About InfoSpeak
As a Master of Library and Information Science graduate student looking at a book on the history of public libraries in America, I stumbled upon a passage about something called The Lyceum and the movement that it inspired about a hundred years ago. I learned that the historical Lyceum was an important public building in ancient Athens where some of the greatest thinkers in history lectured and debated. Searching the internet, I found that the Lyceum model of public discourse saw resurgence in the 19th century:
...in the late 1800s and early 1900s there was an informal network of lyceums in the United States, usually in small towns. Professional speakers would tour from town to town, lecturing on history, politics, art, and cultural topics in general, usually holding open discussion after the lecture. The best description of this mostly forgotten phenomenon might be a cross between the European coffeehouse of the 17th and 18th centuries with the organizational aspects of vaudeville.
The idea behind the Lyceum, to bring compelling authorities together to share knowledge, had obvious appeal. I asked myself: why not create an audio program in the spirit of the Lyceum to reach out to listeners through podcasts? Working in collobration with some very intelligent and talented fellow students made it possible.
InfoSpeak: student-produced serial media
This Information School student-produced audio program for podcast is similar to the interview format of public radio programs. InfoSpeak addresses the evolving world of information. Topics were chosen for relevant controversy and impact on our evolving information culture.
When working at your home computer, jogging with your MP3 player, or kicking back and relaxing, please join our interdisciplinary graduate student team to hear what's happening in the information world-- with a download of InfoSpeak.
~ Michael Wood, Program Director
12.14.05