<p>Boston Globe Editor Martin Baron plans to address students at UCLA on Friday, speaking on the future of mass media and foreign correspondence.
<br/>The event is the first in a series of events hosted by the Progressive Jewish Student Association, a group that intends to improve relations between Jews and other national and religious groups.
<br/>Baron has spent 30 years in journalism and became editor of the Boston Globe in August 2001. Previously, he was editor at the Miami Herald and worked at the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times. In 2001, the Miami Herald earned a Pulitzer Prize for news coverage and Baron was named ?Editor of the Year? by Editor & Publisher magazine.
<br/>Organizers said they hope students will gain a new understanding of foreign events and correspondence from the editor of one of the largest newspapers in the country.
<br/>?Most of what people know about the world today, they know from mass media,? said Ari Bloomekatz, co-director of PJSA and a former Daily Bruin reporter.
<br/>But organizers said a main goal is for people to realize they can interact with mass media.
<br/>?I hope that people can play an integral role in shaping mass media and the coverage of world events. They might think that they can make a difference,? Bloomekatz said.<br/>The talk is the first in a series of events from PJSA over the coming month. Other events this quarter include a speech by Molly Melching, founder of Third World development organization Tostan; a film screening with Kenneth Turan, a film critic at the Los Angeles Times; and a benefit concert of music and dance.<br/>PJSA intends to use these events to broaden perceptions of Jewish culture beyond campus stereotypes.<br/>?There is an idea that all Israelis are Jewish and all Jews are Israeli,? Bloomekatz said. ?The problem with this kind of narrow-minded dialogue about what it means to be Jewish is that it alienates quite a number of people.?<br/>Organizers said they seek to unite people from all national, political and religious backgrounds to discuss media. Bloomekatz added it is helpful to discuss this important issue without the confines of nationalism.<br/>PJSA?s other co-director, Ariel Stevenson, said she believes the event fills an important role.<br/>?We think that a space for dialogue has been neglected in the past couple of years,? she said.<br/>Stevenson added that promoting cross-cultural debate on campus is often more important than addressing issues directly.<br/>But PJSA organizers hope all students will find the event interesting.<br/>?I think it?s really important that students realize that foreign issues are so important in their domestic life. Often these are more important than domestic issues,? Bloomekatz said.<br/>But he expressed concern at the lack of events bringing Jewish students together with other groups.<br/>?Why aren?t Jews and Muslims on campus, instead of being hostile, getting together and having a debate over a good meal??</p><br><br><a href='; target='_blank'>;