Liasson focusing on politics in presentation

Although she had worked in newspapers, it was while Mara Liasson was driving across the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge she decided she'd like to try radio. She heard a friend of hers over the air and called him.

Her friend, who worked at Pacifica Radio, a group of Berkeley, California-based listener-supported radio stations, said she could volunteer. That's where Liasson started learning about radio. She joined National Public Radio in 1985 and has been the national political correspondent since 2000 and is a FOX News contributor.

Liasson will present "Let's Talk Politics" during a 7:30 p.m. Oct. 28 appearance at the Show Me Center as part of Southeast Missouri State University's 2014-2015 Speakers Series. Her talk will be moderated by KRCU host and news editor Jacob McCleland.

Her focus will be the Nov. 4 midterm elections. "This year, we're looking at about a dozen Senate races which will determine which party controls the Senate," Liasson said in a phone interview Thursday.

Some notable contests are in Iowa, Colorado, Georgia and North Carolina, she said. Kentucky's U.S. Senate race between incumbent Republican Mitch McConnell and Democrat Alison Lundergan Grimes was one she was watching, as the Democrats were hoping to pick up Kentucky.

However, Liasson said, there's been some volatility in that competition. The Democrats had pulled funding out, but then put some back in again. Kentucky is a "very red state," but McConnell is the "single most unpopular incumbent this year."

From her travels, Liasson said she's noticed the country is much more polarized than it used to be, with fewer "persuadable voters." She noted that the country is getting more liberal on some issues, such as gay marriage.

But in the past 10 years, the Republican Party has absorbed the Tea Party and become more conservative. The Democratic Party has become more liberal, but more slowly.

Democrats had to move to the center, with Clinton, to win the White House. The question for Republicans is whether they will move to the center. It's likely the party will have to update conservatism for an electorate that's skewing younger and includes more women and minorities.

Liasson said her favorite race to cover was the Democratic primary in 1992, which former president Bill Clinton won and the 2008 contest between President Obama and U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona.

"It was just really exciting. It was historic. It changed the nature of the electorate," she said, adding that Obama targeted registering and turning out voters who had never cast ballots before.

Social media also was a factor in that race and now continues to be. "Social media is now a big part of how candidates communicate with voters and voters communicate with each other," Liasson said.

It's also affected reporting as journalists try to get news out on as many platforms as possible.

"We're trying to reach people where they get their information," she said.

Along with her full-time job at NPR, Liasson appears once a week on the FOX program "Special Report." Former "Special Report" host Brit Hume asked her to join the panel. The two knew each other from covering the Clinton White House at the same time.

Liasson's appearance is presented by the Office of the President at Southeast Missouri State University.

Tickets are required for entry. General admission tickets are $10 and can be purchased at showmecenter.biz and the Show Me Center box office. Current Southeast faculty, staff and students can use a valid Redhawks ID to pick up a free ticket in the University Center Room 204, The Center for Student Involvement or the Show Me Center box office.

KRCU is accepting submissions for questions to be asked of Liasson during her presentation at Southeast. Questions must be submitted in advance to askmara@krcu.org. For more information, visit krcu.org or call 651-5070.

rcampbell@semissourian.com

388-3639

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