Government Professor Fred Exoo loves his work. “What's not to love?” he says. “My job is to sit down, face to face, with university students – some of the most vibrant, intellectually curious, funny, fascinating people in the world,” says Exoo, who began teaching at St. Lawrence in 1978.

His passion for teaching may be rivaled by his passion for his area of scholarship, politics and mass media. His most recent book, The Pen and the Sword: Press, War and Terror in the 21st Century, explores the activity and interests of the mass media during the start of the War in Iraq. His blog editorial, “Dems to Base: Drop Dead; Base to Dems: Likewise,” was recently published in The Huffington Post and he also made a recent appearance on Air America Network’s Young Turks. Students in his First-Year Seminar, “News from the Bottom Up,” printed a publication that covers stories of local interest.

Along with teaching Introduction to American Politics, Exoo works with four government students who have law internships in the community. His favorite class experiences are those that lead students to pursue careers in media. “From one class in particular,” he notes, “one student went on to become a professor of media studies in Pennsylvania, one a producer for PBS News Hour and one a producer for ABC News online.”

Aside from his dedication to politics and mass media, Exoo is also a dedicated Wisconsin sports fan. Growing up in Wisconsin and receiving his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin, he has no choice. “Being a Cheesehead is not easy,” he observes. “If Sisyphus were a sports fan, he’d root for the Brewers.”                                                                  
--Josh Johnson ’10