As Jon Ronson discussed the stories behind his latest book So You've Been Publicly Shamed, he drove home the point that the social media mob intent on bringing someone down for often nothing more than a bad joke comprises people just like us.

We are the monsters, and what's more, we could also be the victims.

And we should be in no doubt that our actions have lasting repercussions, with many of his interview subjects displaying symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.

At times it did feel like a lecture on the public’s moral shortcomings, and during the Q&A session Jon did not stray far from his comfort zone, declining to come down on one side or the other in his response to a question about freedom of speech on university campuses.

What was obvious was how Jon’s own experiences are an inextricable part of his stories whether it is attempts to decode the culture of online shaming via social media, being chased down by security of the secretive Bilderberg conference, or being outed as a Jew at a jihadi training camp.

For this reason he was as engaging a speaker as he is an author.