My latest piece in the Clarion Ledger draws on Aristotle’s insights about friendship, which he called acknowledged reciprocal goodwill. We sure need more of that in Mississippi.
Click here or on the Clarion Ledger logo on the right to read the piece on their Web site.
You can also see a scan of the printed piece on Academia.edu.
The video clip of my interview on WLOX TV News at 4 in Biloxi, MS, is included at the bottom of this post. I had a great time visiting the coast, seeing the beautiful water, and talking with some really nice people.
I also had a great time meeting Jeremy from Bay Books for the book signing afterwards at the West Biloxi Public Library. While I was at the TV studio, I was able to snap these photos.
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As promised, I’m posting here below my interview on WLOV of Tupelo’s This Morning show with Katrina Berry. Also, below that is a photo of the nice layout that Reed’s Gumtree Bookstore setup for the book signing later that day.
Katrina was a lovely person who was kind and encouraging. As I said, she drove home the fact that on WLOV they like to support local authors. It was a great experience, and also featured the fastest turnaround I’ve experienced for getting a video of the broadcast. All around, great trip.
Oh, and here’s Reed’s Gumtree Bookstore’s nice setup before the book signing. Very nice people there too. They’ve got signed books from John Grisham, George Will, and many more. Great people.
If you know of TV or radio stations that would be interested in an interview about Uniting Mississippi, or groups looking for a speaker, contact me on Twitter, Facebook, or via my info on my Contact page.
Despite the torrential rain this morning, I made it on time to meet with Katrina Berry of WLOV Tupelo’s This Morning show.
Berry is an impressive, award-winning journalist and TV anchor. Her award was from the Associated Press for her weekly series, Heavenly Helpers. When I first got a chance to talk with her, she explained that they aim to support local authors on the show, which was great.
It can seem strange to most scholars to put a lot of effort into securing and participating in a 3 minute interview, which is what it came out to be. Consider how much advertisers spend on 30 seconds or 1 minute of television, however, and all of a sudden, you can appreciate better what 3 minutes of air-time means, in financial terms. One source estimates that even on a local show, ads can cost from as little as $200 to as much as $1,500 for 30 seconds. So a 3 minute interview could be valued from anywhere between $1,200 and $9,000. That’s worth the drive to Tupelo, MS. Those aren’t funds that come to me, of course, but they are value that the show offers for getting the word out about Uniting Mississippi.
After a few nice questions about the book, Berry asked me about the book signing that I’ll be holding from 12-1:30 pm today at Reed’s Gumtree Bookstore, here in Tupelo. Here are a few photos I snagged of my visit to WLOV. When I get a clip of the video of the interview, I’ll post it to my site also. It was a great experience.
Know a TV station that might be interested in hearing about Uniting Mississippi? Let me know on Twitter or on Facebook.
I’ve tried my hand at a few new kinds of public engagement efforts that have borne fruit. The latest example for me is in seeking TV interviews to talk about issues in public philosophy, particularly some ideas about how I think Mississippi could benefit from good democratic leadership. I’m headed to Tupelo, MS for an interview on WLOV’s This Morning show, Wednesday, November 18th. Then, on Monday, December 7th November 23rd, (updated), I’ll be heading to Biloxi, MS to give an interview on WLOX’s News at 4 show. After each I’ll be holding a book signing, though only the one in Tupelo has been scheduled at this point.
Scholars or readers curious about higher education may wonder: why do all of this? We certainly have enough work to do teaching classes, researching and writing, applying for grants, and serving our institutions and professional associations (the work of a professor is a lot more than what folks see in the classroom). Why add on to that with “outreach” or public engagement?
In “The Search for the Great Community,” from The Public and Its Problems, John Dewey argues that democracy’s prime difficulty has to do with how a mobile, complex, and many layered community can come to define itself and its interests. He believed that the key to addressing democratic challenges was to make use of democratic means, particularly communication. Democracy can embody wise leadership, but only with widespread, maximally unhindered communication, especially emphasizing the developments of human knowledge — the sciences, broadly speaking. For that reason, it is a clear and crucial extension of his democratic theory to value the public engagement of scholars with their communities.
When Dewey referred to public engagement, however, that did not mean only a one-way street. Communication takes listening too. So, the point isn’t only for scholars to speak to audiences, but for them also to learn from the people. When I write, I draw increasingly often from newspapers and magazines to illustrate my points about what people are saying and experiencing beyond the academy. Scholarly research is vital, but so is the world beyond the academy. Some circles have criticized me for it in peer-reviews, but so far I haven’t let that dissuade me from seeing scholars’ task as needing to draw also on sources and input from beyond the academy. In addition, talking with people around Mississippi and in other states about my work has revealed all kinds of interesting insights. Some people offer me great examples that I can use to strengthen my points. Others highlight challenges for bringing about the kinds of changes that I believe are needed.
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Excited that I’ll be interviewed on WLOX Biloxi’s News at 4 program to talk about Uniting Mississippi. With my publisher’s help, we’ve set up a book signing that day at the West Biloxi Public Library.
| Date: | December 7, 2015 |
|---|---|
| Time: | 04:00 p.m. |
| Appearance: | Interview for the News at 4 show on Uniting Mississippi |
| Outlet: | WLOX, Biloxi, MS, Channel 3 |
| Location: | Biloxi, MS |
| Format: | Television |
I'll be talking about Uniting Mississippi, which you can learn more about here.
Katrina Berry of WTVA has kindly invited me for an interview on WLOV Tupelo’s This Morning, to talk about Uniting Mississippi.
| Date: | November 18, 2015 |
|---|---|
| Time: | 07:45-08:00 a.m. |
| Appearance: | Interview on Uniting Mississippi with WLOV’s This Morning |
| Outlet: | WLOV, Tupelo, MS, Channel 27 |
| Location: | Tupelo, MS |
| Format: | Television |
I'll be talking about Uniting Mississippi, which you can learn more about here.
Looking forward to an interview with Andrea Price on The Giving Net podcast, based out of Little Rock Arkansas. The Giving Net focuses on civic engagement, philanthropy, and public service. I’ll be talking about my book, Uniting Mississippi.
| Date: | October 19, 2015 |
|---|---|
| Time: | TBD |
| Appearance: | Interview on The Giving Net podcast |
| Outlet: | The Giving Net: Civic Engagement, Philanthropy, Public Service |
| Location: | Little Rock, AR |
| Format: | Podcast |
If you'd like me to speak with your group, visit my Speaking page.
Looking forward to interviewing on “The Clinton School Presents” radio show on Little Rock’s NPR affiliate, KUAR, 89.1 radio.
| Date: | October 19, 2015 |
|---|---|
| Time: | 1:30-2:00 p.m. |
| Appearance: | Interview on The Clinton School Presents |
| Outlet: | NPR Affiliate in Little Rock, AR |
| Location: | Little Rock, Arkansas |
| Format: | Radio |
If you're in town, come to the book signing earlier that day at the Clinton School for Public Service, from 12-1. If you're interested in having me speak with your group, visit my Speaking page.
Photo by Lyndy Berryhill of The Oxford Eagle, 2015. Posted here with permission.
Thanks to all who came and thanks to the College of Liberal Arts, the Winter Institute for Racial Reconciliation, and the Mississippi Humanities Council.