Parker Lecture Scheduled for October 20th; Honoring Everett Parker

Wednesday September 30, 2015

The United Church of Christ Office of Communications, Inc. (UCC OC), will hold its annual Parker Lecture on October 20th at 8 a.m. in Washington, D.C., at the First Congregational Church. This year's lecture will be especially meaningful because on September 17th, Rev. Dr. Everett C. Parker, known for his groundbreaking work with public rights in broadcasting, passed away at the age of 102.

This year's honorees are:

danah boyd, founder, Data & Society Research Institute and “activist scholar” on the social and cultural implications of technology, will give the 2015 Parker Lecture on Ethics and Telecommunications.
Joseph Torres, senior external affairs director of Free Press and co-author of News for All the People: The Epic Story of Race and the American Media, will receive the Parker Award which recognizes an individual whose work embodies the principles and values of the public interest in telecommunications.
Wally Bowen, co-founder and executive director of the Mountain Area Information Network (MAIN), will receive the Donald H. McGannon Award in recognition of his dedication to bringing modern telecommunications to low-income people in rural areas.

Parker is most widely known for his work in the 1960s, when he fought to establish the right for citizen groups to be heard before regulatory agencies such as the FCC. In 1962, WLBT from Jackson, Mississippi, refused to broadcast Thurgood Marshall who led the Office of Communication of the United Church of Christ at the time. Parker was already known for his work on human rights and freedom of speech and, having worked as a reporter, broadcasting executive, and advertising agency leader, black leaders asked him to take up the issue. The outcome revolutionized broadcasting as stations immediately began serving their entire diverse audiences. Read more about Parker's many contributions to the public interest on his online obituary at UCC OC.

You can register online to attend the October 20th lecture.

To honor Parker's life and his work, UCC OC will also host a tribute to Everett Parker at the Church In the Highlands UCC in White Plains, New York on Saturday, October 3rd, at 11:00 a.m. Learn more about this event at the UCC OC Tribute page.