July 13, 2005

San Diego Columnist, Editor, Author Neil Morgan
To Speak At UCSD July 28 At Free Public Forum

By Pat JaCoby

Columnist, Editor, Author Neil Morgan

Two days after San Diego’s special mayoral election, journalist Neil Morgan will discuss “Onward to Where?” at a free public forum to be held at 7 p.m. July 28 in the Price Center Ballroom at the University of California, San Diego.

Mary Walshok, associate vice chancellor of Public Programs at UCSD, will serve as moderator and join Morgan in what promises to be a lively conversation about the election and community concerns. The forum is sponsored by the Helen Edison Lecture Series.

Widely known for his insightful columns about issues affecting San Diego, Southern California, and the border region, Morgan has been a columnist and editor in San Diego for more than 50 years.

Now the senior editor and a board member at Voice of San Diego, Morgan was a longtime fixture at The San Diego Union-Tribune, the Evening Tribune, and the San Diego Daily Journal.

One of the missions of Voice is to “encourage civic participation through an interactive forum that offers diverse perspectives.” Walter Cronkite, distinguished television newsman, has described Voice as “a media first…a non-partisan town hall website where everybody has an equal chance to decide what is news about San Diego.”

Morgan served as editor of the Evening Tribune from 1981 until its merger with the Union in 1992, and then as associate editor of the combined publications. He is the author of 12 books, including “Dr. Seuss & Mr. Geisel” (with Judith Morgan) and “Westward Tilt.” As a journalist, his decades of prodding regional efforts have helped to make San Diego a center of higher education and scientific research. Honors for his column writing range from the Ernie Pyle Memorial Award in 1958 to the Associated Press News Executives Award in 2004.

For additional information visit http://www.helenedison.ucsd.edu or call 858 822-0510.

Media Contact: Pat JaCoby, 858 534-7404.