Journalists who covered Hurricane Katrina to speak about their experiences Feb. 6 at Newhouse

Journalists who covered Hurricane Katrina to speak about their experiences Feb. 6 at NewhouseJanuary 24, 2006Jaime Winne Alvarez jlwinne@syr.edu

Three journalists who were key players in the coverage of Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath will join together to present a multimedia program Feb. 6 at Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications as part of the school’s Leaders in Communications Lecture Series.

“Hell and High Water: Covering Hurricane Katrina and Its Aftermath” will take place at 7:30 p.m. in Studio A, Newhouse II. It is free and open to the public. Paid parking will be available in the Marion and Comstock lots.

The panel consists of New Orleans Times-Picayune environmental correspondent Mark Schleifstein and editor James O’Byrne and National Public Radio editor Susan Feeney ’83, a Newhouse graduate.

Schleifstein co-wrote the Times-Picayune’s prize-winning 2002 series “Washing Away: How South Louisiana is Growing More Vulnerable to a Catastrophic Hurricane,” which warned readers that a major hurricane like Katrina could really happen. O’Byrne kept the newspaper publishing even as its headquarters and the city flooded. Out in the field, he was the first to report on the levee break. Feeney edited Katrina coverage for NPR’s “All Things Considered” program and went back to New Orleans to find her former hometown in ruins.

For more information, contact Newhouse professor Nancy Sharp at (315) 443-9235.