New lecture series: SIU Carbondale’s Dewey Center is holding its first Dewey Dialogues lecture on Tuesday, Oct. 24, in Morris Library’s John C. Guyon Auditorium. Journalist Alee Quick is presenting the inaugural lecture. (Photos provided by the Center for Dewey Studies)
October 20, 2023
SIU’s new Dewey Dialogues lecture series starts Tuesday
CARBONDALE, Ill. — The Dewey Dialogues, a new lecture series that focuses on the contemporary relevance of John Dewey’s philosophical and public work, kicks off at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 24, in Southern Illinois University Carbondale’s Morris Library.
Alee Quick of the News Literacy Project will present “Journalism Is Democracy’s Watchdog: That’s Why We Need News Literacy.” The presentation will be in the library’s John C. Guyon Auditorium, and it is free and open to the public.
The event is hosted by The Center for Dewey Studies, in the basement in Morris Library. The center is the main repository in the world for Dewey material, and Dewey’s scholarship is just as relevant today as it was during his lifetime (1859-1952), said Matthew Brown, a professor of philosophy and Center for Dewey Studies director. The center recently held an interdisciplinary, international conference focusing on the work of the American philosopher and educator.
Brown said his goal for the series is to hold one lecture per semester.
Quick is director of civic engagement for the national education nonprofit organization, and she will “explore the contemporary challenges to this central pillar of Deweyan democracy,” Brown said. She will also discuss her organization’s educational resources, civic engagement work and national movement for news literacy.
In Dewey’s 1927 book, “The Public and its Problems,” Brown said, Dewey “discussed the conditions of genuine democracy. Central to his discussion is the role of media/journalism in the dissemination of information and effective communication in the formation of public opinion.”
For more information on the center or the event, call 618-453-4347 or email deweycenter@siu.edu.