There are few people in the world more qualified to give a group of young men and women an educated outlook on the state of world affairs than Cokie Roberts, and the Class of 2004 is very fortunate to have her as commencement speaker this May.
Although speakers like Tom Brokaw and Billy Joel -who have delivered commencement addresses at Fairfield in the past-enjoy better name recognition than Roberts-who has been in broadcasting for 30 years-she is without a doubt one of the most respected figures in journalism. She has won numerous awards, including two Emmys, and was named by American Women in Radio and Television as one of the 50 greatest women in the history of broadcasting.
Although some students reacted negatively to the choice of Roberts as commencement speaker, saying they feared a boring speech about politics; The Mirror feels that a commencement address about anything but the state of world affairs, boring or not, would be out of place considering the state of the world today.
As the days go by, we see starker, more troubling pictures from Iraq as bloody street violence and anti-American sentiment escalate. Every day, more critics subject the Bush administration to more scrutiny concerning its anti-terrorism efforts and whether the Sept. 11 attacks could have been prevented. Never before in recent memory have politics and the state of world affairs been a more important subject. To solicit someone to speak about anything else would be trivial at times like these.
On graduation day, we depart the bubble of Fairfield and the devastating reality of the state of affairs will become evident. Graduation is about facing the future, and looking to make an impact in the world. Hopefully Roberts will not only enlighten but also inspire us to become engaged in the political arena.
Choosing Roberts as 2004 commencement speaker is both an intelligent and timely deed. We look forward to and are eager to hear the words that we will leave Fairfield with.
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