One to One with Bill Goodman:
John Seigenthaler
aired May 18 and 20, 2007
John Seigenthaler, the founding editorial director of USA Today and an award-winning journalist for the Tennessean, Nashville’s morning newspaper, discusses media and civil rights issues with host Bill Goodman on this edition of One to One.
In 1991, Seigenthaler founded the First Amendment Center at Vanderbilt University with the goal of creating national discussion and debate about First Amendment rights and values. The center works nationwide to preserve and protect First Amendment freedoms through information and education.
Seigenthaler spent a total of 43 years with the Tennessean, retiring as editor, publisher, and CEO. During that career, he left journalism briefly in the early 1960s to serve in the U.S. Justice Department as administrative assistant to Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy. His work in the field of civil rights led to his appointment as chief negotiator with the governor of Alabama during the Freedom Rides.
Today, Seigenthaler hosts a weekly book-review program, A Word on Words, for Nashville Public Television. He is a senior advisory trustee of the Freedom Forum and chairs the selection committee for the annual Profile in Courage Award given by the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation. With Arthur Schlesinger Jr., he co-chairs the Robert F. Kennedy Book Award for the RFK Memorial. He is also the author of the presidential biography James K. Polk, published in 2004.
