J. Todd Foster, the new executive editor of the Chattanooga Times Free Press, will speak at the Sept. 14 meeting of the UTC ElderScholars. Foster’s presentation will begin at 1 p.m. in the Signal Mountain Room of the UTC University Center. Those attending are invited to eat lunch with the group in the UTC University Center cafeteria, beginning at noon.
Mr. Foster has worked previously as a reporter for the Chattanooga Free Press and as an investigative reporter for the Pensacola News Journal.
His background also includes The Bristol Herald-Courier in Tri-Cities, The News Virginian in Waynesboro, The Spokesman-Review in Spokane, The Oregonian in Portland, and People magazine.
He has been awarded journalism’s highest honor, the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service. He was managing editor of The Bristol Herald Courier when reporter Daniel Gilbert spent a year researching why landowners in Appalachia did not received royalty checks when energy companies tapped natural gas deposits.
Mr. Foster graduated from Middle Tennessee State University in 1982 with the BA in Mass Communications. He was named to the university’s Journalism Hall of Fame in 2003.
His topic for ElderScholars will center on The Media in Today’s World with emphasis on the future of newspapers, coming changes, and the Internet’s role in reporting.
The UTC ElderScholars meet the second Tuesday of each month, September through May. Meetings are scheduled at 1 p.m., and email and postal mail announcements will be sent to interested individuals.
Email Sharon McIntosh at smcintosh27@comcast.net to sign up and receive the announcements of upcoming speakers. Most meetings will be held at the UTC University Center, with the exception of the April meeting, which will be held at a local restaurant.
A radio interview on WUTC about ElderScholars is expected to be aired prior to the September meeting. It also will be available as a link for listening on the UTC website.