NPR president to discuss "Truth Under Pressure" at UO media ethics event

EUGENE, Ore. -- (March 26, 2008) -- Freedom of the press and the explorations of media grey areas will be the topic at a day-long conference exploring the ethical issues facing journalists on Friday, April 4.

Pop culture has evolved into breaking news, and advertising dollars are finding their way into news media. Journalists attending the event will explore what this means for their profession and to the general public.

The UO School of Journalism and Communication's annual John L. Hulteng Conversations in Ethics will be held in the George S. Turnbull Center's new home at the UO in Portland White Stag Block. This will be the first public event at the UO in Portland, which opens its doors in the Old Town Chinatown facility to spring term classes.

Conversations in Ethics will begin with a keynote address by Kevin Klose, president of National Public Radio. The talk, "Truth Under Pressure," begins at 9 a.m. in the main level lecture hall, 70 Northwest Couch St. Admission is free and open to the public.

Klose was honored with the Edward R. Murrow Award from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting in 2006 and was a Woodrow Wilson National Fellow.

"Public broadcasters have always wrestled with challenges to their editorial independence," said Al Stavitsky, SOJC associate dean and director of the Turnbull Center. "As president of NPR, Kevin Klose has been a staunch defender of journalistic independence and integrity. He lives it everyday."

Four panel discussions will follow Klose's address in which newspaper, commercial television, public television, public radio, collegiate media journalists and advertisers will discuss how to balance economic, social and political pressures. Panel topics include "Revenues, Pressures, Managers: Advertiser Influence on the News"; "Between Entertainment and News: The Grey Zone"; "Public Broadcasting: Does 'commercial free' mean pressure free?"; and "Student Media: Reflecting the past or predicting the future?"

This event "honors the memory of John Hulteng, a wonderful teacher, thinker and professional journalist," said Tom Bivins, the School of Journalism and Communication's John L. Hulteng Chair in Media Ethics. "It also reaffirms the school’s ongoing commitment to ethics in our profession."

Bivins, who will moderate the panel, "Between Entertainment and News: The Grey Zone," says the panel "will explore the increasing interest by the public in entertainment-oriented news and its effect, if any, on the composition of news—both print and broadcast."

The late John Hulteng, a former SOJC dean and professor, set standards of journalism ethics and shaped the Oregon newspaper industry. His book, "The Messenger's Motives: Ethical Problems of the News Media" (1976) was one of the first journalism textbooks to address ethics.

Registration for the day-long conference is free, but space is limited. To register, visit the conference’s website at http://jcomm.uoregon.edu/hulteng.

About the University of Oregon
The University of Oregon is a world-class teaching and research institution and Oregon's flagship public university. The UO is a member of the Association of American Universities (AAU), an organization made up of 62 of the leading public and private research institutions in the United States and Canada. Membership in the AAU is by invitation only. The University of Oregon is one of only two AAU members in the Pacific Northwest.

Contact: Julie Brown, 541-346-3185, julbrown@uoregon.edu

Source: Zanne Miller, 541-346-2519, zanne@uoregon.edu

Links: John L. Hulteng Conversations in Ethics, http://jcomm.uoregon.edu/hulteng

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