RUSK CENTER/WUGA RADIO SERIES HONORED FOR EXCELLENCE

Abstract

Thursday, April 29, 1999

WRITER: Kathy R. Pharr, (706) 542-5172, pharr@jd.lawsch.uga.edu

CONTACT: Dorinda Dallmeyer, (706) 542-5141, dorindad@arches.uga.edu

RUSK CENTER/WUGA RADIO SERIES HONORED FOR EXCELLENCE

ATHENS, Ga. - Journalists and attorneys alike have recently honored the University of Georgia School of Law's Dean Rusk Center for International and Comparative Law and the Georgia Center for Continuing Education's WUGA-FM for their radio series, "The Individual in a Global Society." Producers of the four-part series received a Green Eyeshade Award this past weekend from the Society of Professional Journalists and will be presented with a Silver Gavel Award from the State Bar of Georgia on Friday, April 30.

Judges in the Green Eyeshade competition, which included entries from 11 Southern states, praised the series for its comprehensive approach to a complex topic: "The issues were presented in a straight-forward, balanced way, while the explanations of terminology that might otherwise confuse listeners was complete." Silver Gavels are presented for published materials and broadcasts which, among other criteria, foster greater public awareness of the role and values of the legal system. State Bar judges commended the producers for the "quality, creativity and scope" of the series.

"It's really gratifying to get an award from the societies devoted to maintaining the highest standards of the profession both in journalism and law," said Rusk Center Research Director Dorinda Dallmeyer, who served as executive producer and co-writer of the series.

The series, cosponsored by the Rusk Center and the American Society of International Law with funding from the Ford Foundation, premiered on WUGA-FM last May and has now been broadcast on NPR affiliates across the country. The one-hour segments addressed the individual's role in global governance, the global economy, human rights and the environment. Interviews with international legal experts and residents around the world were featured. A companion website at http://www.lawsch.uga.edu/~radio/, continues to offer transcripts and audio replays of each program, all the documents mentioned in the series, references to guide further research, and other websites related to the program.

"The website provides one-stop shopping, so that if you hear a document mentioned in the series like the Universal Declaration on Human Rights, you can click on it and have immediate access to the full text," said Dallmeyer. "The website gives the series a longer shelf-life and can be accessed 24 hours a day from anywhere in the world."

David Bryant of WUGA-FM served as editor and co-writer, and John Hawkins of WUGA-FM served as assistant editor. The series was hosted by Deborah Potter, former correspondent for CNN and CBS and host of the PBS series "In the Prime."

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