McConnell Center Fellow to examine JFK's speech, symbols

(January 28, 2011) LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Dr. Barbara A. Perry, a non-resident McConnell Center Fellow, will examine President John F. Kennedy's rhetoric, symbols, images and his collaboration with speechwriter Theodore Sorensen in honor of the 50th anniversary of Kennedy's presidency.
McConnell Center Fellow to examine JFK's speech, symbols

Dr. Barbara A. Perry

The event will be webcast live from 1:30 to 3 p.m. and is part of a full day of events hosted by the University of Virginia's Miller Center of Public Affairs.

Perry is a senior presidential studies fellow and associate professor at the Miller Center.

Other Jan. 28 webcasts include:

11 a.m. — Michael Duffy, Time magazine’s assistant managing editor and Washington bureau chief, will discuss Kennedy’s candidacy and the making of the first celebrity president. He plans to show some of Time Life’s iconic images of Kennedy.

1:30 p.m. —A panel discussion will examine Kennedy’s rhetoric, symbols, and images, as well as his collaboration with speechwriter Theodore Sorensen. Among the participants will be several Miller Center presidential scholars, including Marc Selverstone, who is currently writing a book about Kennedy and Vietnam; Barbara Perry, author of “Jacqueline Kennedy: First Lady of the New Frontier;” Sid Milkis, author of numerous books on the presidency; and Michael Nelson, co-author of “The President’s Words: Speeches and Speechwriting in the Modern White House.”

3:15 p.m. — Rutgers University Professor David Greenberg, author of “Nixon’s Shadow: History of an Image,” will deliver an address on Kennedy’s image and the anticipated promise of his new administration.

The Miller Center has a wealth of Kennedy resources, including White House tape recordings. Center scholars are transcribing and annotating the hundreds of hours of White House meetings and phone calls that Kennedy secretly recorded. The Center also has in-depth essays about Kennedy and his administration and video of many Kennedy speeches. All of these resources are available to the public at http://millercenter.org/president/kennedy.
Founded in 1975, the Miller Center of Public Affairs is a nonpartisan public policy institution.