Famous Journalist to Speak

The distinguished speakers series concludes for the semester this Wednesday when award-winning investigative journalist and author Bob Woodward speaks at Alumni Arena.

Woodward made a name for himself in the early 1970s when he and fellow Washington Post reporter Carl Bernstein uncovered the long trail of corruption of the Watergate scandal that led to President Richard Nixon's resignation.

More recently, Woodward is the author of two best selling books analyzing how recent presidents have handled terrorism, including "Plan of Attack," in which he chronicles the Bush Administration's preparations for the Iraq war.

Woodward's unprecedented connections in Washington politics give him insight and authority in his analysis of the inner workings of the U.S. government. He is addressing UB as part of International Education Week.

Bill Regan, director of UB's office of special events, said Woodward's recent publications give him a unique perspective on international issues.

Regan said high profile journalists such as Woodward are some of the most interesting speakers because of their in-depth experience on such issues.

"When we have an opportunity to bring in a top-rated journalist they tend to talk about current events along with their own history," he said. "I think with the recent election, Mr. Woodward will have some great insight for us into the President's second term."

Regan said Woodward is an excellent finale to the fall portion of the speaker series, a group of speakers he called "diverse."

"We had one more speaker this fall than we normally do, with the inauguration of President Simpson," he said.

Regan said from the start, this year's speaker series got people talking.

"Donald Trump was controversial," he said. "Although he was the student choice speaker, people in the community didn't understand the selection. (But) through the eyes of the students, he is a pop icon king."

Following Trump was Stephen Squyres, a lead investigator in NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Program. Squyres spoke as part of the series of events celebrating President Simpson's inauguration.

"Stephen Squyres was selected in deference to our president, who is a scientist and personally told me he'd like to see more scientists," Regan said. "He really had a great talk. Very energetic, and he had almost a missionary zeal for space exploration. I don't think anyone left there not wanting more space exploration."

Regan said Barbara Ehrenreich, whose book "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By In America" was required reading for nearly all UB freshmen, was a popular talk too, though her political ideas might not have been for everyone.

"Ehrenreich's political leanings were not everyone's cup of tea, but what she did in her book is a great story for students in college to hear, to see what could be out there for them," he said.

The speaker series picks up again next semester with Janet Reno and Ann Coulter on a double bill on March 10.

As for next year, Regan said the Office of Special Events has been polling speaker series attendants and students to determine next year's speakers. As of right now, Regan said the top five polling speakers were, in order: Colin Powell, Bill Clinton, Jon Stewart, Barbara Walters, and Conan O'Brien.