Patrick Radden Keefe named first international resident of CCCB for 30th anniversary

American investigative journalist Patrick Radden Keefe is the first international resident announced for the Contemporary Cultural Center of Barcelona’s (CCCB) new program from 2024-2027 of international residencies in honor of the museum’s 30th anniversary.

“We invite people who have left a mark with their defense of the freedom of speech,” Judit Carrera, director of the CCCB, said during a press conference on Tuesday morning.

Keefe is well known for his long-form articles in The New York Times magazine, The New Yorker magazine and books about historical conflicts such as ‘Say Nothing’ about Northern Ireland’s troubles in the 1970s and ‘Empire of Pain’ about the owner of the pharmaceutical company Purdue Pharma, Sackler family, and their role in the OxyContin drugs pandemic of the United States, as well as the ‘Wind of Change’ podcast about the alleged role of the CIA in pop culture to influence the Cold War.

The new program will have multiple international residents over three years who will each be a resident for a maximum of three months, organized in collaboration with the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya university (UOC). 

Keefe kicked off his program on Tuesday morning by talking with 350 high school students about working as an investigative journalist.

AI and journalism

One of the big threats to journalism is considered to be Artificial Intelligence (AI), but Keefe does not agree.

"I think at this moment the biggest threat for journalists are the rich and powerful who suppress the truth," he said.

"Every time I write an article about anyone with wealth, I know that they will try to come after me with their legal team. Luckily, I am backed by a magazine with a great legal team, but it is definitely scarier for small media and freelancers," Keefe added.

While AI isn’t the biggest threat in this moment of time, according to Keefe, it will influence society in the near future.

"You can tell ChatGPT to write an article as if it is written by me. In an instant, you will have an article that looks like it was written by me, but it is not. I think that is a scary future and not just for journalism," Keefe said.

"We live in an age of miracles, I do think AI is miraculous," he added.

Whenever a new technology is introduced, many people trust the companies behind it, and start using it without a second thought, according to Keefe.

"For me, it is highly important for the press, but also the citizens, that we do not wait five years to say that it should be regulated, that we ask for the government to step in and talk about how this influences copyright for example," Keefe said.

"We, as the press, should be asking difficult questions about these things daily," he told the journalists present at the press conference.

Finding new stories

Keefe also announced that he is currently working on a new book, and will keep working during his stay in the Catalan capital.

"I'm working on a new book about a 19-year-old boy in London who mysteriously died in 2019, he had been pretending to be the son of a Russian oligarch. So I'm writing about the process his family goes through to find out about his life and the circumstances of his death," Keefe said.

Keefe is known for finding and digging deep into stories, writing about three to four long-form articles a year for The New York Times Magazine.

"I do not really go looking for ideas, they usually find me. I meet a lot of people who tell me interesting stories and then maybe one will plant a seed and inspire me to write an article or a book," the journalist explained.

"What I am currently writing about is a bit of a mystery, if I am not able to solve it, will that be a satisfying project for me and for the readers? I am very conscious that nobody has to read what I write, I am competing with phones to hold on to the readers and capture their attention," Keefe added.

Orwell Day

Patrick Radden Keefe has curated the program for ‘Orwell Day,’ a program of activities to pay tribute to 20th-century British writer George Orwell, to talk about freedom of expression.

'Orwell Day' presents a cycle of debates under the name ‘Fragile Thruts’, starting with an opening lecture and a talk with journalists Tom Burgis, writer of the book ‘Cuckooland,’ and Patricia Evangelista, writer of ‘Some People Need Killing.'

Adding to the program are literary routes to follow Orwell’s steps in Barcelona and Aragon, in Northern Catalonia, to celebrate how art is a way to fight for human rights.

Future international residents line up

Following Keefe, the next international resident will be Brazilian journalist Eliane Brum, known for documentaries and books about environmental issues in Brazil. Starting in September, she will reside at the CCCB for three months until December. 

After Brum, Tsitsi Dangarembga, a writer and director from Zimbabwe, famous for her debut novel ‘Nervous Condition’ about race, colonialism and gender during the colonial period of Zimbabwe takes over. Dangarembga’s residency is expected to start in January 2025.

The third name CCCB confirmed is Mexican writer and linguist Yásnaya Aguilar, who focuses on the study and promotion of linguistic diversity, specializing in the endangered original languages of Mexico. There is currently no confirmation on when Aguilar’s residency is expected to start.