Skip to main content

Author Thomas Patterson to discuss news media at Cultural Heritage Center

Meet 2018 One Book South Dakota author Thomas E. Patterson at an Oct. 27 program at the Cultural Heritage Center in Pierre.

Patterson is the author of “Informing the News: The Need for Knowledge-Based Journalism.”

He will discuss the current state of the media and its effects on public opinion and civic engagement. He calls for overhauling journalism education and practice in hopes of bringing greater understanding to complicated issues. Patterson will give a presentation, answer questions and sign copies of “Informing the News” during the approximately hour-long program that begins at 3 p.m. CDT on Saturday, Oct. 27, at the Cultural Heritage Center.

Copies of “Informing the News” are available for sale at the Heritage Store at the Cultural Heritage Center.

“Never before has so much information been available to people, but there is a great need for information based on facts,” said Catherine Forsch, president of the South Dakota Historical Society Foundation. “Patterson presents a research-based argument for ‘knowledge-based’ reporting.”

The foundation, which is the nonprofit fundraising partner of the South Dakota State Historical Society, and the South Dakota Humanities Council are hosting the free program. Everyone is welcome to attend.

The South Dakota Humanities Council coordinates the One Book South Dakota program. The program encourages South Dakotans to read and discuss the same title. Groups around the state have been discussing “Informing the News” throughout the year. In partnership with the South Dakota Newspaper Association, the South Dakota Humanities Council has also been hosting a series of forums focusing on public trust and the media.

Patterson was a keynote speaker at the recent South Dakota Festival of Books sponsored by the South Dakota Humanities Council. He is returning to South Dakota for a One Book Tour with presentations in Rapid City, Pierre and Sioux Falls.

Patterson is a graduate of South Dakota State University in Brookings. He received his doctorate in philosophy from the University of Minnesota. He is the Bradlee Professor of Government and the Press at the Harvard Kennedy School in Cambridge, Mass. His research has been funded by the Ford, Markle, Smith-Richardson, Pew, Knight, Carnegie and National Science foundations.

Please call 605-773-6006 for more information about the Pierre program.

About the South Dakota State Historical Society
The South Dakota State Historical Society is a division of the Department of Education. The State Historical Society, an Affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, is headquartered at the South Dakota Cultural Heritage Center in Pierre. The center houses the society’s world-class museum, the archives, and the historic preservation, publishing and administrative/development offices. Call 605-773-3458 or visit www.history.sd.gov for more information. The society also has an archaeology office in Rapid City; call 605-394-1936 for more information.

About the South Dakota Historical Society Foundation
The South Dakota Historical Society Foundation is a private charitable nonprofit that seeks funding to assist the South Dakota State Historical Society in programming and projects to preserve South Dakota’s history and heritage for future generations.