Marquette Diederich College of Communication to host award-winning Washington Post team for Burleigh Media Ethics Lecture, Oct. 23

Oct. 21, 2024

Screenshot of "The Collection" series headerMILWAUKEE — Marquette University will host three award-winning reporters from the Washington Post’s investigation who will deliver the Diederich College of Communication’s annual Burleigh Media Ethics Lecture, Wednesday, Oct. 23, at 3:30 p.m. at Sensenbrenner Hall’s Eisenberg Reading Room, 1103 W. Wisconsin Ave.

Nicole Dungca, Claire Healy and Andrew Ba Tran were recipients of the Poynter Institute’s Dori J. Maynard Justice Award for social justice reporting. “The Collection” was an investigative series into the Smithsonian Institution's collection of more than 250 brains collected by a museum anthropologist to further his now-debunked theories about race. The story explored the Smithsonian’s unreconciled legacy of more than 30,700 body parts, most of which were taken without consent.

The Dori J. Maynard Justice Award celebrates journalism that overcomes ignorance, stereotypes, intolerance, racism, hate, negligence and indifference. Winning entries bridge any or all the social fault lines and fissures of race, gender, religion, class, caste, generation, disability, illness, nationality and geography. Of “The Collection,” the judges said, “Exquisite, tenacious reporting and impact…This multimedia series was impossible to put down. It’s important, institute-changing storytelling that’s historical and current.”

Registration for the Burleigh Lecture is free and available online. Media wishing to cover the lecture should RSVP by contacting Kevin Conway at kevin.m.conway@marquette.edu.

The annual Burleigh Media Ethics Lecture addresses topical and moral issues facing the world today. Sponsored annually by the Diederich College of Communication, the lecture honors William R. Burleigh, a 1957 Marquette journalism graduate, who started working for the Evansville Press in Indiana at age 14 as a sports reporter. He retired in 2000 as president and CEO of the E.W. Scripps Company, having led the transformation of Scripps from primarily a newspaper enterprise into a media company with interest in cable and broadcast television, newspaper publishing, e-commerce, interactive media, licensing and syndication. Burleigh lectures address ethical issues today's communicators report on, as well as those they wrestle with in their own work.

About Marquette University

Marquette University is a Catholic, Jesuit university located near the heart of downtown Milwaukee that offers a comprehensive range of majors in 11 nationally and internationally recognized colleges and schools. Through the formation of hearts and minds, Marquette prepares our 11,100 undergraduate, graduate, doctoral and professional students to lead, excel and serve as agents of positive change. And, we deliver results. Ranked in the top 20% of national universities, Marquette is recognized for its undergraduate teaching, innovation and career preparation as the sixth-best university in the country for job placement. Our focus on student success and immersive, personalized learning experiences encourages students to think critically and engage with the world around them. When students graduate with a Marquette degree, they are truly prepared and called to Be The Difference.

About Kevin Conway

Kevin Conway

Kevin is the associate director for university communication in the Office of University Relations. Contact Kevin at (414) 288-4745 or kevin.m.conway@marquette.edu.