Seton Hall Announces New Dates for Lilly Conference on Communication, Religion and U.S. Presidential Election
Thursday, July 9, 2020
In addition to promoting dialogue on the role of religion in today's public sphere,
these national experts will examine religion-based campaign messaging and associated
media coverage and provide historical context that can help Americans interpret the
intersection between politics and faith.
"It is impossible to understand American political rhetoric, widespread protesting,
and the impending presidential election without also understanding our socio-religious
history. Drawing, in part, from harsh lessons of religious division and persecution
in Europe, our founders achieved a polity embodying both shining values of freedom
and equality and tragic hypocrisies like slavery and genocide," said Institute Director
and Associate Professor Jon Radwan. "Seton Hall's Institute for Communication and Religion is honored to host this conference
and contribute to public dialogue on how America's faith/power dynamic is unfolding
in the 2020 presidential campaign. We hope to infuse political communication scholarship
and civic discourse with a spirit of prudence, charity, and social justice because
statecraft and soul-craft are two sides of the same page."
The Institute for Communication and Religion (ICR) at Seton Hall has been awarded
a grant from the National Network Board of the Lilly Fellows Program in Humanities
and the Arts in support of the programming, which will feature scholars from across
the continental United States as well as Europe.
The conference, "Communication and Religion in the 2020 U.S. Presidential Election,"
will be broadcast live by Seton Hall and video of key portions of the event will later
be made available for those who cannot attend. A special highlight will feature expert
analysis and commentary on the final 2020 Presidential Debate scheduled for October
22.
Featured speakers for the event will include:
- Ronald C. Arnett, chair and professor of communication and rhetorical studies and The Patricia Doherty Yoder and Ronald Wolfe Endowed Chair in Communication Ethics at Duquesne University;
- Heidi Campbell, professor of communication and affiliate faculty in religious studies and director of the Network for New Media, Religion & Digital Culture Studies at Texas A&M University and 2018 Harron Family Endowed Chair in Communication, Villanova University;
- Peter Beinart, professor of journalism and political science at the City University of New York – a contributor to the Atlantic, a senior columnist at the Forward, a CNN political commentator and a fellow at The Foundation for Middle East Peace.
From Seton Hall's faculty, Professors of Political Science Jo-Renee Formicola, Ph.D., and Rob Pallitto, Ph.D., J.D., will also present. Formicola's "The Myth of the Catholic Vote" will examine how critical a factor is religion in U.S. elections, while Pallitto will explore ideological phenomena associated with the 2020 presidential race in "Trump, the 2020 Election and the Limits of Ideology Theory."
Click here to register for this LIVE Broadcast Event.
Regarding the confluence of religion and politics in this upcoming presidential election,
Professor Ronald C. Arnett of Duquesne said, "The upcoming election calls forth prayer,
reflections on peace, poverty, the environment, and acts of grace. I pray for the
likes of Dorothy Day once again."
Professor Peter Beinart of CUNY noted, "2020 may prove one of the few presidential
elections in recent memory in which the Democratic candidate speaks more comfortably
about religion than the Republican."
Expressing a more expansive view of the subject as it relates to digital media, Professor
Heidi Campbell of Texas A&M said:
"Religious rhetoric and symbolism have become very public and prominent in discussions
about politics in the run up to the 2020 elections. Popular views and debates about
these intersections between religion and politics are also increasingly played out
online in spaces such as Twitter and Instagram through Internet memes. What we see
in these image-based depictions is the rise in American Civil Religion that sits uncomfortably
with the traditional understanding of religion within many faith-based communities.
Internet memes present the religion of politics as a space where faith is skewed and
contested."
Since its inception, the Institute has held numerous educational events, and has exciting
future plans. Next month, ICR will co-host the International Gita Symposium 2020,
"The Bhagavad Gita and Humanity Today," online on August 14, 2020. A partnership with
the Gita Jayanti Committee of Singapore, this virtual forum brings international scholars
and faith leaders together to explore practical wisdom shared in the Bhagavad Gita,
an ancient Hindu spiritual masterpiece.
ICR Events
Its inaugural event, "Speaking Truth: Religion in the News Media," featured the Wall Street Journal Columnist
William McGurn, while award-winning religion journalist David Gibson hosted the Spring
2018 "Speaking Truth to Power: How Faith Can Get a Fair Hearing in Today's Media."
Along hosting with curriculum development workshops, ICR also co-sponsored the inter-disciplinary Ethically Speaking symposium in 2018.
In Spring 2018, ICR received positive media coverage for the event "The Absence of Healthy Confrontation: Reflections on Pope Francis' World Communications
Day Message on Fake News," part of the "Critical Issues in Information and Education" Speakers Series by University
Libraries.
Additionally, internationally renowned scholar Heidi Campbell, Ph.D., hosted a master class on how digital media is reshaping the way people engage with their faiths. In addition,
ICR made history this past March when for the first time at Seton Hall a Hindu dignitary,
Swami Sarvapriyananda, spoke on fostering religious harmony.
About ICR
Launched in Fall 2017, the Institute for Communication and Religion within the College of Communication and the Arts provides a nexus for ongoing scholarly exploration of communication topics critically
important to religion and society. Guided by the spirit of ecumenical and interreligious
cooperation, the Institute seeks to engage in public dialogue and debate, promote
academic inquiry and support the religious dimension of creativity — all while upholding
the values of servant leadership, curricular innovation and intellectual excellence.
For more information about, visit the Institute for Communication and Religion's website or email Jon Radwan, Ph.D., at [email protected].
Categories: Faith and Service, Nation and World
