The Elizabethtown College Gibble Auditorium was filled with intrigued faces Wednesday, March 9 as Scott LaMar and Joyce Davis came in to speak. Those in attendance looked forward to the captivating discussion that LaMar and Davis had in store.
LaMar, who is well known for his long-running show “Smart Talk,” and Davis, the President of the World Affairs Council of Harrisburg who worked alongside LaMar for a while, discussed their experiences with the news and media over the years and how “Smart Talk” began. They also opened a discussion on how the media has changed today.
LaMar’s journey at the WITF radio station began in 1991, where he has been working for 30 years. “Katleen Pavelko came to me and said we are looking to start a weekly public affairs TV show and we want to know if you’d be interested in producing it,” LaMar said when asked about how TV “Smart Talk” began. He later mentioned that radio “Smart Talk” began in 2008 where he initially worked as a producer and has now hosted the show for the past 12 years.
Davis made it a point of emphasis that a successful career takes hard work and dedication. She highlighted LaMar’s long journey to success and how “Smart Talk” came to be. “Look at all the blood, sweat and tears that goes into a career,” she said. “It starts with the smaller jobs, the learning about the profession, the mistakes.”
When it comes to the news today, both LaMar and Davis believe social media has greatly impacted the way it is viewed. “When it comes to journalism, it has allowed all those voices who don’t have the training, don’t have the experience, have their own biases, to have a voice,” LaMar said. They agreed that social media has opened a wider range of choices for news sources, further pushing biases in the world. LaMar summarized his point by saying, “Social media has been a huge game-changer.”
LaMar and Davis kept the audience’s attention throughout, garnering a ton of applause by the end of the night. One member of the audience, Jack Howell, thoroughly enjoyed the event. “I enjoyed it. I am walking away smarter,” Howell said. “His look back on how the news used to be and how it has changed, particularly as it relates to social media was one of my favorite parts,” he later added. You can catch Scott LaMar on “Smart Talk” on weekday mornings from 9:30 to 10:00 a.m.
Director of the Etown Bowers Writers House Jesse Waters was an integral part of putting together this event. “My main job is to find individuals and personalities that I think our campus communities can benefit from,” Waters said in an interview. “Mr. LaMar, having worked at WITF and NPR for going on 30 years and having hosted ‘Smart Talk’ for 12 of those years, seemed like a perfect person.”
When asked about how he was able to get LaMar to come onto campus, he answered by saying, “I just asked. All you really have to do is to have the confidence to reach out to folks.” He made it clear that doing your research about the person and having a good reason for asking them to come onto campus will be greatly appreciated by that individual.
The Bowers Writers House is already looking forward to more people visiting the campus. Some of the names that Waters mentioned are writer T.C. Boyle, who will be visiting on April 8, President of Carnival Cruise Line Christine Duffy, who will be coming in mid-September, and novelist Jason Mott will be on campus from Oct. 13 to 20. “We cover a lot of ground, and we’ll continue to do so,” Waters concluded.
