Newspapers throughout the United States are struggling financially, hit by declining readership and the current economy.  Are things as bad as they seem?  Where is the newspaper business headed, and what will it look like when it gets there?  On Tuesday, February 9 at 7:00 pm at New College’s Mildred Sainer Pavilion, a panel of media experts and practitioners will discuss the current situation and ultimate fate for newspapers as part of this year’s New Topics New College series of discussions on relevant topics of our time.

The topic is “Out of Print: The Future of the American Newspaper.”  Guest panelists include:  David Lipsey ’71 (New College alumnus), managing director, media & entertainment, FTI Consulting;  Andrew Barnes, former chairman and chief executive officer, St. Petersburg Times; chair emeritus, Poynter Institute for Media Studies; and Mike Connelly, executive editor, Herald-Tribune. The moderator for the panel is Maria Vesperi, professor of anthropology, New College of Florida; former member of the editorial board and staff writer for the St. Petersburg Times.

Mildred Sainer Music & Arts Pavilion is located at 5313 Bay Shore Road on the New College campus.  The cost is $15 and includes a dessert reception following the program, with net proceeds benefiting scholarships and other resources for New College students.  Reservations can be made at (941) 487-4888.  Media sponsors for the series are the Herald-Tribune Media Group and WEDU public television.

On March 2 at 7:00 pm, a panel will discuss climate change, alternative sources of clean renewable energy and innovations right here in the Sunshine State.  Attendees will hear from some of the innovators themselves as Florida looks to secure a leading role in green technology.

Newly announced is a program on March 9 at 4:00 pm featuring leading environmental photojournalist Gary Braasch (at left), an explorer and photojournalist from Portland, Oregon who will present a visual world view of global warming. Braasch creates remarkable images and important documentation about nature, environment, biodiversity and global warming. Included will be images from Florida and the Atlantic Coast, underscoring the local effects and dangers of rapid climate change.  The program is underwritten by the TREE Foundation and the faculty host is Professor Meg Lowman.

Details and speakers bios follow at the end of this release.

For more information on New Topics New College, visit our website at http:ncf.edu/new-topics-new-college, email [email protected] or call (941) 487-4888.

New Topics New College Upcoming Programs

“Out of Print?  The Future of the American Newspaper” – panel discussion

February 9 at 7:00 pm, Mildred Sainer Pavilion

David Lipsey ’71 (New College alumnus), managing director, media & entertainment, FTI Consulting
Andrew Barnes, former chairman and chief executive officer, St. Petersburg Times; chair emeritus, Poynter Institute for Media Studies
Mike Connelly, executive editor, Herald-Tribune
Moderator:  Maria Vesperi, professor of anthropology, New College of Florida; former member of the editorial board and staff writer for the St. Petersburg Times

“Turning Down the Global Thermostat: Innovation in Climate and Energy Technologies” – panel discussion

March 2 at 7:00 pm, Mildred Sainer Pavilion

Fred Bennett, EVP & CFO, Lykes Brothers
Nick Gladding, attorney, Adams and Reese, LLP; commissioner, Florida Energy and Climate Commission
Mary Anne Bowie, president, Bowie Urban Planners; sustainability leader, Eco-Trans Alliance; Sarasota Green Pages
Moderator: Frank Alcock, associate professor, political science and director, Environmental Studies Program, New College of Florida; former international policy analyst/economist, U.S. Department of Energy

New Program Just Announced!

“Climate Change – a Visual World View of Global Warming”

March 9 at 4:00 pm, Mildred Sainer Pavilion

Underwritten by the TREE Foundation
Gary Braasch, explorer and environmental photojournalist
Faculty host:  Meg Lowman, professor of biology and environmental studies, New College of Florida

Guest Speaker Bios

February 9

David Lipsey is the Managing Director for Media & Entertainment practice at FTI Consulting, Inc., a Washington, DC-based global business advisory firm dedicated to helping organizations protect and enhance enterprise value in an increasingly complex legal, regulatory and economic environment. A New College alumnus, Lipsey has over 25 years of experience in the diversified media and entertainment sectors. He is widely known as an innovative thought leader and speaker on contemporary content issues and will address the need to restructure the newspaper businesses in light of steep declines of revenue.

Andrew Barnes is former chairman and chief executive of the St. Petersburg Times, which under his tenure won five Pulitzer Prizes for journalistic excellence.  In 1998, he won the Nelson Poynter Civil Liberties Award, given each year by Florida’s American Civil Liberties Union. Barnes is the chair emeritus of the Poynter Institute for Media Studies, and was chairman of the board that awarded the 2004 Pulitzer Prizes. A newspaper journalist for 40 years, he worked at the Providence (R.I.) Journal, the Washington Post and the St. Petersburg Times during his career. The Barnes Scholarships at the St. Petersburg Times Fund target high-achieving high school seniors who have overcome significant obstacles in their lives.

Mike Connelly is executive editor of the Herald-Tribune, the newspaper for Sarasota, Manatee and Charlotte counties on Florida’s Gulf coast.  He is responsible for news coverage in the newspaper, HeraldTribune.com and the company’s magazines.  He has worked for The Wall Street Journal, St. Paul Pioneer Press and The Baltimore Sun as regional editor.  In 1997, Connelly moved to Congressional Quarterly in Washington, D.C., a magazine, book and online publisher that specializes in information about Congress and the federal government.

Maria Vesperi is a cultural anthropologist who specializes in the analysis of contemporaryary social issues and the communication of anthropological ideas to the public. Using ethnographic data collection methods and symbolic theory, she focuses on identifying beliefs that underlie cultural constructions of age, ethnicity, and community. She offers courses in cultural anthropology, myth and ritual, history of anthropological theory, anthropology and literature, language, culture and society, contemporary U.S. cultures, and anthropological approaches to the study of aging. Before joining the New College faculty, Professor Vesperi was a member of the Editorial Board and a staff writer and columnist at the St. Petersburg Times. She is author of the book, City of Green Benches: Growing Old in a New Downtown, and co-editor, with J. Neil Henderson, of The Culture of Long Term Care: Nursing Home Ethnography.

March 2

Fred Bennett is Executive Vice President/CFO of Lykes Brothers and president of its subsidiary companies, Lykes Land Investment and EcoAsset Solutions.  Lykes is an agricultural and land management company with principal activities in the citrus, ranching, land investment and insurance industries. The family-owned firm is engaged in solar and renewable energy initiatives and large-scale ecologically compatible community development. Bennett is co-founder and chair of the Advisory Board of the Applied Ethics Institute at St. Petersburg and an adjunct professor of ethics at St. Petersburg College.

Nick Gladding has practiced law for more than 30 years and serves as Special Counsel in the Adams and Reese LLP Sarasota office, focusing on environmental law, including counseling, permitting, enforcement defense and litigation. With experience in 35-plus states and most EPA regions, he has been involved in major civil cases, high-profile criminal investigations, and complex regulatory and dispute resolution proceedings. A first-time commissioner on the Florida Energy and Climate Commission, he recently received the Governor’s Point of Light in honor of Climate Change/Energy Efficiency Awareness Month.  “Nick’s leadership and dedication to excellence has helped advance Florida’s goal of being a conservation leader,” said Governor Crist. “His tireless efforts are helping pave the way to a stronger economy with a secure energy and climate future.” In the community, he is a founding member of SCOPE and serves as Chair and on the board for The Florida House Foundation of Sarasota, Inc.

Mary Ann Bowie is president of Bowie Urban Planners, where she has provided site-specific land planning solutions, regulatory and market analysis and expert testimony.  She is also Sustainability Leader for Eco-Trans Alliance, which assists companies and universities in making the switch from “the pump to the plug” with a range of renewable solar energy transportation solutions.  Bowie authored and published the 2005 Sarasota Green Pages and conducted the Sarasota Green Connection/Marketplace, establishing the initial network of green businesses in the area.

Frank Alcock is Director of the Environmental Studies Program at New College.  A political scientist, he teaches courses on global environmental politics, international law and sustainable development.  He also serves as director of the Marine Policy Institute at Mote Marine Laboratory. Alcock appears regularly on Sarasota television station ABC7 as a political analyst.

March 9

Gary Braasch is an explorer and photojournalist from Portland, Oregon. Braasch is an environmental photojournalist who creates remarkable images and important documentation about nature, environment, biodiversity and global warming. Included will be images from Florida and the Atlantic Coast, underscoring the local effects and dangers of rapid climate change.  Braasch recently reported and photographed from the Copenhagen international climate negotiations last December, and will offer his perspective on the direction being taken by the world’s nations in reacting to and reducing global warming.