Home » News » Liberty + Leadership News: Sept. 26, 2019

Liberty + Leadership News: Sept. 26, 2019

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We hope you enjoy these top news stories about TFAS activities, alumni and events this week. Please visit us on social media for additional up-to-the-moment TFAS news and information and sign up for our newsletter to receive weekly updates.

26th Annual TFAS Journalism Awards Dinner Extols Pursuit of Truth

Truth, and the fervent need to fight for it, took center stage at this year’s 26th Annual TFAS Journalism Awards Dinner in New York City on Sept. 12, 2019. The Daily Signal covered the event where nearly 200 guests gathered to celebrate our 2019 Rago and Novak Fellows, honor the life of the late Joseph Rago and recognize the outstanding reporters who have paved the way for the next generation of journalists.

Rebekah Mercer, president of the Mercer Family Foundation, presents Roger Kimball with the 2019 Thomas L. Phillips Career Achievement Award.

Roger Kimball, editor and publisher of The New Criterion and the publisher of Encounter Books, was honored during the dinner as the 2019 Thomas L. Phillips Career Achievement Award recipient for his contributions to the field of journalism.

“Achieving ‘the accurate representation of the world’ is not only a linguistic desideratum, it is also a political imperative. Much of our culture has colluded against the accurate representation of the world. We owe The Fund for American Studies a great debt for understanding what is at stake in the seemingly pedestrian activity of telling the truth. Long may it prosper,” he said. Kimball’s full remarks were published in SpectatorUSA, and as a podcast via The New Criterion.

The evening introduced Matthew Taylor King as our 2019 recipient of the Joseph Rago Fellowship for Excellence in Journalism, named in honor of the late Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial writer. Joe’s father Paul and his former editor Paul Gigot of The Wall Street Journal gave stirring remarks reflecting on the tremendous accomplishments of Joe’s career and his lasting legacy.

Matthew Taylor King accepts the 2019 Joseph Rago Memorial Fellowship for Excellence in Journalism.

“You are here tonight not only to honor individuals, but also to uphold ideals. Both the Novak and Rago Fellowships are dedicated not to commemorate what they died of, but to celebrate what they lived for – the pursuit of truth, in all its complexity and nuance,” said Paul Rago. “We remember [Joe’s] contributions and celebrate the ideals he embraced to understand the world as it is, not as we wish it to be.”

The dinner also showcased our 2019 Robert Novak Journalism Fellowship Award recipients, who took to the stage to thank attendees for their support and provided brief remarks on the writing projects their Fellowships will make possible. The Fellowships are named for Robert D. Novak, renowned reporter, syndicated columnist and co-host of CNN’s “Crossfire.”

Our 2019 Novak Fellows are Alexandra Hudson of the American Institute for Economic Research (AIER), award-winning journalist Chris MoodySerena Sigillito of Public Discourse, author and columnist Kristin Tate, Mene Ukueberuwa of The Wall Street Journal and Benjamin Weingarten of The Federalist. Freelance writer Grace Stark was awarded an Alumni Fund Fellowship to write a series of essays. To read about each fellow and their chosen topics, visit TFAS.org/NovakFellows19.

For a full overview of the dinner, including photos, visit TFAS.org/JAwardsDinner19.


Young Journalists Learn Value of Free Press in Free Societies

Photojournalism, religion, data science, politics and philosophy may seem like an unusual combination, but 22 participants from 14 countries came together and explored these subjects to learn the value of the free press in a free society at the 2019 European Journalism Institute (EJI) in Prague this summer.

EJI participants and faculty enjoy beautiful Prague at the base of the historic Charles Bridge and the Vltava river.

Joanna Jasińska ’19, a journalist with the Polish Press Agency who moved into the journalism field after working in diplomacy for six years, said the program taught her why there is a growing need for proper, fact-based journalism.

“This program gave me faith in the future of media and journalism,” Jasińska said. “There are many trends happening right now that could fill you with pessimism about journalism, but this gave me a renewed understanding that there is real, important meaning behind what we are doing.”

During this fast-paced, one-week summer program, The Fund for American Studies (TFAS) and our program partner The Media Project (TMP) introduced new ideas to student and working journalists from around the world. Through interactive lessons and discussion sessions, faculty brought forth important ideas surrounding journalistic integrity, threats in spreading disinformation, conflict and religion reporting, media bias and ethics.

At the closing ceremony, TFAS and TMP presented David Blevins from Sky News in North Ireland with the 2019 EJI Freedom of the Press Award for his accuracy and integrity in reporting as a safeguard to democracy. You can read more about the program at TFAS.org/EJI19.


Generous TFAS Supporters Fred and Georganna Long Leave Lasting Legacy

Generous TFAS supporters Fred and Georganna Long are being recognized for their impactful $3 million bequest to TFAS. The Pasadena Voice published a piece last week on how their gift will leave a lasting legacy by providing scholarships for students to attend TFAS programs in both the U.S. and abroad.

Fred believed strongly in the free enterprise system and the power to not only build wealth but to also educate future generations.” Read More in the Pasadena Voice

The Longs’ $3 million donation marks the second-largest monetary donation in the 52-year history of The Fund for American Studies, and the largest scholarship donation.

Longtime TFAS supporters Fred and Georganna Long are pictured above during a visit to Antarctica in 2000. Their generous bequest to TFAS leaves a lasting legacy of scholarships for deserving students.

The article details how the Longs were inspired to support TFAS by John Engalitcheff Jr., Fred’s mentor at Baltimore Aircoil Company (BAC). Engalitcheff was the founder of BAC and left a transformative $12 million gift to the organization in 1990. After learning about TFAS, Fred and Georganna set up two scholarship programs – one in 2000 to provide scholarship to deserving students to attend TFAS programs in Washington, D.C., and another in 2007 that enables cadets from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy to attend our TFAS International Programs in Chile, Hong Kong and Prague.

Fred passed away in August of 2013, and Georganna passed in February of 2018. Hundreds of students will be able to take part in TFAS programs for years to come, thanks to the great generosity and vision of the Long family and their dedication to investing in educating future generations about the importance of liberty and free enterprise. You can read more about the Long’s contributions to TFAS and their community at TFAS.org/LongGift.


Quick Links

TFAS Trustee Fred Barnes shares insights in The Wall Street Journal on “The Man Democrats Loathe More Than Trump,”  Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.


Lewis McCrary, Novak ’14, and Michael Brendon Dougherty, Novak ’09, discuss urbanism, architecture and religion during an American Conservative panel on “Rebuilding Notre Dame.”


Carrie Sheffield, ’06, Novak ’06, exposes recent media bias for The Hill.


Matthew Walther, Novak ’16, looks at history to explain potential results of Brexit for The Week.


Tanja Porčnik ’04, ’05, ’05, PPF ’07 shares commentary on the political situation in Hong Kong for the Fraser Institute.


George Lomsadze ’08, ’08 reports on protests against corruption in Georgia for Eurasianet.


TFAS George and Sally Mayer Fellow for Economic Education and Academic Director Dr. Anne Bradley shared “The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly of Income Inequality” at the Young America’s Foundation “Road to Freedom Seminar: Secrets to advancing Free Enterprise Over Socialism.”


Michael Brendon Dougherty, Novak ’09, opines on civility in the digital age for The National Review.


TFAS professor and alumnus Ibrahim al-Marashi ’01 authored two articles explaining the meaning behind recent Saudi oil attacks for Middle East Eye and TRT World.


James Strickland ’11, ’13 joined Arizona State University’s School of Politics and Global Studies as an assistant professor of State and Local Government.


Forbes highlights key lessons on honorable business in a review of TFAS Senior Scholar Jim Otteson’s new book “Honorable Business: A Framework for Business in a Just and Humane Society.”


Gracy Olmstead, Novak ’15, opines in The New York Times on how future generations can impact climate change.


Ron Paul Institute Executive Director Daniel McAdams, Novak ’98, explains anti-interventionism and shares why he thinks non-intervention is important to national security at the Ron Paul Institute’s Peace and Prosperity Washington Conference.


Joseph Duggan ’75 opines on the Saudi-Iran crisis for The American Spectator and American Greatness.


Ayham Kamel ’03, ’04, ’04 joined CNBC to explain the impact of drone strikes on Saudi Arabian oil facilities and what it means for the industry and global economy.


Jonathan Lozier ’08, PPF ’13, was promoted to vice president of Stateside Associates. TFAS recognized Lozier with the 50th Anniversary Kevin Burket Alumni Service Award for his continued dedication to TFAS students as a mentor, guest speaker and site briefing host each year.


Kurt Couchman ’02, PPF ’07, writes in The National Interest that substantial spending reforms and a more careful approach toward China are necessary for America to maintain its global influence and preserve prosperity at home. He later opined in The Hill about presidential powers and the Constitution on Constitution Day.


Ryan Lovelace, Novak ’17, writes on U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Gorsuch, his early days clerking for Justice Anthony Kennedy, the diversity of his clerks and the important advice he shares with them each term for Law.com’s National Law Journal.


Katherine Mangu-Ward, Novak ’05, shares evidence of human flourishing and says “Everything that’s bad is politics, everything that’s good is the market” in a new video released with John Stossel.


Kristen Cambell ’04, PPF ’07, discusses the intersection of civic engagement and philanthropy on Constitution Day in a piece for The Fulcrum.


Jelena Malkowski ’18 writes about Eritrean Orthodox Christians meeting in an empty church in Hamburg, Germany for Religion Unplugged.


Mene Ukueberuwa, Novak ’19, writes about San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer’s affordable housing plans in The Wall Street Journal.

 

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