10/4/12

'Money, Media & The Election' Topic For Lecture At St. Lawrence

CANTON - Josh Stearns, a St. Lawrence University graduate and free press advocate, will give a talk titled "Money, Media and the Election" on Tuesday, October 16, at 7 p.m. in the Common Room of Sykes Residence Hall. The event, part of the Contemporary Issues Forum, is open to the public, free of charge.

Stearns is journalism and public media campaign director for the website Free Press, which "advocates for universal and affordable Internet access, diverse media ownership, vibrant public media and quality journalism." He graduated from St. Lawrence in 2000, with a degree in English, and he holds a master's degree in American studies from the Unviersity of Massachusetts.

Stearns states, "As the landscape of journalism shifts, major daily newspapers are closing their doors and media consolidation continues to put more and more radio and TV stations in the hands of just a few corporations. At the same time, vibrant new online start-ups are emerging and mobile apps are delivering a world of news to our fingertips. In the space between old-school media giants and innovative digital projects, local communities are facing an unprecedented information gap. How can better media lead to better elections? How can media policy and citizen action help meet the information needs of society and advance a more open democracy? What policy debates happening right now will shape the future of the Internet, journalism and media? This year represents a historic opportunity to advance reforms that better expose political money and address the media's faltering role in our democracy."

More information: Contemporary Issues Forum website