MEDIA ADVISORY: MU Brings in NYT Columnist for MLK Annual Lecture

January 26th, 2011

WHAT: The University of Missouri is celebrating the legacy of civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. with a lecture by The New York Times columnist Charles Blow. Blow will present “A Lie Cannot Live: Rescuing Honest Political Debate from Apathy and Disengagement.” Noor Azizan-Gardner, director of diversity programming and professional development in the Chancellor’s Diversity Initiative at MU, believes this lecture will spark stimulating conversation around the MU campus and community.

“This lecture is about having honest and truthful political dialogues,” Azizan-Gardner said. “It is important for this community to be engaged politically and to understand what the real and factual issues that our campus, community and nation face today.”

Blow’s op-ed columns are published in The New York Times on Saturdays. He worked for the newspaper company from 1994 to 2006, when he left to become the art director of National Geographic, a position he still holds.

WHO: The lecture is open to the public.

WHEN: 7 p.m., Wednesday, Jan. 26

WHERE: Stotler Lounge, Memorial Union, MU campus

NOTE: Visit http://mlk.missouri.edu/events/mu-feature.html for details.