2026 Lerude First Amendment Distinguished Lecturer Forum

The Reynolds School of Journalism is pleased to present the 2026 Lerude First Amendment Distinguished Lecturer: Charles Tobin. The program will include a keynote address from Tobin, a First Amendment lawyer with Ballard Spahr Law Firm's media practice group, followed by a conversation and audience Q&A.

Please join us on Tuesday, March 3, 2026 in the Wells Fargo Auditorium in the University of Nevada, Reno Knowledge Center. A reception with light refreshments will precede the talk at 5 p.m. and the program will begin at 6 p.m.

This annual forum is funded by longtime supporters Professor Warren Lerude and Janet Lerude. Professor Lerude, a Pulitzer Prize winner and emeritus professor, has been instrumental in advancing press freedom both in Nevada and nationally. His dedication to First Amendment issues has made it possible for us to host this forum.

Thanks to support provided by the Lerude Family Endowment, this event is free and open to the public. Free parking will be available on the fourth floor of the Whalen Parking Complex.

About the talk:

Tobin will present his talk entitled "Freedom of the Press on the Edge: Can the American media survive when every federal agency appears ready to squash the First Amendment?" and engage in a conversation with Associate Professor of Media Law, Patrick File. After the discussion, members of the audience will have the opportunity to participate in a Q&A.

About Charles Tobin:

Charles Tobin is a First Amendment lawyer with the Ballard Spahr law firm’s media practice group, resident in their Washington, D.C. office. For more three decades, Charles has represented clients like AP, CNN, Fox Television, the New York Times, ProPublica, USA TODAY, the Washington Post, and many others in defamation, privacy, and FOIA litigation. He has appeared in court in more than half of the states in high-profile litigation arising from such historic events as the January 6 Capitol Riot, the indictments of President Trump, government spending during COVID, 9/11, the Bush-Gore recount of the 2000 election, and the impeachments of Presidents Trump and Clinton. He is a past chair of the D.C. and Florida Bar media committees, the American Bar Association Forum on Communications Law, the Media Law Resource Center’s Defense Counsel Section, and the media practice groups of Ballard Spahr and his prior firm. A former reporter for the News-Press in Fort Myers, Florida, Charles is a graduate of the University of Florida College of Journalism & Communications and its College of Law. Before returning to private practice in 2001, Charles served as in-house counsel at Gannett.

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