The Center for Business Ethics and the New Century Journalism Program hosted a full house today in the Frist Lecture Hall as a dialogue between respected journalists John L. Seigenthaler and his son John M. Seigenthaler attracted a standing room only crowd of students, faculty, staff and community members. Pictured (l-r) at right is New Century Journalism Director Dr. Sybril Bennett, John M. Seigenthaler, Belmont President Dr. Bob Fisher and John L. Seigenthaler.
Dr. Fisher welcomed attendees and guests, noting that the younger Seigenthaler had long been his favorite broadcaster during his stints as an anchor for NBC and MSNBC. Fisher added, “Nashville’s a great community of people, but there’s nobody I respect more than John [L.] Seigenthaler. There are going to be more than 3,000 distinguished journalists on this campus soon but none are more distinguished than the two sitting here right now.”
Seigenthaler Sr., pictured at left with Director of the Center for Business Ethics Dr. Harry Hollis, opened the discussion with an analysis of the current election coverage. “Through primary debates and media coverage of those debates, we’ve come to know more about the two presidential candidates than ever before. The media has helped us know these candidates and what they’re about. On the other hand, there’s been an aggressiveness in this campaign [among the networks] that I think has not been helpful.”
Regarding the intense competition between FOX News, MSNBC and CNN, John M. Seigenthaler added, “For cable channels, opinion is king and not the news. There’s become a merging now of news content and commentary.”
Dr. Bennett has posted clips of the Seigenthalers’ conversation on her blog, which can be accessed by clicking here.
Seigenthalers Share Thoughts on Media Ethics in Election08
Chemistry Society Chapter Receives Award
The American Chemical Society (ACS) Student Affiliates chapter at Belmont University has been selected to receive a Commendable Award for its activities conducted during the 2007-08 academic year. For the 2007-08 academic year, more than 330 reports were submitted and The Society Committee on Education presented 40 Outstanding, 71 Commendable and 96 Honorable Mention awards. Lists of award winning chapters will be published in Chemical & Engineering News and in Chemistry, the Student Affiliates magazine. The award-winning chapters will also be honored at the 237th ACS National Meeting in Salt Lake City on March 22, 2009. Assistant Professors of Chemistry Alison Moore and Rachel Rigsby deserve special commendation as they serve as faculty advisors for the chapter.
Tabar Recognized as a Leading Collegiate Entrepreneur
Senior entrepreneurship student Andy Tabar has been named one of the Top 20 collegiate entrepreneurs in the country in this year’s StartupNation Dorm-Based 20 Rankings for his business, Bizooki.com. Entrants were judged on a variety of criteria, including innovativeness of business concept, potential for growth, cutting-edge business practices, demonstration of business fundamentals, degree of talent exhibited by the founder, potential for overall impact and financial performance. Tabar, winner of the “Huge Upside Potential” group for Bizooki.com, said, “I realized the importance of talent not only locally but globally and how the economy is shifting that way.” His business-networking site aims to connect people around the world on projects. Click here to read the full StartupNation article.
Belmont Debaters Land Significant Tournament Titles
This past weekend the Belmont Speech and Debate team traveled across town to TSU for an annual speech/debate tournament. With only three debaters competing , Belmont still secured the title of second place university in the overall debate division. Sophomores Tim Smith and Tyler Kimbro (their first tournament) qualified for quarterfinals. George Shifflett, who partnered with a debater from Carson-Newman College, was the second place team at the tournament (and was undefeated until the final round, leaving them an 8-1 record). Also, George was declared the first place individual debater out of the 52 competing. Thus, out of the 26 teams in attendance both Belmont teams ranked in the top eight.
Celebration Held for Scholar Communities Summer Research Program
On Sept. 6, a Celebration Dinner was held in the Massey Boardroom for the Scholar Communities Summer Undergraduate Research Program. Presentations were given by 24 students from seven research teams, the largest program to date, representing the disciplines of Biology, Chemistry and Sociology. This is Scholar Communities’ sixth year during which students and faculty in the areas of Chemistry, Mathematics, Computer Science, Biology, Psychology, Sociology, History, Journalism and English have participated throughout the summer in collaborative research experiences. In addition to their research projects, the participants enter into an ongoing dialogue about what it means to do research in the various disciplines represented.
Voight Presents at Two Major Conferences
Dr. Mike Voight, professor of physical therapy, offered the keynot lecture this summer for the International Federation for Sports Physiotherapy Symposium (IFSP) in Zurich, Switzerland. He presented on analyzing biomechanical performance in golf and developing a fitness program around the findings. He also presented on the anatomy and clinical examination of the hip as a part of a symposium on hip pathology at the National Athletic Training Association Annual Conference held in St. Louis. This is the largest meeting of the year for athletic trainers with more than 8,000 attending the conference. Once all invited programs were submitted, the conference committee selects the best program and gives it the designation of being the Johnson and Johnson Distinguished Keynote Lecture Symposium and does not schedule any other programming opposite this presentation. Voight’s Hip Symposium was selected this year for that honor and more than 4,500 people were attendance at the lecture. Finally, he was also recently published in the North American Journal of Sports Physical Therapy for an article he co-wrote titled “The Chop and Lift Reconsidered: Integrating Neuromuscular Principles into Orthopedic and Sports Rehabilitation.”
Debate08 Emphasizes Green Efforts in Support of Broader Belmont Environmental Initiatives
New recycling bins, alumni office projects add to campus-wide efforts
Celebrations surrounding Belmont University’s hosting of the 2008 Town Hall Presidential Debate this fall won’t merely be colored in red, white and blue as the university dedicates its efforts to make the event a healthy shade of green as well. Staff members involved in welcoming more than 3,000 campaign workers and media to campus in October are working on a number of ideas to ensure Debate08 promotes environmental sustainability as a vital aspect of good citizenship and an important part of any event planning.
Pamela Johnson, Belmont’s Director of Strategic Marketing and Special Initiatives, said, “Protecting the environment and resource conservation aren’t just huge topics for the candidates to tackle this election season. At Belmont University, these are important issues we’re addressing daily in classrooms and across campus. My hope is that the 2008 Town Hall Presidential Debate serves as another step forward in our ongoing ‘Belmont Goes Green’ campaign while also inspiring our campus and community with creative examples of how we can all do our part to protect and conserve the environment.”
Several debate-related programs are planned for students and the community to provide insight into the politics of the environment, including Dr. Kelly Tiller’s address on “Economics and the Environment: The Biofuel Controversy” and Peter Kareiva’s talk on “Conservation Strategies that Work.” In addition, to curb paper output, the university is creating an Electronic Press Kit (EPK) for visiting media to use, placing materials like press releases, contact lists and background information on a one gigabyte flash drive rather than using printed pieces.
The EPK will be inserted into a polypropylene bag that is made of recycled materials and is fully recyclable. Plus, the bag itself can be re-used, eliminating the need for plastic bags at grocery stores and other outlets. Identifying tags placed on the bags will use hand-made seed paper, which can literally be planted like normal seeds when removed from the bag. Some paper is being used for Debate08 letterhead, but it is being manufactured by Domtar Cougar, which is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council as well as being made chlorine free, lignin free and acid-free. In addition, all of the generators being used to power the Media Filing Center will be using an environmentally friendly biodiesel blend.
School of Music Visits Steinway & Sons Factory
In early September, a group from the School of Music went to Steinway & Sons in New York City to tour the factory and select a Concert Grand (Model D) for Massey Concert Hall and two Music Room Grands (Model B) for Harton Recital Hall. Piano faculty members Dan Landes, Kris Elsberry, Anthony Belfiglio and Bruce Dudley selected the pianos.
In the selection room, the faculty gave an impromptu performance for the other members of the Belmont group; Dean Cynthia Curtis, Sarah Davis, Friends of the Arts at Belmont Secretary/Treasurer Anne Knestrick and Steinway Piano Gallery of Nashville’s Bill Metcalfe and Brandon Herrenbruck.
The purchase of the pianos is part of the process for the School of Music to become an All-Steinway School.
Eaton Named Candidate for Lowe’s National Award
Senior Cyrus Eaton (Carbondale, Colo.) of the Belmont men’s soccer team has been named one of 30 candidates for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award. On the field, Eaton has helped lead the Bruins to a top-10 ranking in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)/adidas South Region Ranking. Off the field, the biology major has been named to the Atlantic Sun All-Academic team three times and made the dean’s list every semester he has been eligible at Belmont. He is currently president of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes chapter at Belmont as well as a member of the Faith Development Council, SAACS and senior advisor for Theta Epsilon Tau.
The award is given annually to senior student-athletes across nine NCAA Division I sports, has become one of the most prestigious honors in college athletics and is sponsored by Lowe’s, an Official Corporate Partner of the NCAA. Click here for more on this story.
SGA President to Address Collegiate Healthcare Conference
Klay Kelley, Belmont University’s student body president, will address approximately 100 student government leaders, representing more than one million students from 50 universities nationwide, when they meet in Nashville Oct. 5-7 to discuss healthcare issues.
The student leaders are meeting under the banner of SHOUTAmerica, a new non-profit group created to engage young Americans in the debate over healthcare. The group will convene at the Scarritt-Bennett Center, just blocks from the Oct. 7 presidential debate in Belmont’s Curb Event Center.
“This year it will cost $2.4 trillion to fund our healthcare system, which is the world’s most expensive, yet this same system ranks 37th in terms of quality,” said Landon Gibbs, 26, executive director and co-founder of SHOUTAmerica. “It’s clear we need changes that address the rising cost of healthcare – and we believe young people have to lead that discussion, because it is our future that is at risk.”
Conference participants come from 50 different universities, including Harvard, NYU, Columbia, Vanderbilt, Texas and Missouri. At the event, they will meet with U.S. Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., U.S. Rep. Jim Cooper, D-Tenn., and Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, chair of Clinical Bioethics at the Clinical Center of the National Institutes of Health, former member of President Clinton’s Health Care Task Force and author of Healthcare, Guaranteed: A Simple, Secure Solution for America.
