Jelani Cobb, dean of the Graduate School of Journalism at Columbia University, delivered two Campbell Lectures at Rice Nov. 19-20, offering a clear-eyed look at the forces reshaping American democracy. Across both nights, Cobb blended the precision of a historian with the urgency of a journalist, walking audiences through the unresolved conflicts at the nation’s founding, the demographic shifts driving today’s political anxieties and the long arc of race and immigration in shaping national identity. Students, faculty and Houston community members filled the new Pitman Cinema Theatre in Susan and Fayez Sarofim Hall to hear Cobb trace the connections between historical memory and the modern political landscape.
Learn more about the Campbell Lectures here.
