Marianna Spring delivers Geddes Trust Student Journalism Masterclass

On Friday 31 January, the Hall hosted the latest Geddes Trust Masterclass, delivered by Oxford alumna Marianna Spring, the BBC’s first disinformation specialist and social media investigations correspondent.

Speaking to around 50 student journalists from across the University, Marianna discussed her work at this critical time for journalism and explained how her extensive investigative skills and personal approach have allowed her to uncover the truth behind many social media stories. The talk also covered how to hold social media companies to task, how to track down account holders and expose their motives, and how to speak to – and protect – whistleblowers on social media. Marianna rounded up by providing some pointers for a successful career in journalism: to record everything and to remember when assessing the veracity of any piece of information to ask “how do we know it and why do we think it’s true”.

The masterclass series, run by the Geddes Trust, focuses on promoting good journalism and developing journalistic skills. Each year, the Trust, which was set up in memory of Philip Geddes, a St Edmund Hall alumnus and journalist of considerable promise, also invites an esteemed journalist to give a lecture about their views on the state of journalism today. The 2025 Geddes Lecture will be delivered by the award-winning podcaster and author Gabriel Gatehouse on Friday 7 March. Gabriel will discuss the role of conspiracy theories in contemporary politics, the impact of technology on politics and journalism, and what the future holds for democracy in America. This is a free public lecture and all are welcome to attend.

Find out more about the lecture and register