James D. Ewing World Affairs Lecture
The James D. Ewing World Affairs Lecture was named in honor of James Ewing, owner and publisher of the Keene Sentinel, an award-winning daily newspaper for the Monadnock Region from 1954 to 1993. The Endowment has been established to bring speakers to Keene State College and the Keene community to address current public or world affairs issues.
During his years as publisher of the Sentinel, Mr. Ewing successfully campaigned for a wide range of local and state causes, including environmental protection, freedom of information, and public services for the poor. His life-long dedication was to raise the standards of journalism at home and abroad, to advocate for strong news coverage, open-meeting laws, and fair reporting. His newspaper philosophy was “to help make the Sentinel a force for progress in all senses, and to make a contribution toward a richer life for every person within our reach.”
Mr. Ewing was active in civic and cultural organizations and supported many causes in Keene and beyond. He founded the New Hampshire Humanities Council in 1973 and served as director for the MacDowell Colony, Yankee Publishing Corp., Keene Regional Industrial Foundation, Greater Keene Chamber of Commerce, and the Monadnock United Way. He helped launch the International Center for Journalists, a Washington, DC based training institute for journalists from around the world. For three years, he served as a judge for the Pulitzer Prize in Journalism. Mr. Ewing’s wife, Ruth, continues to pursue the couple’s strong interest in the world community.