CNN contributor and presidential historian, Douglas Brinkley, will talk to students and take questions at the University of Memphis on March 1.
This is a part of the fifth annual Norm Brewer First Amendment Lecture and the event will take place at the University Center Theatre at 6 p.m.
“We bring in national speakers to talk about various issues surrounding the First Amendment, journalism and freedom of the press,” said Otis Sanford, Hardin Chair of Excellence in Journalism. “Students who attend the lecture will gain more knowledge about the First Amendment and how it plays into presidential politics.”
The author will discuss freedom of speech and presidential politics in the past and present.
“He is going to be making some comparisons and contrasts between how presidential elections were waged historically and how it is being waged now,” Sanford said. “He is going to do so in a very colorful, informative and engaging way.”
Brinkley is an American author, and professor of history at Rice University. He is a contributing editor for Vanity Fair magazine and is the editor of Audubon magazine.
Brinkley has received many accolades during his career. His latest book won the Sperber Prize for Best Book in Journalism and was a Washington Post Notable Book of the Year.
Past speakers at the lecture include journalists Geneva Overholser, Hank Klibanoff and radio personality Callie Crossley.
The lecture began in 2011 to honor the memory of Norm Brewer.
“He was a longtime journalist both in broadcast and newspaper journalism for several decades,” said Sanford. “I wanted to do something to recognize his legacy in journalism, and I thought that the best way to do that was to have an annual First Amendment lecture.”
Brewer’s career included working as a weekday news anchor for WMC-TV Channel 5 and as an editorialist for The Commercial Appeal. He ended his career as a political commentator for WREG-TV Channel 3 before he passed away in 2010.
The lecture is sponsored by the Hardin Chair of Excellence in Journalism and the U of M student chapters of the Society of Professional Journalists and the National Association of Black Journalists.
