Gordon in the News: last updated 02/15/2008
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 11, 2007
MEDIA CONTACT:
Ashley Hopkins
Office of College Communications
978.867.4569
WENHAM, MA-David Aikman, author, journalist, college teacher, and United States foreign policy consultant, will speak at Gordon College on two subjects: "Christians in the Media" and "Jesus in Beijing." In the latter, Aikman will discuss the long and convoluted history of Christianity in China and the future of the Christian church there.
With a 23-year career at Time Magazine, Aikman reported from five continents and more than 55 countries, focusing especially on Russia, China, and the Middle East. He has interviewed several major world figures including: Mother Teresa, Manuel Noriega, Alexander Solzhenitsyn, Pham Van Dong, Boris Yeltsin and Billy Graham. He also speaks a number of languages, including Russian, Chinese, French and German.
After leaving Time Magazine in July of 1994, Aikman devoted himself to book projects and reporting on international events. He has written extensively on religious persecution issues after first-hand reporting in several countries, including Russia, China, Egypt, and Pakistan, with news-breaking visits to all of these countries. His reports and essays have been featured in Foreign Affairs, The American Spectator, The Weekly Standard, Citizen Magazine, as well as several issues of Time Magazine. In September 1997, his cover story "The Laogai Archipelago" in The Weekly Standard was the most detailed journalistic account to date of China's prison and labor camp system.
Aikman joined the Ethics and Public Policy Center in March 1998. At the Center, he spent part of his time as editor-at-large of Newsroom, an Internet-based news organization reporting on the religious dimension of news from around the world. His 1999 two-hour documentary on the Middle East peace process, "Vanishing Peace: The Aftermath of Oslo," was shown worldwide on the BBC. In 2002, Aikman spent more than three months in China documenting the conditions of religious freedom for his book, Jesus in Beijing.
Aikman's book Great Souls: Six Who Changed The Century (April 1998) was made into a six-part TV documentary for broadcasting on PBS. Two recent books by Aikman are A Man Of Faith: The Spiritual Journey Of George W. Bush (April 2004, a best-seller) and Jesus In Beijing: How Christianity Is Transforming China And Changing The World Balance Of Power At Souls (October 2004). His novel QI, the first in a three-part series featuring an American journalist, Richard Ireton, was released in October 2005.
Aikman continues to be a commentator on the editorial board of Salem Communications, one of the largest radio networks in the U.S., and is a frequent participant on Voice of America's (VOA) weekly foreign affairs program, "Issues in the News." He has also been a commentator on various domestic and international topics on ABC's Nightline, Fox News, CNN, MSNBC and the BBC.
Aikman's visit is sponsored by the Center for Christian Studies and is part of the Faith Seeking Understanding Lecture Series at Gordon, which is funded by a grant from the Lilly Endowment. These events are free and open to the public.
WHAT: Aikman to present on two subjects: "Christians in the Media" and "Jesus in Beijing."
WHERE/WHEN: Thursday, September 13, 2007, 4:30 p.m., "Christians in the Media"; Presidents Dining Room, Lane Student Center. Reception begins at 4 p.m. (open to the public).
Friday, September 14, 10:25 a.m., "Jesus in Beijing" at Convocation, A. J. Gordon Memorial Chapel
For more information on David Aikman or to request photographs, please contact Ashley Hopkins at 978.867.4569 or e-mail [email protected].
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Gordon College is a Christian college of the liberal arts and sciences on Boston's North Shore. The college offers majors in 36 fields and has graduate programs in education and music education. Leading the way in Christian college merit, Gordon is nationally ranked for its excellence in academics and its role in character building. These achievements recognize Gordon as one of the nation's top Christian colleges.
