MK Speaker Series

THE HEADLINERS FOUNDATION PRESENTS
The Inaugural
*Michele Kay Speaker Series*

Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Go Behind the Scenes With Panelists Wayne Slater, Evan Smith, Peggy Fikac & Ken Herman as they discuss Rick Perry, Barack Obama and the year of the Teavangelicals How will the media cover the race?
for additional discussion questions see below
Wayne Slater is a Senior Political Writer for The Dallas Morning News. He previously served for 15 years as Austin bureau chief for The News covering national and state politics. He is a frequent guest on numerous network television shows and is co-author of two books, the New York Times best seller, Bush's Brain: How Karl Rove Made George W. Bush Presidential, published by John Wiley & Sons, and The Architect: Karl Rove and the Dream of Absolute Power, published by Random House

Evan Smith is the CEO and editor-in-chief of The Texas Tribune, which, in its first year in operation, won two national Edward R. Murrow Awards and a General Excellence Award from the Online News Association. Previously he spent nearly 26 years at Texas Monthly, retiring as the magazine's president and editor-in-chief. For eight years, Smith hosted the weekly interview program, Texas Monthly Talks, that aired on PBS stations statewide. He currently hosts, Overheard with Evan Smith, airing on PBS stations nationally
Peggy Fikac is Austin bureau chief and columnist for the San Antonio Express-News and Houston Chronicle. She covers government and politics - including Gov. Rick Perry's presidential race. Before the Hearst newspapers merged their Austin bureaus, Fikac was Express-News' bureau chief, starting just in time to jump on the campaign plane for George W. Bush's first presidential race. At the time, she considered it a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to cover a Texas governor running for president. She previously worked for the Associated Press, specializing in public education coverage, where she traveled with the late Ann Richards during both of her campaigns for governor
Ken Herman, a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist, is currently an editorial board member and columnist for the Austin American-Statesman. He began his journalism career in East Texas at the Lufkin Daily News in 1975. In 1977, Herman joined The Associated Press in Dallas, later moving to Harlingen to serve as the AP's correspondent there and, in 1979, to Austin to join the AP's Capitol staff. In 1988, he became Austin Bureau Chief for the Houston Post, a title he held until the paper folded in 1995. Herman then joined the American-Statesman as its Capitol Bureau Chief. From 2004-2009, he was the White House correspondent for Cox Newspapers.
During the course of the evening the panelists will also try to answer
What challenges do home-state reporters face when their governor seeks the White House?
How will Perry's campaign compare with George W. Bush's a decade ago?

Will national media rely on Texas journalists to help tell the story to the rest of the country?
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
5:45 pm Cocktails 6:15 pm Seating 7:00 pm Buffet Supper
Reservations Required for Members and Guests
$30.00 plus tax, gratuity, and cocktails.
R.S.V.P. 479.8080 or by email
Limited Attendance
All no shows will be charged unless cancelled 48 hours in advance.

*The Michele Kay Speaker Series memorializes the late Michele Kay; former business editor, Washington correspondent and columnist for the Austin American-Statesman... and a journalist of international stature. The series will support the presentation of fresh insights regarding the practice and experiences of professional journalism; its challenges and its value to our society.