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I'M

Justin McBrayer

PHILOSOPHER
TEACHER
SPEAKER
WRITER

LATEST INTERVIEW

STOA with Caleb Ontiveros
"Fake News, Real Stoicism"

Important frameworks for how to think about the problems of misinformation and strategies for individuals who want to see the world as it is.

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STOA CONVERSATIONS: Stoicism is a philosophy that is ultimately geared towards attaining knowledge. Because of that it is crucial to know what kind of media environment we live in and how to navigate it.

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I'm a philosopher. I work on important human questions that can't be answered by the methods of science. I teach at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado. Much of my research focuses on helping ordinary individuals and political bodies to think consistently and carefully about the problems they encounter, the values they embrace, and the evidence they've gathered.

SPECIALIZATIONS & COMPETENCIES

History of Philosophy

Metaphysics

Logic

Ethics (Applied and Meta)

Philosophy of Religion

Epistemology 

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NEW BOOK!
BEYOND FAKE NEWS

Finding the TRUTH in a world of misinformation

Why do we face a fake news problem, and what is the solution?  Part of the explanation is improved technology along with mental blindspots. But another part of the story is the fact that others have incentives to deceive us and we ourselves often lack incentives to get to the truth when it comes to topics like politics, religion, and alternative health. But we can do better, both as individuals and as a society. I show how to do both. As consumers of the news, we can trust ourselves on some topics and learn how to identify the experts for others. As a society, there's a lot we can do to clean up our informational environment and limit the damage of fake news.

BLOG

BLOG: a space to think

AUDIO INTERVIEWS  

STOA CONVERSATIONS with Caleb Ontiveros 

Fake News, Real Stoicism  CLICK TO LISTEN

COUNTERPOINT with Amanda Vanstone

"Diversity is intellectually valuable only when there is a truth to be discovered." CLICK TO LISTEN

LEADERSHIP
Snowy Mountains

leadership

COLLEGE SERVICE

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Good leadership requires courage, clear-thinking, and fairness.  This is especially true in the academy where there are multiple stakeholders, each with their own priorities, and a commitment to shared governance.  It turns out that Plato was right: training in philosophy is training for good leadership!  I bring the skills I have honed as a philosopher to bear on the problems facing the communities I lead. That includes the School of Arts & Sciences at Fort Lewis College and the Society of Christian Philosophers.

2022 - present

MAJOR GIFTS OFFICER

Society of Christian Philosophers

2021 - 2022

WRITING FELLOW

Heterodox Academy

2020 - present

ASSOCIATE DEAN

Fort Lewis College