Connie Chung (’69) leads the ceremony dedicating Knight Hall, the new 菲利普梅里尔新闻学院 building at the University of Maryland.

四分之一个世纪带来了多么大的变化啊。

1985年，我毕业于马里兰大学，获得新闻学学士学位。  I returned to my alma mater last week with my colleague and fellow alum Rosemary (’93) for the dedication of Knight Hall, the new 菲利普梅里尔新闻学院 building.

When we attended the university, the 新闻 school included public relations as one of the specialty tracks or “sequences” students had to choose in addition to their core 新闻 major courses.  但最重要的是，我们被教导要成为记者。 

我们毕业后，高层决定公共关系课程不属于新闻学院，并把它搬了出去，这是一个极具争议的举动，给很多人留下了苦涩的味道。  For me, the rigorous 新闻 training I received at UM made me a stronger PR person.

On the day of the new building’s dedication罗斯玛丽和我听了许多教授和其他演讲者的演讲。  CNN/US managing editor Jay Kernis (’74) presented 新闻第一线：引领还是追逐变革？  It was fascinating to hear a veteran of such esteemed news organizations as NPR, CBS and now CNN take us through one of his typical days in search of the news.

Kernis谈到了当今世界优秀记者的角色。 He said that no matter what changes, reporting the news will always be about putting a human face and voice to the stories we tell, and making them come alive for the audience.

Reporting the news is important, he said, simply because what happens in the world is important. Good journalists foster a connection to others and to truth 通过 trying to make sense of things together with their audience.  他说，知道“一些让你困惑、有趣或困惑的事情对其他人也有同样的影响，这是一种安慰。” 如果我们都参与进来，我们就会知道真相。  没有人是孤独的。”

令我震惊的是，他关于记者的许多言论也适用于公关专业人士。  也许真正重要的事情并没有太大的改变。