Ithaca College

The Division of Interdisciplinary and International Studies presents Communications in the Digital Age with Charles Benton, as part of the 2005 Engaging Democracy Series. The special session conferences with call-in guests will take place Tuesday and Wednesday, January 25-26.

Tuesday, January 25, 9:25-10:40 am, Park 285
Government and Media class with Wenmouth Williams, TVR
Topic: Prometheus Radio Project vs. FCC with Harold Feld

Harold Feld, MAP's associate director, joined MAP in August 1999 after practicing communications, Internet, and energy law at Covington & Burling. Feld served as cochair of the Federal Communications Bar Association's online committee, and has written numerous articles on Internet law and communications policy for trade publications and legal journals. Feld won the 2000 Burton Award for excellence in writing by a nonacademic. He graduated magna cum laude from Princeton University in 1989, and magna cum laude from Boston University Law School in 1993. He clerked for the Hon. John M. Ferren of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals.

Wednesday, January 26, 2-2:50 Park 220
Introduction to Culture and Communication class
Division of Interdisciplinary and International Studies, with Marie Garland, OCLD and Culture and Communication
Topic: Media Advocacy with Josh Silver and Celia Wexler

Executive Director Josh Silver founded Free Press with Robert McChesney and John Nichols in 2002 to engage public involvement in media policy debates in America. Prior to that, he was the campaign manager of the successful ballot initiative for Clean Elections in Arizona, director of development for the cultural arm of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., and director of an international youth exchange program. He has published extensively on media policy, campaign finance and other public policy issues.

Celia Viggo Wexler is vice president for advocacy at Common Cause, a nonprofit nonpartisan citizens group with 300,000 members and supporters that works to make government at all levels more open, honest, and accountable. Wexler, who joined Common Cause's national office in 1996, had served for five years as legislative director of New York Common Cause. She graduated summa cum laude from the University of Toronto and worked for 15 years as a journalist before joining the staff of Common Cause. She also taught journalism at Point Park University in Pittsburgh, where she earned a graduate degree in communications.

Charles Benton, chair of the Benton Foundation, a major telecommunications policy think tank and advocacy group in Washington DC, and Kevin Taglang, director of research, Benton Foundation, will be present at all session. Jim Kohlenberger, domestic policy adviser for President Clinton, will be present at the media advocacy session.

Contributed by Patricia Zimmermann