Sports and citizenship topic of Glenn panel

A May 2 media panel will discuss the interaction of sports and citizenship.

“Sport Journalism in the Public Sphere: What is the Media’s Role in Addressing Sport and Citizenship-Related Issues?” will be moderated by Debra Jasper, director of the Glenn School’s Kiplinger Program in Public Affairs Journalism and the former Statehouse bureau chief for the Cincinnati Enquirer.

RSVP: [email protected]

From youth soccer to the Olympics and professional sport leagues, athletic events shape our citizenship. Whether sports are perceived to be good or bad, the role of sport in American society continues to grow. Correspondingly, the media covers sports every moment of every day. The print, broadcast, and internet medias have offered an ever expanding expose of the host of issues present both on an off the playing fields.
Given the prominent role of sport in contemporary life, this panel discussion will explore the media’s role in addressing sport and citizenship-related issues and how the media influences public perceptions.

Panelists include –

â—¦ Eybong Ita, a 2007 Kiplinger Fellow, is a government reporter for the Kansas City Star, where he produces enterprise projects and covers politics and breaking news in eastern Jackson County. Before coming to the United States, he was a sports reporter and columnist for Vanguard, a national daily newspaper in Lagos, Nigeria, where his coverage of the 1994 World Cup earned him an International Communications Award.

â—¦ Joe Weasel, co-founder and managing editor of The Palestra, a web and wireless content business dedicated to creating and distributing specialized audio and video content about college sports, news, music, and entertainment. He is a former sports and features reporter at NBC 4 News in Columbus, where his assignments have included covering the 1998 Sugar Bowl, the 1999 NCAA Men’s Basketball Championships and the U.S. Women’s Soccer Team, in addition to hundreds of profiles of high school, college, professional and Olympic athletes. Joe won an Emmy award for his reporting in 2001.

◦ Ray Stein is the sports editor for the Columbus Dispatch and responds to readers each Sunday in Ray Stein’s Mailbox column.

The John Glenn School of Public Affairs continues its Food for Thought policy forum series with this final presentation this spring on sports and citizenship. These events allow faculty or other professionals to share their expertise in an informal setting, followed by a question and answer session. All guests are welcome to bring a lunch to these forums.

Seating for each forum is limited and RSVPs are required. All events will take place from 12:00 – 1:15 p.m. in Page Hall’s Policy Forum, located at 1810 College Road.

For more information about the Food for Thought series, please call 614-292-4545.