“There are great reporters in all kinds of institutions looking for the best attainable version of the truth, but they are having a hell of a time being heard,” Carl Bernstein said.
Investigative reporter and author Carl Bernstein spoke to a room of nearly 400 students, faculty, staff and community members in the Hayden-Clark Alumni Center April 14, sharing his philosophies and insight into the world of reporting.
“We need openness to the truth, to fact [and] to problem-solving over ideology, not just in Congress but in our discussions with each other,” Bernstein said. “There’s some really great reporting going on in this country, but we cannot forget that so many of our people today are not open or seeking or willing to even be near the best obtainable version of the truth.”
Bernstein is famous for being one of The Washington Post journalists who investigated the Watergate scandal in 1972, which involved the break-in and wiretapping of the Democratic National Committee Headquarters, leading to the resignation of former United States President Richard Nixon.
“[Watergate] is not about some kind of heroics,” Bernstein said. “It’s about basic reporting. It’s about a couple of guys who go out at night, knock on people’s doors who have real information and are afraid to give it, and try to convince those people to tell their stories. That’s what we need.”
The theme of the night was “seeking the best obtainable version of the truth,” and Bernstein shared his thoughts on how to use modern technology to do this.
During the question and answer portion of the event, senior biology major Michael Molter asked how modern press fits in with today’s world of smartphones and the Internet.
“[Technology is] needed more than ever,” Bernstein said. “Your question indeed is reflective of a terrible and understandable misunderstanding about the power of technology. Really, what’s great about technology is that it’s a great platform for distributing one’s work. One of the things that is so great about the web is that we can get basic information fast.”
Sara Netzley, associate chairperson for the department of communication and the event’s organizer, said she appreciated Bernstein’s point of view because he comes from a more traditional journalism background.
“I wish more people would embrace the benefits of new platforms the way that he does,” Netzley said.
Netzley said the timing of the event was great considering Bernstein’s latest book, “A Woman in Charge,” is a biography on Hillary Clinton. With Clinton’s recent presidential candidacy announcement following the scandal involving her use of personal email for governmental communication, there were many questions from the audience about Bernstein’s opinions surrounding the topic.
“I think [the emails] will figure in the election because it’s part of a picture of her,” Bernstein said. “Do I think it’s a real story and something that needs to be continued to be looked at? Yes, I do.”
Sophomore English and psychology double major Maddie Gehling said she was surprised with how open Bernstein was with his political opinions during the lecture.
“I didn’t know exactly how much we would be able to see his personal political convictions, but the whole time I was like, ‘wow, you are a very liberal man,’” Gehling said.
Following the lecture, there was a book signing with Bernstein, where he gave out more than 30 books free of cost for students in attendance and sold out the entire supply of books he brought.
The Department of Communication hosted the event as part of its Robison Lectureship Series, collaborating with the Intellectual and Cultural Activities Committee.
