IWU News

Arianna Huffington

Political Commentator and Author Arianna Huffington to Speak at Illinois Wesleyan

October 1, 2004

BLOOMINGTON, Ill.—Just preceding the third and final presidential debate, Arianna Huffington will give a talk entitled, “Election 2004: Handicapping the Presidential Race,” at 7:15 p.m. on Wednesday Oct. 13 at the Hansen Student Center, 300 Beecher, Bloomington.

The media is invited to a press conference at 6:30 p.m., and there will be a question and answer session and book signing following the talk. The third presidential debate will be shown during the book signing at 8:00 p.m., also at the Hansen Student Center.

Named one of Washington’s most influential commentators by both Newsweek and People, Huffington writes a syndicated column for newspapers around the country. A satirist, Huffington writes to expose the corruption of the political system and the bankruptcy of political leadership. She is the author of ten books, including Pigs At the Trough, a New York Times bestseller about the alliance between Wall Street, CEOs, politicians, and lobbyists. Her most recent work, Fanatics & Fools: The Game Plan for Winning Back America, is an analysis of leadership in America, fanaticism in the Bush White House and foolishness among the Democrats. Huffington’s other books include The Fourth Instinct, The Call of the Soul, Greetings from the Lincoln Bedroom, How to Overthrow the Government, and biographies of Maria Callas and Picasso.

In addition to commentating, Huffington ran for governor as an Independent in California’s 2003 recall election, during which her populist grassroots campaign drew attention to the influence of special interest money on American politics.

Born in Greece, Huffington graduated from Cambridge University with an M.A. in economics and was president of the Cambridge Union, the famed debating society. She serves on a number of boards that promote community solutions to social problems, and she is co-founder of The Detroit Project, the national campaign linking fuel efficiency to national security and our dependence on foreign oil.

Huffington has appeared on numerous television programs, including Politically Incorrect, Real Time with Bill Maher, The O’Reilly Factor, Larry King, Oprah, Nightline, Inside Politics, Charlie Rose, Rivera Live, Hardball, Good Morning America, and The Today Show.

For more information contact Issues and Programming Commissioner Jessica Lothman at (309) 556-2663.