Longtime foreign correspondent Myron Belkind told an audience Tuesday night at Marymount University that immense opportunities remain in journalism. When he began his career, Belkind said the dream of many journalists was to own a newspaper, which was difficult because of the cost of a printing press.
“Now anyone can be a publisher of news, almost for the cost of a laptop or an iPhone,” he said.
In his remarks at the Marya McLaughlin Lectureship in Media Communications in Reinsch Library Auditorium, Belkind stressed that the opportunity comes with a focus on “accuracy coupled with responsibility and fairness.”
Belkind spent four decades abroad for The Associated Press as a foreign correspondent and bureau chief in Kuala Lumpur, New Delhi, London and Tokyo.
He stressed the importance of journalism.
“When journalists uncover wrongdoings at whatever scale, they ensure that the world does not ignore or turn a blind eye to what is wrong,” he said.
For the past decade, Belkind has been an adjunct professor at The George Washington University in the School of Media and Public Affairs and the Graduate School of Political Management. In 2014, he served as the National Press Club president and focused on enhancing international programs.
Despite the difficulties in the profession, ranging from the killing of journalists abroad to restrictions placed on their work by governments, Belkind still encourages his students to enter the field.
“One does not go into journalism to get rich monetarily, but the rewards are far greater than anything money can buy,” he said.
The endowed lecture honors Marya McLaughlin, a well-known CBS News radio and television correspondent, and provides students, faculty and the public insights and inspiration from journalists of national stature. Past lecturers have included Mark Shields, a syndicated columnist and political analysts for “PBS NewsHour”; the late Helen Thomas, a legendary White House correspondent; and Bob Schieffer, chief Washington Correspondent for CBS News and moderator of “Face the Nation.”
Cutlines:
Photo 1:
Myron Belkind, an Associated Press foreign correspondent and bureau chief for four decades, speaks at Marymount University’s Marya McLaughlin Lecture on Tuesday night in the school’s Reinsch Library Auditorium.
Photo 2:
Myron Belkind, who worked as a foreign correspondent and bureau chief for the Associated Press for four decades, and Marymount University President Matthew D. Shank following Belkind’s talk.
Photo 3:
Marymount University students listen to the 2015 Marya McLaughlin Lecturer, Myron Belkind, on Tuesday.
