with Sally Jackson
 Sydney Finkelstein |
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History is full of brilliant leaders making incredibly poor choices. From President John F. Kennedy’s Bay of Pigs invasion to Wall Street’s heavy bets in the mortgage market, we see people with extraordinarily powerful cognitive abilities make terrible decisions. Why does this happen? Sydney Finkelstein, bestselling author and Steven Roth Professor of Management for the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College, joins Sally Jackson, public relations consultant and founder of Jackson & Company, to addresses the specific ways our minds are lured into making misguided judgments. Most importantly, he identifies the way wise leaders sidestep these pitfalls, and how you can do the same.
Related Media:
Wednesday, September 21, 2005 at 6:30 p.m.
Raytheon Amphitheater, Northeastern University
Blogging, the web-based publication phenomenon started in the mid-1990s, has its critics, doubters and triumphalists. Ranging from hard news to personal commentary and with the immediacy of talk radio it is, arguably, revolutionizing how we get our information and how we learn about the world around us. Dan Kennedy and jay Rosen meet to talk about the blogosphere, its future, its impact on news, commentary and journalism.
Friday, December 1st
6:30 p.m.
Old South Meeting House
From Watergate to the confirmation hearings of Samuel Alito, from the Reagan Revolution to war in Iraq – the highly praised and award-winning coverage of Cokie Roberts, Nina Totenberg and Linda Wertheimer has shed light on the people, institutions, and social forces shaping our nation. In print, on television, and, most notably, over National Public Radio airwaves, their groundbreaking journalism has not only changed the way millions of Americans view their country and their world, but also had a profound impact on the profession of broadcasting. They join us tonight to receive the Ford Hall Forum’s Louis P. and Evelyn Smith First Amendment Award and share their thoughts on their life and work.
Meizhu Lui, Executive Director, United for a Fair Economy; Rebecca Adamson, Founder and President of First Nations Development Institute and Founder of First Peoples Worldwide; and Betsy Leondar-Wright, author and Communications Director, United For a Fair EconomyThursday, November 9th
6:30 p.m.
Ellsworth Theater, Pine Manor College
Free parking available
For every dollar in assets possessed by the average white family in the United States, the average family of color has less than a dime. Why is the distribution of wealth in our nation so uneven? Does public policy—even when well intentioned—reinforce existing inequalities? Do race and ethnicity continue to play a pivotal role in defining the haves and have-nots in our society? In this panel discussion, three leading experts on the wealth divide will explore the economic histories of Native Americans, Latinos, African Americans, Asian Americans, and European Americans, and tackle the relationship between race and finances in the United States.
Dr. Yaron Brook, President and Executive Director of the Ayn Rand Institute, contributing writer for The Objective Standard, entrepreneurSunday, October 22nd
6:30 p.m.
Faneuil Hall
After Sept. 11th, the Bush administration declared that we must bring freedom to the Middle Eastern nations that threaten us; thus, the Forward Strategy of Freedom. By establishing democracies in key Muslim countries, starting with Afghanistan and Iraq, we would spur a revolution in the rest of the Muslim world—a revolution that would bring free, pro-Western, anti-terrorist governments to power. But the strategy has failed. The Muslim world has grown more militant, radical leaders are being elected to power, and Islamic totalitarian groups like Hamas and Hezbollah are on the rise. Dr. Brook will examine the inherent flaws of the Forward Strategy of Freedom and explore what should replace it.
Ethan Gutman, author of Losing the New China: A Story of American Commerce, Desire and Betrayal, former Foreign Policy Analyst at the Brookings Institution; Hiawatha Bray, The Boston Globe’s technology reporter; and John Jaw, founder of the Boston’s English-language and Chinese-language editions of The Epoch Times. Moderated by Valerie Epps, Director of the International Law Concentration at Suffolk University.Thursday, October 12, 2006
6:30 p.m.
Raytheon Amphitheater, Northeastern University
There is no Google in China—at least not one that is uncensored. Websites are blacklisted -Wikipedia, Blogspot, and BBC News, to name just a few – and content providers like Yahoo!, AOL, and Skype, censor themselves so that they can operate in the country. To the dismay of some human rights advocates and media groups, it is principally American firms providing the Chinese government with technology to filter data as it comes and goes. Is there a better way to deal with China’s laws and policies? Is a restricted internet better than no internet at all? And can the “Golden Shield” stand up to a barrage of software designed specifically to circumvent it? Tonight’s panel discussion will shed light on the collision between new technologies and the national interests of the world’s most populous country.
John Darnton, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, best-selling author of Neanderthal, The Experiment and, most recently, The Darwin Conspiracy, and Cultural News Editor of The New York Times.Thursday, September 28th
6:30 p.m.
Old South Meeting House
A booksigning will follow the program
Darwin’s theories of natural selection and evolution have been debated and disputed since The Origin of Species was first published in 1859. The concept of humans evolving from apes challenged the prevailing sense of natural order and shifted the scientific paradigm. Drawing on the research for his best selling novel The Darwin Conspiracy, author and journalist John Darnton will examine what current theories of intelligent design share with the arguments of Darwin’s creationist critics and how they differ. Darnton will also discuss the often-thorny questions of separating fact and fiction in the writing of historical novels.
Sister Helen Prejean, C.S.J., author of Dead Man Walking: An Eyewitness Account of the Death Penalty in the United States and The Death of Innocents: An Eyewitness Account of Wrongful Execution. Sister Helen currently works with the Death Penalty Discourse Center, the Moratorium Campaign, and the Dead Man Walking Play Project.Tuesday, September 12th
6:30 p.m.
Old South Meeting House
A booksigning will follow the program
Should any state have the power to execute? Is the death penalty appropriate retribution for particularly heinous murders? Does it deter crime? Does it fundamentally violate human rights? Author and activist Sister Helen Prejean has been instrumental in sparking national dialogue around these questions. Her book, Dead Man Walking, which portrays her experiences as a spiritual advisor to death row inmates, became a best seller and spawned the Oscar-winning movie of the same title. Tonight, Sister Helen will discuss her life, her work, and why she continues to fight to end capital punishment.
Sarah Chayes, author and Field Director of Afghans for Civil Society, a non-governmental aid organization founded by Qayum Karzai, brother of President Hamid Karzai. Ms. Chayes was an overseas correspondent for National Public Radio from 1997 to 2002.Monday, September 11th
6:30 p.m.
Old South Meeting House
A booksigning will follow the program
The Taliban regime was driven from power in Afghanistan in 2001, but the nation and the international community now face new problems: a devastated economy, the return of millions of refugees, drug trafficking, and a plague of corruption and violence. In addition, the fledgling government is struggling to unify and rebuild their nation and to define its future. Drawing upon her experiences living and working in the war-torn country as well as her unparalleled access to President Karzai‘s family, tribal leaders, and U.S. military officials, Sarah Chayes offers a unique view of Afghanistan’s modern history and the challenges ahead.
This program is co-sponsored by the WAND Education Fund (Women’s Action for New Directions) and presented in collaboration with the Old South Meeting House as part of the Partners in Public Dialogue Series.
Dr. Thomas Payzant, Superintendent of the Boston Public Schools since 1995; Assistant Secretary, United States Department of Education (1993-1995)Thursday, May 11, 2006 at 6:30 p.m.
Old South Meeting House
Dr. Payzant, Superintendent of the Boston Public Schools for the past ten years, takes a hard look at the role of public schools in serving the common good. Is an increasingly negative view of government that has been growing in American society at odds with the expectations for what public schools must accomplish? Are public school districts asked to do too much? Is there an intimate connection between the compelling issues of social justice and the role of public schools, and is this connection more at risk today than any time in the past hundred years? Dr. Payzant will draw upon forty years of working to improve teaching and learning in public education to examine these and other questions.
