Dan Gediman
This I Believe
Dan Gediman, executive producer of the enormously popular NPR series collects and presents the core personal philosophies of Americans — ranging from the famous to the previously unknown. The first of the two books of essays featured in the NPR series became a New York Times bestseller in paperback. The most recent volume (2008) is now in paperback. Both books have become popular with "One Book, One Community" library projects, Common Reader programs, and First Year Experience reading programs on college campuses. Having Dan Gediman, the executive producer of the series speak to your group perfectly complements a community or campus-wide reading of the books. Selected contemporary This I Believe essays include the beliefs of such luminaries as Colin Powell, Gloria Steinem, Bill Gates, John Updike, Amy Tan, and Muhammad Ali. In addition, the series has featured the beliefs of everyday citizens such as students, artists, scientists, physicians, politicians, and even an astronaut.
This I Believe is based on a 1950s radio program of the same name, hosted by acclaimed journalist Edward R. Murrow. The series featured personal essays by some of the leading public figures of the time, including Eleanor Roosevelt, Jackie Robinson, Helen Keller, Upton Sinclair, Margaret Mead, Albert Einstein, and President Harry Truman. These essayists' words brought comfort and inspiration to a country worried about the Cold War, McCarthyism, and racial division. (These essays are now featured in weekly broadcasts on Bob Edwards' satellite and public radio shows.) In reviving This I Believe for public radio nearly 50 years later, executive producer Dan Gediman was guided by the original idea: to ask contributors to put into 600 words the guiding philosophy of their lives. Gediman says, "The goal is not to persuade Americans to agree on the same beliefs. Rather, the hope is to encourage people to begin the much more difficult task of developing respect for beliefs different from their own." This I Believe helps people connect with the values that matter most in their lives. It is a worthy exercise at every stage of life from high school to the retirement home because by fostering this type of reflection and self-examination, people are encouraged to become more engaged citizens and more fulfilled human beings.
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