The Department of English presents Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists Marcus Stern and Jerry Kammer at 7:30 Oct. 25 in McDaniel Lounge.

The lecture, “The Congressman, The Reporters… and How They Toppled Him,” is free and open to the public. For more information, call 410-857-2294.

Stern and Kammer shared a Pulitzer Prize in 2006 for national reporting with the San Diego Union-Tribune. Both work for the Washington D.C.-based Copley News Service and were instrumental in unraveling the scandal that toppled former California Congressman Randy (Duke) Cunningham, a former member of the House Defense Appropriations subcommittee. Cunningham now sits in federal prison after admitting he took $2.4 million in bribes from contractors and others, in exchange for lucrative defense contracts.

The report, along with the federal probe into lobbyist Jack Abramoff, forced House leaders to propose tighter rules for interacting with lobbyists.

“At a time when the public's image of the press is not what it might be, it's comforting to know that journalists like Marc Stern and Jerry Kammer are out there plugging away - and winning journalism's highest honors in the process,” says English Professor Terry Dalton, who arranged the visit. “They are inspiring today's young journalists to become the watchdogs of powerful institutions.”

In addition to the Department of English, the event is sponsored by the departments of Communication and Political Science and International Studies.