As PBS NewsHour’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Correspondent, Nick Schifrin has witnessed firsthand the complexities that define today’s most pressing international crises. From the front lines of conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine to covering the economic implications of global trade policies, he has developed a unique perspective on the interconnected forces shaping our world.

Schifrin will share his insights in “Tell Me About Your Son: Staying Resilient while Covering War”, August 16, at 7 p.m., at the Camden Opera House. A question and answer segment will follow.

This presentation serves as a kick-off event for the 2026 Camden Conference, “Power, Politics and Players in Today’s Middle East,” scheduled for February 2026. Schifrin will explore the personal and professional challenges of war reporting, drawing on his extensive experience covering conflicts around the globe and examining how journalists maintain their humanity while witnessing humanity’s worst moments. 

Schifrin’s approach to international journalism is rooted in understanding the human impact of global events. His reporting seeks to illuminate not just what happens, but why it matters to the people living through historic changes. This perspective has shaped his coverage across multiple continents and conflicts, always with an eye toward helping audiences make sense of complex international dynamics. 

From 2008-2012, Schifrin served as the ABC News correspondent in Afghanistan and Pakistan. In 2011 he was one of the first journalists to arrive in Abbottabad, Pakistan, after Osama bin Laden’s death and delivered one of the year’s biggest exclusives – the first video from inside bin Laden’s compound. His reporting helped ABC News win an Edward R. Murrow award for its bin Laden coverage.

Prior to joining PBS NewsHour, Schifrin was Al Jazeera America’s Middle East correspondent. He won an Overseas Press Club award for his Gaza coverage and a National Headliners Award for his Ukraine coverage. 

The PBS NewsHour series “Inside Putin’s Russia,” led by Schifrin, won a 2017 Peabody Award and the National Press Club’s Edwin M. Hood Award for Diplomatic Correspondence. In November 2020, Schifrin received the American Academy of Diplomacy’s Arthur Ross Media Award for Distinguished Reporting and Analysis of Foreign Affairs. 

Schifrin is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a board member of the Overseas Press Club Foundation. He has a bachelor’s degree from Columbia University and a Master of International Public Policy degree from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). 

Tickets are $35, $25 for Camden Conference Members. Maine Public members qualify for a 15 percent discount. 

The event is sponsored by the Camden Conference in partnership with Maine Public. 

www.camdenconference.org

The Camden Conference is a nonprofit organization providing a non-partisan community forum fostering in-depth discussion of world issues through year-round events and an annual February conference.