Politics and Religion - God in the White House [Print This Page]
- Time: 10:45 a.m.-Noon
- Date: Thursday, Sept. 11
- Place: 100-A Reynolds Journalism Institute
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The 2004 presidential election brought "faith and values" to the political forefront, but the 2008 election promises to make it a key issue. Both the Democratic and Republican candidates are talking about how faith does - or doesn't - guide their policy. Journalists, bloggers and voters are asking unprecedented religious questions of candidates. Surveys show that religion has become a more visible and important part of the political process. Meanwhile, religious affiliations continue to inform political relationships and conflict around the globe. Join this roundtable discussion on the nexus of religion, politics and news as we head toward the 2008 election and beyond in a religiously charged world.
This session is co-sponsored by the MU Center on Religion & the Professions and the Religion Newswriters Association.
Discussion Leaders:
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Cathleen Falsani
Religion Columnist
Chicago Sun-Times
Cathleen Falsani is a religion columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times newspaper, where since 2000 she has covered her diverse "God beat" from locations as far afield as Vatican City, Ireland, Germany, Mexico, the West Indies, the West Wing, the Playboy Mansion and the dugout at Wrigley Field. In 2005, the Religion Newswriters Association honored her as the James O. Supple Religion Writer of the Year. Falsani has written her weekly column on spirituality and popular culture for the Sun-Times since 2001, and Universal Press Syndicate has distributed the column since 2004. Falsani's first book, The God Factor: Inside the Spiritual Lives of Public People (Farrar, Straus & Giroux), is a collection of 32 spiritual profiles of glitterati and literati including Bono of U2, Sen. Barack Obama, Ann Rice, Billy Corgan, Melissa Etheridge, Hakeem Olajuwon, Sandra Bernhard, Studs Terkel, Hugh Hefner and Elie Wiesel. Her second book, Sin Boldly: A Field Guide to Grace, was released in September 2008. A graduate of Wheaton College, Falsani also holds a master's degree in journalism from Northwestern University and a master's degree in theological studies from Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary. A Connecticut Yankee by birth and a Cubs fan by osmosis, she has lived in the Chicago area since 1988.
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Dan Gilgoff
Politics Editor
Beliefnet.com
Dan Gilgoff is politics editor of Beliefnet.com, the largest faith and spirituality Web site, and a contributing editor at U.S. News & World Report. He writes the "God-o-Meter" blog on religion in the presidential race, which appears on Beliefnet. A former political correspondent for U.S. News & World Report, Gilgoff is the author of "The Jesus Machine: How James Dobson, Focus on the Family, and Evangelical America Are Winning the Culture War," which recently came out in paperback. Gilgoff's writing has appeared in The New York Times, the Washington Post, USA Today, the Los Angeles Times, The Politico, The Boston Globe, the Chicago Tribune, the Denver Post, Congressional Quarterly, Washington City Paper, and Wine Enthusiast. He has appeared on CBS, CNN, FOX News Channel, MSNBC, C-SPAN's Book TV and National Public Radio. Gilgoff has a Bachelor of Arts degree from George Washington University, where he studied journalism and religion.
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About the Futures Forum
Top journalists, advertisers and thought leaders will lead numerous interactive sessions during the Sept. 11 Futures Forum, a day of cutting-edge discussions about the next century of journalism. Ethics, convergence and politics are just a few of the many hot topics that will be explored in this diverse program dedicated to challenging industry thinking and visualizing possibilities for the future. Sessions will be 75 minutes long and held concurrently with others on the schedule. Full schedules will be available during on-site check in during the Sept. 10-12 celebration.
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