Telling Truth from Lies:
Sneak Peek at the 2025 Youth Security Forum
Wednesday, March 30, 2025
NSF Hybrid Event
In-Person at
Tamarack Casino
13101 S. Virginia St, Reno, NV
(Park and enter using Banquet Hall door on the north side of the building)
Breakfast served 8:00-9:00am, Forum 9:00-10:15am
$30 members/$35 guests
Virtual on Zoom
Forum 9:00-10:15am PST
Register in advance for this webinar:
https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_G_UYYg-ETvaIqo37lyW7dQ
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
PANEL SPEAKERS:
Richard Clark and Scott Maryott
(Reno High School (RHS), We The People (WTP) teacher and coach)
RHS WTP Students
Professor Patrick File
(UNR, School of Journalism)
Arianna Bennet
(KTVN, News Anchor)
Thank you to all who joined us last month for an excellent program about Nuclear Proliferation Risks Expanding in a New Era. If you missed it, the program video and tributes are posted on the NSF website at: Nuclear Proliferation Risks. In examining issues of importance to the new Trump Administration, we will have a myriad of topics to cover this year.
Upcoming NSF and Partner Events:
- Apr 24th 3:30-5:30p PT (virtual event) – 2025 China Town Hall Presented by the National committee on US-China Relations, “President Trump’s China Policy” (register on line at: https://www.ncuscr.org/program/cth/)
- May 20th 9:00a-2:00p (in-person event) – Youth Security Forum “Telling Truth from Lies” at UNR, Joe Crowley Student Union (9a-2p)
- Jun 18th 9:00-10:15a (hybrid event) – Making Sense of Tariffs and Economic Security” with Stan Veuger (American Enterprise Institute) and Prof Stephen Miller (UNLV Lee Business School), plus an expert panel of discussants from business groups.
More about upcoming events…
Following up on our February 20th Forum on China’s role in Latin America, Prof. Xiaoyu from UNR, Political Science, extended an invitation to all NSF to attend (virtually) the 2025 China Town Hall on-line on Thu April 24th. The National Committee on US-China Relations, of which Prof Pu is a Fellow, is hosting this event with esteemed speakers engaging on the theme, The First 100 Days: President Trump’s China Policy. This should be a timely and important discussion. You can get more information about the event and register at the link above.
Our 2025 Youth Security Forum will be held at The Joe at UNR on Tue, May 20th. You will hear more about this event at our upcoming forum on April 30th. We are in dire need of volunteers to either facilitate the student discussions or help with logistics. If you are interested, please sign up at this link: 2025 YSF Volunteer Signup
During our March forum there was an overwhelming request for a program about tariffs and economic security. I heard you and arranged for two excellent speakers along with a panel of business experts to present at our forum on Wed Jun 18th. Given the current uncertainty in the state of tariffs, our speakers recommended we hold off until there is a bit more clarity…maybe.
More about our April 30th program…
“Only a tiny fraction of people – 0.1 percent – can accurately distinguish between real and fake content such as images and video, according to new research on deepfakes conducted by iProov. Despite these abysmal results, around 60 percent of individuals said they were confident in their deepfake detection skills.” (Biometric News, 12 Feb 2025)
“Telling Truth from Lies – Misinformation, disinformation, and AI threats to national security,” the theme for the 2025 Youth Security Forum, is particularly timely in today’s climate. AI experts and authors, Rex and Caleb Briggs, will set the stage and lead exercises to stimulate YSF students to discuss threats to national security from disinformation and deepfakes. A challenging topic for the next generation of leaders to explore.
Many the 400+ Washoe County School District (WCSD) students that will be participating in the 2025 YSF are members of We The People (WTP) classes in high schools across WCSD. Several NSFers who joined our March program had the opportunity to meet some rockstar students from Reno High School who were members of the WTP team that finished 5th in the nation a few weeks ago at the national finals in Washington, DC. Congratulations to the RHS students and their amazing teacher Richard Clark!!!! Richard Clark and Scott Maryott (WTP volunteer coach), will give a short presentation about WTP and the national competition. You will also get to hear more from the amazing RHS WTP students.
To entice you into volunteering for YSF you will also get a “sneak peek” from two of the guest YSF presenters. Dr. Patrick File, Assoc Prof at the UNR Reynolds School of Journalism, will share thoughts about how he will frame student discussions about 1st Amendment rights and the rise of disinformation. And Arianna Bennet, KTVN News Achor and a familiar face to many Renoites, will talk about the challenges journalists face to discern truth from lies in the fast-paced world of news reporting.
This is your opportunity to learn more about YSF, NSF’s flagship event to encourage the next generation of national security leaders. We are seeking about 40 volunteers to help with logistics and to serve as moderators for student discussions. You do not need to be an AI expert to moderate student discussions. You just need an enthusiasm and commitment to promoting civil discourse. We will provide basic training to all volunteers before the event. WCSD estimates 420 students from 7 high schools around the district will participate in YSF, strengthening our community through support to youth leaders and citizens. Many of our past volunteers say they come away from YSF events with an invigorated confidence in the future of our country.
I look forward to seeing you on April 30th for our YSF Sneak Peek and at YSF on May 20th.
If you are not able to join us for our next forum, please consider volunteering for YSF and joining us on May 20th. You can sign up at this link: 2025 YSF Volunteer Signup
NSF remains committed to keeping you informed about issues beyond the headlines and from multiple perspectives. Stay up to date on NSF programs by subscribing to our mailing list at: NSF Mailing List or better yet become a member at: Become a Member. We meet at Tamarack Casino in South Reno. When you turn into the parking lot turn right and follow the signs for the “Banquet Room.” Park anywhere on the northside of the building and enter via the walkway into the reception hall for the banquet room. We will see you there!!! You can always email Kimberly at: [email protected] or me at: [email protected] if you have questions or need more information about the location.
Patrick File, PhD, is the Graduate Director and Associate Professor of Media Law in the University of Reno, Nevada Reynolds School of Journalism. His research, public engagement, and teaching focus on helping us better understand how we define and regulate journalism at the intersection of law, technology, and professional practices. In the classroom, Patrick strives to help his students develop a critical curiosity about the evolving and dynamic legal, social, and historical background of today’s media environment. Patrick’s research in media law and history is published in journals like Communication Law & Policy, American Journalism, and the Journal of Media Law and Ethics. His book, published in January 2019 by the University of Massachusetts Press, is titled “Bad News Travels Fast: The Telegraph, Libel, and Press Freedom in the Progressive Era.” He has a PhD and a Master’s Degree from the University of Minnesota School of Journalism and Mass Communication. Prior to his academic career, Patrick won national awards as a student journalist, worked for his hometown newspaper in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, and reported for publications in Iowa and upstate New York. He interned with the Student Press Law Center, in Washington D.C., and spent two years in South Korea as an ESL instructor.
Arianna Bennet was born and raised in Reno, and a third-generation graduate of Reno High. As a teenager, she discovered her love for journalism while working on the school newspaper, The Red & Blue. Arianna graduated from Northwestern University with a major in Broadcast Journalism and a minor in English Literature. She got her start reporting in Montana at KULR-TV in Billings, but she couldn’t wait to get back to her hometown. She has been with 2 News Nevada since 2010. She anchors the newscasts on weeknights at 4:00, 4:30, and 7:00, and contributes investigative reporting and special projects. She is also the executive producer and host of Face the State, an in-depth news program that airs on weekends. She is a recipient of a regional Edward R. Murrow Award and an Emmy for her work on our “Best Local Newscast.” She has also been recognized by the Nevada Association of School Boards for “Excellence in Education Reporting.”
The National Security Forum is a non-partisan, educational, nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering civil discourse and informed discussion about timely and important national security topics. We bring expert speakers from around the U.S. to talk about national and international security, domestic and foreign terrorism, economic and financial threats, the safety of our food and water supply, energy policy, electrical grid stability, and a variety of other topics that affect all Americans. The National Security Forum partners with the Washoe County School District to host an annual Youth Security Forum to encourage future generations national security leaders.
To support NSF continuing to bring national security programs to our community and our local students please join NSF as a member or Friend of the Forum at: https://nationalsecurityforum.org/membership/about-our-membership/