Dean Ernest J. Wilson III  led an examination of the intersection between propaganda, politics, truth and the media at a New York conference marking the 60th anniversary of the publication of "Politics and the English Language," the landmark essay by George Orwell (pictured).

The Nov. 7 conference There You Go Again: Orwell Comes to America was organized in partnership with journalism schools at Columbia University and UC Berkeley. The program featured three panels and was held at the New York Public Library.

Dean Wilson chaired the panel "Solutions: The Future Political Landscape." Speakers included Federal Communications Commission member Michael Copps, broadcast journalist Charlayne Hunter-Gault, Talking Points Memo publisher and founder Josh Marshall, and New York Times chief television critic Alessandra Stanley.

"The pervasive use of propaganda and "spin" continues to dominate much of our national dialogue," Wilson said. "New technologies have only provided new tools to be used by some for disinformation. This conference provides an important opportunity to explore and assess political dialogue in a rapidly changing media landscape on the eve of our next Presidential election."

Orwell's prescience is also explored in a new book published in conjunction with the conference. What Orwell Didn’t Know: Propaganda and the New Face of American Politics (Public Affairs, 2007) features essays by Geoffrey Cowan, University Professor, dean emeritus and director of the Center on Communication Leadership, and Martin Kaplan, holder of the Lear Chair in Entertainment, Media and Society and director of the Norman Lear Center.

Conference details
Webcast
C-SPAN video library
Read the essay