APPLETON, WIS. — British-born author, award-winning journalist and noted conservative political blogger Andrew Sullivan examines the U.S. political landscape Tuesday, Feb. 5 in a Lawrence University convocation.
Sullivan presents “American Politics: A View from Home and Abroad” at 11:10 a.m. in the Lawrence Memorial Chapel, 510 E. College Ave., Appleton. Sullivan also will conduct a question-and-answer session at 2 p.m. in the Coffeehouse of the Lawrence Memorial Union. Both events are free and open to the public.
A senior editor at The Atlantic and a columnist for The Sunday Times of London, Sullivan was among the first mainstream journalists to experiment with blogging. Known for its insights on current events and people in the news, Sullivan’s blog, “The Daily Dish” on the homepage of The Atlantic.com, has become one of the country’s most widely read political blogs, helping establish Sullivan as one of America’s most influential intellectuals.
Sullivan has written three books, including “The Conservative Soul: How We Lost It, How to Get It Back.” Published in 2006, it traces the shift in political conservatism from a narrowly defined political philosophy to a concept dominated by religious fundamentalism.
His first book, 1995’s “Virtually Normal: An Argument About Homosexuality,” examined gay rights from four perspectives — prohibitionist, liberationist, conservative and liberal. In his second book, “Love Undetectable: Notes on Friendship, Sex, and Survival,” Sullivan presented a series of essays on the deep connections between homosexuality and friendship.
Educated at Oxford and Harvard universities, Sullivan began his journalism career as an intern at The New Republic magazine while still a student. In 1987, he was appointed an associate editor at TNR, the youngest in the magazine’s history, and four years later was named its editor-in-chief.
Under Sullivan’s editorship, The New Republic earned a reputation as one of the nation’s most lively and controversial journals of opinion, addressing issues of race relations and gay rights. AdWeek recognized Sullivan with its Editor-of-the-Year Award in 1996.
During his career, Sullivan also has written for The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Time, Esquire, and The New York Times Magazine. He has appeared frequently on “The Chris Matthews Show” and NPR’s “Talk of the Nation” as well as many other public affairs programs, among them “Meet the Press,” “Nightline” and “Face the Nation.”
