Edwards will speak about his recent publication, “Edward R. Murrow and the Birth of Broadcast Journalism,” a biographical account of radio legend Edward R. Murrow, of whose life the 2005 film “Good Night and Good Luck,” directed by George Clooney, was based.

In recent years, the communications department has studied books like David T.Z. Mindich’s “Tuned Out,” a research project of sorts conducted by the author to help explain declining newspaper readership in the 35 and under age groups.

According to Kenn Gaither, assistant professor of communications at the university, a committee is in charge of choosing the department’s common reading each year, a book which will be used by all of the university’s JCM 200 students.

The members of the board look for books that are “topical, useful and applicable to as many areas [of the communications field] as possible.”

Gaither, who read the novel along with his communications students in the fall, believes that the university’s goal of bringing common reading authors to campus is integral to fostering an optimal learning environment.

“[With Edwards’ visit] students don’t just read the book; they have a chance to meet him, to ask questions and to hear him speak,” Gaither said. “This isn’t just [beneficial] for communications students, but for the school as a whole.”

He expanded further in saying what a“big deal” it is that someone of Edwards’ caliber is coming to campus.

Being “an expert on Edward R. Murrow as well as a well-known journalist,” he hopes that students will come away with “a sense of [Murrow’s] contributions to journalism… a contribution which affected all forms of journalism” and that they may better understand of the legacy which Edwards strives to put to paper.

Edwards began his career in journalism while still in college, serving as a DJ and general jack-of-all-trades at a small radio station in New Albany, Ind.

Best known for his 30 years of work with NPR, Edwards served as an associate producer for news and the station’s only acting newscaster, according to NPR’s online homepage.

Edwards was recognized with numerous awards for his work, including a Gabriel Award from the National Catholic Association of Broadcasters, and the 1984 Edward R. Murrow from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Edward R. Murrow is best remembered for his descriptive, 1950s radio commentary and the mini-war he waged against Sen. Joseph McCarthy during the years of the Red Scare and the communist Black List.

While serving in the army, Murrow anchored and produced for the American Forces Korean Network in Seoul, North Korea. According to National Public Radio [NPR], their would-be protégée first worked as an anchorman with WTOP-AM, a CBS affiliate.

Murrow later became co-host of “All Things Considered” and of “Morning Edition” which he manned along with former Brooklyn Dodger’s radio announcer Red Barber.

Tickets to Edwards’ speech are $12 or free with a valid Elon ID.