MEDIA CONTACT: Wendy Leopold at (847) 491-4890 or at w-leopold@northwestern.edu

March 23, 2004

Crain Lecture Series Features Lani Guinier

EVANSTON, Ill. – Kenya James, who started a popular magazine for African American girls while she was barely in her teens, will kick off the spring season of the Gertrude and G. D. Crain Jr. Lecture Series Monday, April 5, at Northwestern University. The season closes Monday, May 17, with a discussion by Harvard Law School professor Lani Guinier, whose controversial nomination in 1993 to head the U.S. Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division was put forth and rescinded by President Clinton.

Presented by the Medill School of Journalism, the Crain lectures will take place in the McCormick Tribune Center Forum, 1870 Campus Drive, Evanston campus. They are free and open to the public. The spring schedule follows:

Monday, April 5, 4 p.m., Kenya James, teenaged publisher, founder and editorial director of “Blackgirl” magazine, will discuss “The Making of a Magazine.”

Monday, April 19, 4 p.m., NBC5 Chicago investigative reporter Renee Ferguson will discuss "Journalism that Matters."

Monday, May 10, 4 p.m., Alan Light, former editor of Vibe and Spin magazines, and Newsweek music writer and critic Lorraine Ali, will discuss "Does Rock Criticism Matter?"

Monday, May 17, 4 p.m., Lani Guinier, civil rights attorney, Harvard Law School professor and one-time Clinton nominee for assistant attorney general, will deliver a lecture titled "The Miner's Canary." Guinier is co-author of a book by the same name that explores issues of race in America.

The Crain Lectures feature journalists and newsmakers discussing current events and the news business. Check the Medill School Web site at http://www.medill.northwestern.eduor call (847) 491-5401 for the most up-to-date information.