5 USC Dornsife scholars garner half a million online views
The four faculty members and one Ph.D. candidate who authored the most widely read articles for The Conversation in 2018 (among the nearly 30 contributors from the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences last year) represent fields as disparate as religion and physics. What they all have in common are six stories so popular that they’ve collectively had more than half a million online views.
Republished by major news organizations that include the Washington Post, Smithsonian Magazine, PBS and Salon, the stories share little-known details about the lives of historic figures and events, explain how apps may be hindering our ability to navigate without them, offer an insider’s look at how a foreign adversary creates propaganda, and explain how a superhero might inspire young people of color to study science.
1. Lisa Bitel, Dean’s Professor of Religion and professor of religion 
and history
Bitel authored four articles in 2018, two of which earned the number one and number two spots on the list of most widely read stories by USC Dornsife scholars.
“The ‘real’ St. Valentine was no patron of love” was republished by 27 news organizations, including the Washington Post and Smithsonian Magazine, and has had had more than 134,000 online views. “Ten things to know about the real St. Patrick” was a close second with nearly 123,000 views.
2. Jennifer M. Bernstein, lecturer in spatial sciences
Republished by 30 news organizations (including the Washington Post), Bernstein’s first article for The Conversation, “Yes, GPS apps make you worse at navigating — but that’s OK,” was the third most widely read article by a USC Dornsife scholar last year, with just under 100,000 views.
3. Clifford Johnson, professor of physics and astronomy
Johnson’s story “The hidden superpower of ‘Black Panther’: Scientist role models,” his second for The Conversation, was republished by 32 news outlets, including PBS, garnering more than 61,000 views.
4. Meredith Shaw, Ph.D. candidate in political science and 
international relations
With her debut article for The Conversation, “Inside North Korea’s literary fiction,” Shaw offered nearly 50,000 online viewers from more than two dozen publications a sneak peek at how North Korea creates domestic propaganda.
5. Peter Mancall, Andrew W. Mellon Professor of the Humanities, Linda
and Harlan Martens Director of the Early Modern Studies Institute, and professor of history and anthropology
“Why the Pilgrims were actually able to survive,” Mancall’s third article for The Conversation in 2018, was republished by 33 news organizations and viewed more than 45,000 times.
Get the word out
USC Dornsife is a supporting member of The Conversation, a news organization that publishes and distributes articles, written exclusively by academics, for republication by other news media. Once a scholar’s story idea is commissioned, one of The Conversation’s seasoned editors will work with the academic to develop it into an article that meets the guidelines of major news media.
An independent and nonprofit organization, The Conversation was born out of deep-seated concerns for the fading quality of public discourse and recognition of the vital role that academic experts can play in the public arena.
If you’re a member of the faculty, a postdoctoral scholar or a doctoral candidate interested in contributing an article for The Conversation, please contact USC Dornsife Director of Media Relations Jim Key at jameskey@usc.edu.
For more information about sharing your expertise and research with the public, view this handy guide created by the USC Dornsife Office of Communication team.