Actor, author Harper to give Michael Davis lecture next week

Actor and author Hill Harper, best known for his portrayal of Dr. Sheldon Hawkes in the television series "CSI: NY," will present Southeast Missouri State University's annual Michael Davis Lecture at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday in Academic Auditorium.

The presentation, titled "Manifest Your Destiny," is part of the university's 2014-2015 Speaker Series and is free and open to the public.

The Michael Davis Lecture recognizes the contributions of African-Americans in the media and also honors the late Michael Davis, a journalism student at Southeast who died as a result of a hazing incident in 1994.

Tamara Zellars Buck, an assistant professor of mass media, worked with Davis at the Arrow, Southeast's student newspaper.

Buck said when she arrived at the Arrow newsroom, her colleagues told her to sit down before they explained what happened to Davis.

"That's how I discovered that my friend had been killed," she said.

In 1997, the then Department of Mass Communications hosted its first Michael Davis lecture to honor his memory as part of the university's Black History Month activities. The lecture continues each year, with a special guest invited from the mass media.

"It's important to share the minority experience, because those are voices that don't get heard all the time," Buck said, adding the department is bringing in speakers who can inspire anyone to work harder in their industry. "If you don't understand the minority perspective, then that impacts you as a media professional. If you do understand it, you can make it better for all minorities."

Past speakers included Wesley Lowery, a political correspondent for The Washington Post, and Keith Reed, senior editor for ESPN The Magazine.

"Hill Harper is our most visible celebrity," Buck said. "Typically, we bring people recognized within an industry, but may not be an A-lister."

Harper represents what the Michael Davis lecture series stands for, Buck said, "and that is bringing forward an African-American media professional who can talk about their experience and share insight into what is happening in the industry."

Harper has written four New York Times best sellers: "Letters to a Young Brother," "Letters to a Young Sister," "The Conversation" and "The Wealth Cure," which chronicled his diagnosis with thyroid cancer and his journey to health.

"Letters to a Young Brother" won several awards and was named "Best Book for Young Adults" by the American Library Assocation in 2007.

In an effort to stop the high-school dropout rate and improve the life chances of underserved youths, he created the Manifest Your Destiny Foundation -- a not-for-profit focused on empowering, inspiring and guiding young people toward a better future, as well as developing the leadership capacity young adults need to serve as mentors.

Harper stars on USA Network's "Covert Affairs" as CIA station chief Calder Michaels. Before "CSI: NY," Harper co-starred as an ambitious undercover FBI operative on the CBS series "The Handler," which earned him a 2004 Golden Satellite Award nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.

klamb@semissourian.com

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