Two days after the inauguration of the first black president, CNN anchor and special correspondent Soledad O'Brien was on campus to discuss her portrayal of the black experience in America.
O'Brien addressed a packed Griffith Film Theater Thursday as part of the 2009 Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration. The hour-and-a-half presentation featured remarks from O'Brien on race, diversity and equality, as well as clips from her CNN documentary "Black in America." The event provided the Duke community an opportunity to engage the question "What Becomes of the Dream?"-the theme of this year's commemoration.
"One of the things we wanted to do with 'Black in America' was to open up a conversation about things we never talk about involving race in this country," O'Brien said.
It was O'Brien's work on "Black in America" that motivated University officials and coordinating committee members to bring her to Duke and lead a dialogue about King's legacy, said Ben Reese, vice president for institutional equity.
"The series 'Black in America' is one people have been drawn to, especially the way she engaged the topic in-depth over six hours," said Reese. "Her method of journalism tends to be very stimulative, and we hope that this type of event can stimulate debate and discussion and foster knowledge and action."
Throughout the presentation, O'Brien talked at length about the profound impact many of the stories had on her as a minority. In particular, she mentioned contributing to CNN's four-day coverage of President Barack Obama's inauguration.
"When you realize that the Constitution of this country said that people who look like a lot of the people in this room are three-fifths of a person, then on Jan. 20, one of those people takes the oath for one of the highest positions in the land, it reminds you of the possibilities in this country," O'Brien said.
In connecting Obama with King's dream, she said that in some respects the dream has been fulfilled---, while in other ways it has not.
"Barack Obama and Dr. King operated under the notion that our Constitution had these huge flaws, but that the genius of this nation was its ability to change," O'Brien said.
Noting that this week's Inauguration meant change for the country as a whole, she said that for many poor people throughout the United States, their lives did not change at all after Inauguration Day.
Another story that was pivotal in her career was Hurricane Katrina and her experiences inside New Orleans in the aftermath of the storm.
"When Hurricane Katrina blew through the city, it revealed things about poverty and class that had been covered up before," O'Brien said.
More central to the level of suffering endured by those caught in the path of the storm was not their race, but rather socio-economic inequalities that left them without a voice and without representation, she said.
After her presentation, O'Brien told The Chronicle that she views herself as a role model for minorities in journalism.
"I don't think of it as a responsibility, but as a reality," she said. "People are going to see that people of color are capable of good journalism. When they look up to me the message is going to be very clear-if you work hard you can find success in this business."
Despite low numbers of minorities in the White House press pool and other high-profile positions in journalism, the media will continue to become more diverse, she said.
"I truly believe that you are going to have more people of color in the press pool," O'Brien said. "I believe that the media will become more diverse because the issues that face our country require diverse perspectives in order to fully cover them."
O'Brien, the daughter of an Irish-Australian father and a black mother, has risen to the top of her profession as an ethnic minority. Many students in the audience said they were fans of O'Brien's work and enjoyed the tenacity with which she pursues stories.
"As someone who is interested in journalism, I have definitely seen her work on CNN and I admire her 'I'm gonna do it anyway' attitude," said senior Roshen Sethna.
O'Brien also responded to critics of "Black in America." Some have said that separating the portrayals of black men from the depictions of black women and families reinforced stereotypes about race and single mothers.
"It was not meant to be divisive... It was a convenient way to manage time," she said. "If you actually watch the segment on the black woman and family, you actually see a lot of black men."
Although some expressed concern over the division between the black men and the black family, many saw it as part of the difficulty of the task.
"You are not going to be able to capture the entire black experience in one television show," said junior Javelle Wynter.
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