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The Kalb Report: 45 Words A Conversation with Justices Scalia and Ginsburg on the First Amendment

Gil Klein
By Gil Klein
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Event to be held Thursday, April 17, 6 p.m., at National Press Club

One sentence, just 45 words in length, proclaims and promises the freedoms that define American democracy. The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees the right to freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, and the right to petition one's government. It is the duty of the justices of the Supreme Court of the United States to interpret the constitution and to rule on the legality of legislation.

On the next edition of The Kalb Report, Supreme Court Justices Antonin Scalia and Ruth Bader Ginsburg join journalist/scholar Marvin Kalb to offer their views of those 45 words in a rare glimpse behind the gavel and inside one of our nation's vital branches of government.

The Kalb Report will take place on Thursday, April 17, at 6:00 p.m. EDT, in the main ballroom of the National Press Club, 529 14th Street, NW, in Washington, D.C.

"I am honored to host this program with two Justices of the Supreme Court and to discuss their interpretations of the First Amendment guaranteeing our national freedoms, including freedom of the press," said Kalb. "I would also love to hear their views on the broader subject of freedom—what is its origin, and what does it mean today?"

The Kalb Report series is produced jointly by The National Press Club Journalism Institute, the George Washington University School of Media and Public Affairs, Harvard University's Shorenstein Center, University of Maryland University College and the Philip Merrill College of Journalism at the University of Maryland.

For the 11th consecutive year, the series is underwritten by a grant from Ethics and Excellence in Journalism Foundation.

Since 1994, the partnership has produced 83 forums with guests including Walter Cronkite, Rupert Murdoch, Diane Sawyer, Roger Ailes, Katie Couric, Bill O'Reilly, Bob Costas, Hillary Clinton, Ken Burns, and Nobel Prize winner Elie Wiesel. In 2012, The Kalb Report was honored with both a Gold World Medal and the overall Grand Award in the New York Festivals International Radio Awards competition.

The Kalb Report series is distributed nationally by American Public Television. Oklahoma Educational Television Authority serves as the presenting station. The Kalb Report also airs on the public radio channels of Sirius—XM Satellite Radio, Federal News Radio in Washington, D.C. (1500 AM), District of Columbia Cable Television, University of Maryland Cable Television, and NewsChannel 8 in Washington, D.C. Each program is also streamed live at press.org and kalb.gwu.edu.

Moderator Marvin Kalb is Edward R. Murrow Professor Emeritus at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. Over the course of his distinguished 30-year career in broadcast journalism, Mr. Kalb served as chief diplomatic correspondent for both CBS News and NBC News, and moderator of Meet the Press. He went on to serve as the founding director of Harvard's Joan Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy. Among his many honors are two Peabody Awards, the DuPont Prize from Columbia University, the 2006 Fourth Estate Award from the National Press Club and more than a half-dozen Overseas Press Club awards. Mr. Kalb has authored or co-authored 13 nonfiction books and two best-selling novels. His latest book is "The Road to War: Presidential Commitments Honored and Betrayed."

Executive Producer Michael Freedman is a senior vice president and professor of the practice at University of Maryland University College, as well as a professorial lecturer in journalism at the George Washington University. Mr. Freedman is the former general manager of CBS Radio Network News, and former managing editor for the broadcast division of United Press International. He is the recipient of more than 85 honors for journalistic excellence including 14 Edward R. Murrow Awards.

Senior Producer Heather Date is an associate vice president at University of Maryland University College and former CNN producer. She is the recipient of the Alliance for Women in Media's 2011 Gracie Award for Outstanding Producer of a News Program for her work on The Kalb Report.

Lindsay Underwood, a 2011 graduate of George Washington University's School of Media and Public Affairs, is the associate producer of The Kalb Report.

Web Editor Bryan Kane is a senior at George Washington University.

The Kalb Report series is directed by Robert Vitarelli, a 39-year CBS News veteran and a Directors Guild of America Lifetime Achievement Award winner.