Thomas Hollihan addresses students and faculty in Garland Theater. Courtesy of Jennifer Godwin-Minto
By DANIEL REARDON
Student contributor
In the week before the national elections, a large group of Upper School students skipped their usual classes to attend a presentation by Thomas Hollihan, a professor at the Annenberg School of Communications at the University of Southern California. Hollihan spoke on several interconnected topics in the sphere of politics and political discourse.
First, Hollihan described the ways in which people create mental “frames” that shape their political opinions and presented the components of a typically conservative and typically liberal frame. The professor argued that the changes in media format and the specialization of individual news outlets, particularly in the television industry, have contributed to the political polarization of our society. Hollihan also covered the emergence of new Internet-based media, such as blogs, and he explored the questions of whether such new outlets will ultimately increase or decrease the segregation of differing political opinions.
Students from each grade attended Hollihan’s talk, and teachers of many different subjects gave up their class time for the presentation. The audience appeared to be engaged by his quick-moving style and the relevance of the topic to their daily lives, and many students and teachers asked questions after the presentation. Several people were interested in Hollihan’s thoughts on the possibilities for reducing the divisions in politics and media coverage.
Junior Mimi Bea remarked, “The topic of the presentation was really interesting. It was relevant not only because of the election, but also because it coincides with our study of political rhetoric in English class.”
Though Hollihan freely acknowledged that he himself tends towards a liberal perspective, he worked to be fairly evenhanded in addressing the shortcomings of media on both sides. The audience members asked questions respectfully, and the overall response was positive. A conservative student remarked that Hollihan’s talk was both more interesting and less divisive than the presentation by actor and activist Mike Farrell last year. Farrell appeared at an assembly to discuss his efforts to eliminate the death penalty, provoking a series of heated questions from members of the student body and an enormous debate throughout the high school.
Leave a Reply