NEWS

Renowned journalists Kalb, Rosenberg to be inaugural Kyser visiting professionals

BY ZACH HOSKINS
School of Journalism and Mass Communication

CHAPEL HILL -- Marvin Kalb, former chief diplomatic correspondent for NBC News and CBS News, and Morris Rosenberg, former Associated Press reporter and bureau chief in Paris, Mexico and Central America, will be the inaugural Kay Kyser Distinguished Professionals in the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Journalism and Mass Communication.

Kalb and Rosenberg will spend Sept. 14-16 in the school, where they will visit classes and share insights with students and faculty members. They will give a public talk about what’s wrong with modern journalism Monday (Sept. 15) at 5:30 p.m. in Carroll Hall’s Gannett Lecture Room (Carroll 33).

The Kay Kyser Distinguished Visiting Professorships are named in memory of the distinguished UNC alumnus, who was a star of radio, television and movies in the 1930s, ’40s and ’50s. Kyser’s wife, Georgia, gave $20,000 for the program this academic year and has pledged a significant gift to endow it. The professorships bring prominent media professionals to the school to meet with students and faculty members informally, and talk about current issues and problems.

"Kalb and Rosenberg are among the most distinguished journalists in the country," said Dean Richard Cole. "Having them in our school will be a splendid opportunity for students and faculty members to learn from the best in the business."

Kalb, former director of Harvard University’s Shorenstein Center for the Press, Politics and Public Policy, is a senior fellow at the center, where was founding director from 1987 to 1999. He also oversees the center’s Washington, D.C., office and programs, and is a lecturer in public policy at Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. He is a best-selling author and producer of "The Kalb Report," a public affairs program featuring interviews with journalists and media executives.

Kalb spent 30 years as a correspondent for CBS News and NBC News and as moderator of "Meet the Press." He received numerous awards including two Peabody Prizes from the University of Georgia, the DuPont Prize from Columbia University and several Overseas Press Club Awards.

Last October, Kalb gave the Roy H. Park Distinguished Lecture in the school. He told students, faculty members and others that economic pressures and new technology are eroding the quality of news coverage. "The economics of the industry are drawing journalism to a new lowest common denominator," he said.

Rosenberg, an international media consultant, distinguished himself during a 30-year career with the Associated Press (AP), including many years reporting from Latin America and France. A Charlotte native and a 1940 UNC journalism graduate, he started as a reporter in Charleston, S.C. Then he became a writer and news editor for the U.S. Office of War Information in Algeria, Italy and Yugoslavia. Rosenberg moved on to Caracas, Venezuela, where he was editor-in-chief and organizer of The Caracas Daily Journal, as well as an AP correspondent. He became news editor for AP World Services in New York in 1959 and for the next 28 years covered the world for AP.

After serving as AP bureau chief for Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean area, Rosenberg was bureau chief in Paris from 1966 to 1977. He was later named director-general for all of AP’s Latin American operations. Rosenberg retired in 1987, after spending roughly eight years as chief of world services based in the Washington, D.C., bureau. Upon his retirement, the government of France awarded him the Chevalier of the Legion of Honor.

Support for the Kay Kyser Distinguished Visiting Professorships counts toward the Carolina First campaign goal of $1.8 billion. Carolina First is a comprehensive, multi-year private fund-raising campaign to support Carolina’s vision of becoming the nation’s leading public university.

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School of Journalism and Mass Communication contact: Zach Hoskins, assistant dean for communication, zhoskins@email.unc.edu, (919) 966-3323

News Services contact: Mike McFarland, (919) 962-8593