FRIDAY JULY 8, 2016
LUNCH SPEAKER
AS PART OF THE MIT SEMINAR
CAMPAIGN 2016
Analysis of the candidates, national convention politics, and key states needed to win the election, he will put the campaign in historic context and offer predictions. The talk will be entertaining, informative, and non-partisan.
Robert P. Watson, Ph.D.
Historian, author, professor, political commentator, community leader
Robert Watson has published 36 bookson history and politics, five works of fiction, and hundreds of scholarly journal articles, book chapters, andreference essays. Watson also serves as the series editor for the long-running scholarly book anthology on the American presidency published by the State University of New York and as the editor of two popular encyclopedia sets – The American Presidents and American First Ladies– which are currently in their fourth and third editions, respectively.
His book America’s First Crisiswon the Gold Medal in history at the Independent Publishers’book awards, the novel Tsunami, co-authored with his teenage son, was the runner-up for the International Book Award in juvenile fiction, and several of his books have been nominated for other awards, are in international translation, and have been accepted at leading book festivals. His latest book, The Nazi Titanic, released in April of 2016, has received high praise in early reviews.
Watsonfounded and for many yearsedited the scholarly journal White House Studies,was assistant editor and reviews editor of The Social Science Journal, and has served as a board member with several other academic journals as well aswith the Harry S. Truman Foundation, Calvin Coolidge Memorial Foundation, and George McGovern Center for Leadership and Public Service. Heco-convened a half-dozen national conferences on the American presidency, co-founded the annual Truman Legacy Symposium which is held at the Harry S. Truman Little White House and sponsored by the Truman Presidential Library, edits and directs the Report to the First Lady, which is presented to the White Houseat the time of the inauguration of a new administration, and has served as a visiting fellow/scholar with many organizations including the Truman Presidential Library, Gerald Ford Presidential Museum, Illinois Holocaust Museum, and the US Military Academy at West Point.
Watsonhas been interviewed thousands of times by media outlets around the country and world,including CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, USA Today, The New York Times,NPR,the BBC, and so on, and has appeared onHardball with Chris Matthews, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart,C-SPAN, Book TV, The Washington Journal, Voice of America, and the debut program for American History TV, to name a few.He is also the long-time political analyst for WPTV 5 NBC, a regular guest on the Sunday morning news showsTo the Point (on WPTV 5) and Issues (on WPBT 2 PBS) in Florida, was a Sunday columnist for the Sun-Sentinel newspaper for many years, and has been either the station political analyst or regular guest for numerous talk radio stations, including ABC Radio in Australia, RTE One Public Radio in Ireland, and WIOD 610 AM in Florida.
Watson has interviewed many noted political leaders for television or public forums including: Presidential candidates Senator George McGovern, Governor Michael Dukakis, and Congresswoman Pat Schroeder; national security advisor General Brent Scowcroft; civil rights leader Congressman John Lewis; Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor;noted jurist and Harvard Law professor Alan Dershowitz; Rhode Island Chief Justice Frank Williams;founder of USA Today and the Newseum Al Neuharth;noted journalist and commentator Eleanor Clift; and numerous former White House aides and presidential children and grandchildren. He has briefed numerous dignitaries on policy issues and campaigns including: The Consul General of Japan; the German ambassador to the U.S. and leadership of the Bundestag; Leadership Palm Beach County; Democratic Party leaders from Florida; groups of newly elected offices in south Florida; Palm Beach County Bar Association; and executives at numerous corporate retreats and conventions.
Watsonis active in an array of initiatives, including: Organizing voter registration drives;providing civic education programs for schools; offering workshops forsocial studies teachers;judging History Day contests and spelling bees;hostingcommunity town halls; and moderating political debates. He has delivered over 1,500lectures to civic and professional groups, libraries,historic sites, universities, and other audiencesaround the country and internationally, and has served as a lecturer on 15 luxury cruise ships and has lead study tours to historical sites in Europe, Canada, and the U.S. He also co-founded three non-profits dedicated to civic engagement, grassroots political reform, and fact-checking political ads. Together with his teenage son, he hosts an annual writing contest for K-12 students called Let’s Write Together.
Watson has received a number of awards, including the International Abraham Lincoln Center’s award for his contributions to the study of the presidency, the Children's Hero Award for the civics programs he offers to schools,the South Florida Business Journal’s “Heavy Hitter in Education” for his efforts to promote civic education,the Student Chabbad Center’s award for promoting Jewish education and understanding,and the League of Women Voters’ “Good Government Award” for his election commentary and the “voter guides” he distributes to schools and media outlets every two years. He has been awarded several teaching excellenceaccolades,including Outstanding Professor of the Year at both Florida AtlanticUniversity and LynnUniversity (twice), and the Faculty Service Award at Florida Atlantic University (twice). He has also been inducted into two sports halls of fame.
Robert was born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, attended public schools in nearby Hershey, and was educated at Virginia Tech, where he was a member of the football and track teams. Robert and his wife, Claudia, reside in Boca Raton with their children, Alessandro and Isabella. Watson isProfessor of American Studies at Lynn University and Senior Fellow at the Florida Joint Center for Citizenship.
Contact
Lynn UniversityPhone: 561.237.7432
3601 North Military TrailEmail:
Boca Raton, FL 33431Web: