Please join the RoundTable for an online conversation with one of America’s leading champions – and critics – of the American news media about the threats facing journalism and democracy.
Margaret Sullivan, former media critic of The Washington Post and public editor of The New York Times, has a particular focus on the relationship between the press and the current threats to American democracy.
On Nov. 10, Sullivan will join the RoundTable for a webinar about her latest book, Newsroom Confidential: Lessons (and Worries) from an Ink-Stained Life. The book traces Sullivan’s life in journalism and how she has witnessed the steady erosion of trust in the mainstream press. The special one-hour event, starting at 7 p.m., is part of the RoundTable’s fall fundraising and NewsMatch drive.
Sullivan’s career began at the Buffalo (N.Y.) News, where she rose from summer intern to editor in chief. In Newsroom Confidential, she chronicles her years in the trenches battling sexism and throwing elbows in a highly competitive newsroom.
In 2012, Sullivan was appointed the public editor of The New York Times, the first woman to hold that important role. She was in the unique position of acting on behalf of readers to weigh the actions and reporting of the paper’s staff, parsing potential lapses in judgment, unethical practices and thorny journalistic issues.
In 2016, Sullivan joined the Washington Post as the newspaper’s media critic. There, she had a front-row seat to the rise of Donald Trump in American media and politics. She recently left the Post and was named a visiting professor at Duke University.
Sullivan is a recognized expert on the decline of local journalism and its dire consequences for citizenship and governance.
Her first book, Ghosting the News: Local Journalism and the Crisis of American Democracy, was a Washington Post and an National Public Radio best of 2020 choice, and was named by the Porchlight Business Book Awards as the Public Affairs and Current Events Book of the Year. A graduate of Georgetown University, Sullivan has a master’s degree from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism.
The RoundTable’s oneline event Nov. 10 will feature a conversation between Sullivan and RoundTable Editor Susy Schultz, a journalist with more than 20 years of newsroom experience. Schultz also served as President of Public Narrative, a nonprofit dedicated to teaching journalists and community nonprofits the importance of engagement and better storytelling.
This event kicks off our fall NewsMatch fundraising campaign – and the chance for the Evanston community to support the RoundTable’s work as Evanston’s nonprofit news source. The RoundTable, just like Sullivan, believes that robust journalism is critical for an informed and educated citizenry. We need you to support our work during NewsMatch.
All webinar attendees will receive a copy of Newsroom Confidential. A $30 registration fee will cover the cost of your copy of the book, and we hope you will add a contribution to the NewsMatch campaign during the registration process. The event is co-sponsored by our friends at Bookends & Beginnings, which will process your book order.
Ooops. The day/time (Thur Nov 10 at 7 p.m.) are in a header that my browser did not show on first look. It appears nicely when I scroll ALL the way up. Ain’t hi-tek wunnerful? Still, that’s on a linked-to page; would it not be helpful also on first-glance items?
Eager to hear from two accomplished journalists! Suggesting that the promos include time of day (and day of week) so potential viewers can tell immediately whether we have a time conflict.