, Steven Waldman, Chair of the Rebuild Local News Coalition and Co-Founder and President of Report For America, and Dr. Joan Donovan, Research Director at the Shorenstein Center and Director of its Technology and Social Change Project.