The University Record, November 6, 1995
Satellite seminars to focus on presidency and the media
By Julie Peterson
News and Information Services
The Department of Communication Studies will host two educational programs about television and the presidency Nov. 13-14 as part of a nationwide University Satellite Seminar Series.
The satellite series, presented by the Museum of Television & Radio and funded by General Motors Corp., will bring a selection of the museum’s 60 annual seminars to more than 100 colleges and universities across the country.
“On the Campaign Trail” will be presented Nov. 13 and “The Office of the Presidency” Nov. 14. Both satellite presentations, 7:30-9 p.m. in Room 1210, Chemistry Building, are free and open to the public.
“On the Campaign Trail” will explore how candidates have benefited from, and fallen prey to, the scrutinizing eye of the camera during the campaign process, from the primaries to election night. With the lessons of the media-driven 1992 campaign behind us, panelists will assess the current presidential campaign.
Panelists will be historian Michael Beschloss, senior fellow of the Annenberg Washington Program of Northwestern University and director of the Annenberg Project on Television and Foreign Policy; Gerald Boyd, assistant managing editor of the Ne w York Times; Michael Deaver, executive vice president and director of corporate affairs for Edelman Public Relations Worldwide and former deputy chief of staff during the Reagan administration; Dan Rather, anchor and managing editor of the “CBS Evening News” and anchor of “48 Hours”; and Tabitha Soren, MTV News anchor and reporter.
“The Office of the Presidency” will examine how presidents from Truman to Clinton have used television to communicate their policies and reinforce their abilities as the country’s leader. Panelists will be Wolf Blitzer, CNN’s senior White House correspondent; Tom Brokaw, anchor and managing editor of “NBC Nightly News;” David Gergen, editor at large of U.S. News & World Report and visiting professor at Duke University; Gwen Ifill, national correspondent for NBC News; and documentary filmmaker Robert Squier.
Topics of 1996 satellite seminars include: “Stand-up Comedians on Television” (March), “Sports/Olympics on Television” (April), “Individual Visions in Television” (October) and “The Craft of Writing for Televisio n” (November).
