Wall Street Journal reporter, UF alum Caitlin Ostroff to discuss cryptocurrency’s rising influence
Caitlin Ostroff, a Wall Street Journal reporter and University of Florida graduate, will visit campus as this fall’s Business Journalist in Residence Sept. 30 – Oct. 4.
As part of her visit, Ostroff will give a public talk titled, “Data Journalism, Cryptocurrency, and Elections: Tracking a New Industry’s Growing Influence,” where she will share her experience using the tools of data journalism to keep tabs on this mercurial industry and shed light on its efforts to sway U.S. elections.
Held at 4 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 3, in the Pugh Hall Ocora, the event is free and open to the public and will be followed by a reception. A livestream and recording of the talk will also be available.
A 2018 graduate of UF’s journalism and political science programs, Ostroff went on to work for the Miami Herald. There, she used her programming skills to report on elections, medical malpractice and political influence and co-authored the book “The Grifter’s Club.” At the Herald, she was also named a finalist for the Livingston Award for national reporting.
Ostroff then joined the Wall Street Journal as a cryptocurrency reporter, where she continues to report on the rise and fall of exchanges and their influential leaders as well as other political and financial news. Among other stories, she has covered bitcoin’s surprisingly enduring strength; allegations of currency manipulation in Nigeria; the downfall of cryptocurrency exchange FTX and its founder Sam Bankman-Fried; and the cryptocurrency industry’s $100 million campaign war chest it is spending on the 2024 election.
UF’s Business Journalist in Residence program invites leading reporters in business and economics to campus to share their expertise with the campus community through class visits, public talks, and meetings with faculty and researchers in their area of coverage. The program is supported by the Warrington College of Business and the College of Journalism and Communications. The public talk is hosted by the Bob Graham Center for Public Service and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.