Westminster Town Hall Forum

Carl Bernstein is a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter who, along with Bob Woodward, broke the Watergate story for The Washington Post, leading to the resignation of President Richard Nixon and setting the standard for modern investigative reporting. For more than forty years, his writings and commentary have shed light on the inner-workings of government and politics, including the increasing dysfunction of our nation's governmental institutions, an economy tilted against middle-class citizens, and a media landscape characterized by misinformation and disinformation. Former MPR host Gary Eichten will interview Mr. Bernstein.

Amy-Jill Levine is University Professor of New Testament and Jewish Studies at Vanderbilt University Divinity School and College of Arts and Sciences. She has held office in the Society of Biblical Literature, the Catholic Biblical Association, and the Association for Jewish Studies. She is the author, co-author, or editor of numerous books, including The Misunderstood Jew: The Church and the Scandal of the Jewish Jesus; The Historical Jesus in Context; the Jewish Annotated New Testament; and The Meaning of the Bible: What The Jewish Scriptures and the Christian Old Testament Can Teach Us.

Andrew Zimmern is a chef, food writer, teacher, and television host. As creator, executive producer, and host of the popular series Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern, he travels the globe, exploring the ways that food shapes and reflects the lives and culture of people around the world. He is an Entrepreneur in Residence at Babson College's Lewis Institute and serves on the board of directors for Services for the Underserved in New York City and The National Youth Recovery Foundation. He is honorary chair of Minnesota FoodShare's annual campaign to raise awareness of the food needs of people throughout the state.

Frances Moore Lappe directs the Center for Living Democracy in Brattleboro, Vermont, with her husband Paul Martin Du Bois. They are also co-authors of the book The Quickening of America: Rebuilding Our Nation, Remaking Our Lives. In 1971, Ms. Lappe awakened an entire generation to the human-made causes of hunger in her book Diet for a Small Planet, a bestseller that has sold more than three million copies. In 1975, she co-founded the Institute for Food and Development Policy, described by The New York Times as one of the nation's "most respected food think tanks." She has received numerous awards for her work, including ten honorary doctoral degrees. Her eleven books have been translated into 22 languages and used in a broad array of courses in hundreds of U.S. colleges and universities.

John O'Sullivan has served as editor of The National Review since 1988, the most important conservative journal of the post-World War II era. His previous posts have included Special Advisor to the British Prime Minister, associate editor of the London Times, assistant editor of the London Daily Telegraph, and editor of Policy Review. He has published articles in Encounter, Commentary, Policy Review, The New York Times, The American Spectator and The London Spectator. He lectures on British and American politics and serves on the executive advisory board of the Margaret Thatcher Foundation. Born in Great Britain, he was educated at London University and stood for Parliament as a Conservative in the 1970 general election.

Gordon Parks is a photographer, writer, poet, filmmaker, and composer. In 1949, he joined the staff of Life magazine where he worked as a photojournalist for twenty years, completing over 300 assignments and articles on a broad range of subjects. His career in film began in 1961 when he wrote and directed a documentary based on the life of a boy from a Brazilian slum. He is the director of Shaft, Shaft's Big Score, Super Cops, and Leadbelly, and he wrote the screenplay and musical score and produced and directed the film The Learning Tree, adapted from his bestselling autobiography. In 1989, he directed the film of his classic ballet, Martin, based on the libretto and music he composed to honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He is the author of four volumes of poetry and photographs including Gordon Parks: A Poet and His Camera.

Georgie Anne Geyer writes a syndicated columnist who writes on foreign policy and international affairs for 120 American and Latin American papers, including the Chicago Tribune and the Washington Times. She is a regular commentator on PBS's Washington Week in Review and Frontline. Fluent in five languages, her career has been a whirlwind of ground-breaking journalism. She is the only American to interview Argentine president Juan Peron, one of the first journalists to interview Ayatollah Khomeini, and the only person to interview Prince Sihanouk of Cambodia when all American reporters were forbidden to enter the country. She is the author of six books, including Buying the Night Flight, an autobiography of her odyssey as one of the first women foreign correspondents.

David McCullough is an historian, lecturer, and teacher. He is the author of six books, including Truman, which was awarded a Pulitzer Prize. He is perhaps best known as the host of the PBS series The American Experience and as narrator of Ken Burns' documentary The Civil War. He received the Charles Frankel Prize from President Clinton and was recognized by the National Endowment for the Humanities for his contributions to the humanities. He is a recipient of the National Book Foundation Distinguished Contribution to American Letters Award, and he received an Emmy for his work in public television. Born in Pittsburgh, he graduated from Yale University with a degree in English literature. A gifted and popular public speaker, he has been a part of the White House presidential lecture series.

Juan Williams is a political reporter for The Washington Post, commentator on the MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour, and author of the highly-acclaimed history of the civil rights movement, Eyes on the Prize, which is a companion volume to the PBS series. He is currently under commission to write the authorized biography of Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall. His expertise on Washington politics has earned him the respect of conservatives and liberals alike, and his articles appear regularly in magazines that cover the spectrum of political thought, including Ebony Magazine, The Atlantic, Fortune, and The New Republic. As a guest commentator on National Public Radio, CNN, The MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour, and Nightline, he has proven his ability to distill complex problems and uncover the real issues behind the rhetoric.

Iris Chang is an historian and author of the book The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II. More than fifty years after the end of that war, the horrors of Nazi Germany and the Holocaust remain etched in our memories, but most Americans are unaware of the atrocities committed by Japanese armies in the Far East. In her book, she documents the destruction of the city of Nanking in 1937. She has written for The New York Times, Chicago Tribune, and the Associated Press, and she is the author of another book, Thread of the Silkworm. A recipient of a MacArthur Foundation award, she has also received grants from the National Science Foundation and the Harry Truman Library.