Seized But Not Silenced

About the Program: International attention became focused on a small-town newspaper in Kansas, the Marion County Record, after its offices illegally were raided last summer and one of its co-owners died after police also raided her home. Governmental secrecy and weaponization of law enforcement to stifle political opposition are among the biggest challenges democracy faces in an era of fractious polarization and political populism from both the right and the left. And how the city has handled the case publicly is an example of precisely what not to do.

About Our Speaker:
Eric Meyer, 70, returned to his hometown as editor and publisher of the Marion County Record after retiring as a tenured journalism professor at the University of Illinois. Twenty-five years earlier, he had become partners with his parents in purchasing the paper, which his father long had run, to prevent it from being sold to a chain.

Before teaching, Meyer worked for nearly 20 years as an editor at the Milwaukee Journal and before that at the Daily Pantagraph in Bloomington, Illinois. He also was managing partner for nearly a decade of a news website that was the online home of American Journalism Review magazine and served as a consultant to more than 350 news organizations in creating online sites.

 He is the author of two books – one on information graphics, the other on strategic planning for online publishing – and was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for his coverage of computer hackers while at the Milwaukee Journal. While at the University of Illinois, he also served as associate dean of the College of Media and was chair of the University Senate’s Educational Policy Committee.

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WPC monthly meetings and annual fundraisers support a scholarship fund for Wichita-area students pursuing a career in communications. So come network, be inspired by guest speakers, and help a future communication colleague in the process!

Host or Publisher Wichita Professional Communicators (WPC)