Ford Hall Forum Recordings
This page includes audio, video, and transcripts of Ford Hall Forum’s lectures, programs, and the New American Gazette radio series. The majority of the lectures date from 1981-2013 with the exception of one recording from 1923 and a small number from the 1960s and 1970s.
For a full list of the collection, including non-digitized items, browse the Ford Hall Forum Collection Finding Aid
Many additional recordings are held by the Boston Public Library, WGBH, and Northeastern, please consult their Archives for more information.-
Dr. Thomas Payzant: The Role of Public Education and the Common Good, audio recording, 11 May 2006
Thomas Payzant
Dr. Thomas Payzant, Superintendent of the Boston Public Schools since 1995; Assistant Secretary, United States Department of Education (1993-1995), takes a hard look at the role of public schools in serving the common good. Is an increasingly negative view of government that has been growing in American society at odds with the expectations for what public schools must accomplish? Are public school districts asked to do too much? Is there an intimate connection between the compelling issues of social justice and the role of public schools, and is this connection more at risk today than any time in the past hundred years? Dr. Payzant will draw upon forty years of working to improve teaching and learning in public education to examine these and other questions.
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Sister Helen Prejean, C.S.J. and Joseph F. Savage discuss, "The Death of Innocents: An Eyewitness Account of Wrongful Execution" at the Ford Hall Forum, audio recording, 9/28/2006
Helen Prejean and Joseph F. Savage
Sister Helen Prejean, C.S.J., author of Dead Man Walking: An Eyewitness Account of the Death Penalty in the United States and The Death of Innocents: An Eyewitness Account of Wrongful Execution. Sister Helen currently works with the Death Penalty Discourse Center, the Moratorium Campaign, and the Dead Man Walking Play Project. Should any state have the power to execute? Is the death penalty appropriate retribution for particularly heinous murders? Does it deter crime? Does it fundamentally violate human rights? Author and activist Sister Helen Prejean has been instrumental in sparking national dialogue around these questions. Her book, Dead Man Walking, which portrays her experiences as a spiritual advisor to death row inmates, became a best seller and spawned the Oscar-winning movie of the same title. Tonight, Sister Helen will discuss her life, her work, and why she continues to fight to end capital punishment.
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2006 Louis P. and Evelyn Smith First Amendment Award: Cokie Roberts, Nina Totenberg, and Linda Wertheimer at the Ford Hall Forum, audio recording, 12/1/2006
Cokie Roberts, Nina Totenberg, and Linda Wertheimer
From Watergate to the confirmation hearings of Samuel Alito, from the Reagan Revolution to war in Iraq – the highly praised and award-winning coverage of Cokie Roberts, Nina Totenberg and Linda Wertheimer has shed light on the people, institutions, and social forces shaping our nation. In print, on television, and, most notably, over National Public Radio airwaves, their groundbreaking journalism has not only changed the way millions of Americans view their country and their world, but also had a profound impact on the profession of broadcasting. They join us tonight to receive the Ford Hall Forum’s Louis P. and Evelyn Smith First Amendment Award and share their thoughts on their life and work.
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Thomas B. Wilner, P. Sabin Willett, and Gita Gutierrez discuss, "Guantanamo Bay: Who are the Detainees and Why Does the U.S. Continue to Hold Them?," at the Ford Hall Forum, audio recording, 3/30/2006
Thomas B. Wilner, P. Sabin Willett, and Gita Gutierrez
Thomas B. Wilner, Partner at Shearman & Sterling LLP and lead counsel to the Kuwaiti citizens in Supreme Court case Rasul v. Bush; P. Sabin Willett, Partner at Bingham McCutchen and legal counsel to several Uighur detainees; Gita Gutierrez, civil rights attorney with the Center for Constitutional Rights, conducted the first visit by a habeas attorney to Guantanamo. Moderated by Joshua Rubenstein, Northeast Regional Director, Amnesty International USA.
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Dan Kennedy, Jay Rosen, and Stephen Burgard at the Ford Hall Forum, audio recording, 9/21/2005
Stephen Burgard, Dan Kennedy, and Jay Rosen
The speakers discuss how technology is impacting the field of journalism.
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Howie Carr and Jeff Jacoby discuss, "Both Sides of the Street" at the Ford Hall Forum, audio recording, 6/21/2005
Jeff Jacoby and Howie Carr
Howie Carr discusses his book, The Brothers Bulger: How They Terrorized and Corrupted Boston for a Quarter Century.
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Gloria White-Hammond, Liz Walker & Linda Mason with Kenneth Sweder: Women to Women: A Journey to Darfur, audio recording, 17 November 2005
Linda Mason, Liz Walker, Gloria White-Hammond, and Kenneth Sweeder
Linda Mason, Liz Walker and Gloria White-Hammond discuss their experiences and thoughts about the future of Darfur and its people and what the United States can do. This lecture includes a presentation of video footage of the women's 2005 trip produced by Liz Walker. In February, 2005, Mason, Walker and White-Hammond traveled to Darfur in the western part of Sudan to raise global awareness of the conflict and to raise funds to support the women and children of Darfur. Recent news reports peg the number of displaced people at 2.5 million and estimate 200,000 to 400,000 have died, mostly women and children, in what has been described as ongoing ethnic genocide. Over 200,000 people have fled across the border to Chad.
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Nam Pham, Paul Ton That & Trinh Nguyen with Peter Kiang: Finding a Voice in a New Homeland, audio recording, 06 December 2005
Nam Pham, Paul Ton That, Trihn Nguyen, and Peter Kiang
Thirty years ago, the Fall of Saigon ended the Viet Nam War and led to the first wave of Vietnamese immigration to Boston and other cities in the United States. 130,000 refugees fled Vietnam in 1975, fearing reprisal from the Communist Party. The exodus continued and as of the 2000 census, there were nearly 1,220,000 Vietnamese Americans living in the US, the fifth largest Asian immigrant group in the country. Ten years after diplomatic relations between the US and Viet Nam were re-established, as many as 20,000 Vietnamese live and work in the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston. Panelists talk about generational issues, homeland politics, cultural barriers and challenges, and the contributions Vietnamese Americans have made to the City of Boston and the country as a whole. Presented in partnership with Carney Hospital, Viet AID, City of Boston Office of Neighborhood Services, Office of New Bostonians, and Dorchester Reporter.
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Gloria Steinem's speech “Moving Beyond Words” at Ford Hall Forum transcript, 5/12/1994
Ford Hall Forum
Transcription of a Ford Hall Forum that featured Gloria Steinem, an American feminist, journalist, and co-founder of Ms. magazine. Steinem read excerpts from her book Moving Beyond Words and discussed child abuse as wells as economics in a forum entitled, “Moving Beyond Words.”
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Nat Hentoff discusses, “Is Any Form of Speech So Harmful, So Disgusting, So Dangerous, or So Offensive That It Should Not Be Spoken or Published?" at Ford Hall Forum, transcript, 3/14/1993
Ford Hall Forum
Ford Hall Forum featuring Nat Hentoff, a Northeastern University alumnus, former columnist, novelist, biographer, and Bill of Rights expert. Hentoff discussed current events relating to First Amendment rights in a forum entitled, “Is Any Form of Speech So Harmful, So Disgusting, So Dangerous, or So Offensive That It Should Not Be Spoken or Published?” Nat Hentoff is introduced by Nick Daniloff.
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Al Gore discusses “Earth in the Balance: The Environmental Crisis for Our Nation and Our World," at the Ford Hall Forum, audio recording and transcript, 4/4/1992
Al Gore and Jan Putnam
Al Gore, an American politician and environmentalist, provides an analysis of the environmental crisis and suggestions for individual and collective action in a forum entitled, “Earth in the Balance: The Environmental Crisis for Our Nation and Our World.” Introduced by host and moderator Jan Putnam.
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New American Gazette: “An Agenda for America: David Duke on the Issues,” at Ford Hall Forum, audio recording and transcript, 3/31/1991
David Ernest Duke and Steve Curwood
David Duke, a former Klu Klux Klan leader and Louisiana State Representative, discussed first amendment rights and welfare reform in a forum entitled, “An Agenda for America: David Duke on the Issues.” The forum was originally recorded on March 28 1991 and rebroadcast as part of the New American Gazette radio program on March 31, 1991. The radio broadcast was introduced by host William Hahn.
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The New American Gazette: Stokely Carmichael's speech "Black Power" at Ford Hall Forum, audio recording and transcript, 2/2/1991
Ford Hall Forum and Stokely Carmichael
Stokely Carmichael, a leader in the civil rights struggle and chairman of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee, appeared at Boston's Ford Hall Forum in 1966 advocating for the Black Power movement as a means to reclaim Black Americans’ history and identity. This forum was rebroadcast in 1991, with an introduction by Donald Stewart, as part of the New American Gazette radio program.
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The New American Gazette: An Evening with Robert Frost at Ford Hall Forum, transcript, 3/31/1991
Ford Hall Forum, Robert Frost, and Marvin L. Kalb
Robert Frost, a Pulitzer Prize winning American poet, addresses his views of America through readings of his poetry. The forum was originally recorded in 1961 and rebroadcast as part of the New American Gazette radio program on March 22, 1990. The radio broadcast is introduced by host Marvin Kalb.
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The New American Gazette: Daniel Yergin discusses, "Oil, Money, and Power" at Ford Hall Forum, audio recording, 4/25/1991
Daniel Yergin
Dr. Daniel Yergin, an energy expert and Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money, and Power, discusses the role oil plays in world affairs. The New American Gazette radio broadcast is introduced by host William Hahn.
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John F. Kennedy Library, "Baseball and the Course of American Society: The Last 30 Years," at the Ford Hall Forum, audio recording, 4/16/1990
William Almon, Lou Gorman, Stephen Jay Gould, and Eugene Orza
This Ford Hall Forum features William Almon, Lou Gorman, Stephen Jay Gould, Eugene Orza, and Dan Shaughnessy speaking at the John F. Kennedy Library on 16 April 1990. Ford Hall Forum Collection, Item #: MS113.0142.
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The New American Gazette: Michael Barrett and Theodore Sizer; "How Much School is Enough?," at Ford Hall Forum, audio recording, 11/15/1990
Michael J. Barrett and Theodore R. Sizer
Throughout our country, educators, parents and public officials are seeking ways to improve our schools. Debating, this week, the question of "How Much School is Enough?" are Massachusetts State Senator Michael Barrett, author of November's Atlantic Monthly cover article arguing for dramatic lengthening of the public school year, and Brown University Education Professor Theodore Sizer, who sees the need for a broader range of reforms.
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The New American Gazette: Nora Dunn, David Ross and Rosanne Cash; "Freedom of Expression and Censorship in the Arts", at Ford Hall Forum, audio recording and transcript
Nora Dunn, David Ross, and Rosanne Cash
No issues are burning hotter in America today than those revolving around freedom of expression. A Cincinnati gallery director was put on trial for exhibiting Robert Mapplethorpe's photographs, a rap group lyrics have been found to be obscene in Florida, and the role--as well as the funding--of the National Endowment for the Arts is in question. Bringing their unique perspectives on freedom of expression and censorship in the arts to THE NEW AMERICAN GAZETTE this week are: singer and songwriter Rosanne Cash; Nora Dunn, comedienne and former cast member of Saturday Night Live; and David Ross, director of Boston's Institute of Contemporary Art, an exhibitor of Mapplethorpe's photographs.
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The New American Gazette: Henry Kissinger with Gerald R. Ford at Ford Hall Forum, transcript, 1/31/1990
Ford Hall Forum, Henry Kissinger, and Gerald R. Ford
Nobel Peace Prize laureate and former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger reviews domestic affairs and world events with former President Gerald Ford. They discuss U.S. foreign policy, issues facing the Soviet Union, and the situation of reform in China. The forum was recorded at the Gerald R. Ford Foundation in Grand Rapids, Michigan and broadcast on the New American Gazette radio. The program was introduced by host Marvin Kalb.
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The New American Gazette: Ayn Rand “Apollo (11) and Dionysus (at Woodstock)," at Ford Hall Forum, transcript, 3/1/1990
Ford Hall Forum, Ayn Rand, and Marvin L. Kalb
Ayn Rand provides a detailed analysis of two major event of the sixties -- the Woodstock music festival and the Apollo 11 spaceflight in a forum entitled, “Apollo (11) and Dionysus (at Woodstock).” The forum was originally recorded on November 9, 1969 and rebroadcast as part of the New American Gazette radio program on March 1 1990. The radio broadcast is introduced by host Marvin Kalb.
