Friday, July 13, 2001

MEDIA CONTACTS:
Donna Fowler, 703/284-2887

Overby to speak on race relations, news media

Charles L. Overby
Former chairman/Newseum, Freedom Forum, and Diversity Institute
No alternate text.

ARLINGTON, Va. — Charles L. Overby, chairman and chief executive officer of The Freedom Forum, will speak on "Race Relations and the Media in the 21st Century" at a National Press Club luncheon.

Overby, a former Pulitzer Prize-winning editor, leads The Freedom Forum, a nonpartisan foundation devoted to media issues. Statistics show that the number of journalists of color in newspaper newsrooms fell in 2000 for the first time in 23 years. The low percentage of journalists of color at America's newspapers has important implications for fairness and accuracy in reporting and for the long-range survival of newspapers. The Freedom Forum has made a multi-million-dollar commitment to increasing the number of journalists of color in America's newspaper newsrooms.

WHAT: "Race Relations and the Media
in the 21st Century"
WHO: Charles L. Overby, chairman and chief executive officer,
The Freedom Forum
WHEN: Monday, July 23, 2001 12:30 p.m. luncheon
1 p.m. remarks
WHERE:

National Press Club
14th and F Streets, N.W., 13th Floor
Washington, D.C.
(One block from Metro Center)

Luncheon reservations may be made by calling Patricia Nelson at 202/662-7501 or by e-mail at pnelson@press.org.
Costs for luncheon: Members and students $16. Guests of members and speaker $28. General public $35.