Los Angeles — Top journalists and political strategists will offer straightforward assessments of the campaigns and the press and explore the role of media has in shaping the national political discourse at public events during the national political conventions in Tampa and Charlotte.

Politics & the Media: Bridging the Political Divide in the 2012 Elections is hosted by Norman Pearlstine of Bloomberg, Geoffrey Cowan of the Center on Communication Leadership & Policy at the USC Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism and Trey Grayson of the Institute of Politics at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.

These discussions are open to the press and the public. Limited seating is available. Registration required. To RSVP, visit communicationleadership.usc.edu, email commlead@usc.edu or call 213-337-3100. Viewers may also watch the events live online at www.bloomberg.com/live-stream.

Sunday, August 26, 2012 2:00 – 3:30 p.m. The Bloomberg Link, 601 South Harbour Island - 2nd floor, Knightspointe at Harbour Island, Tampa Florida 33602. Confirmed participants: Jill Abramson, executive editor, The New York Times; Russ Schriefer, political and media strategist, Romney for President; Charles Spies, founder & treasurer, Restore Our Future; Al Hunt, Washington editor, Bloomberg News; Dan Schnur, director, USC Unruh Institute of Politics and senior fellow, USC Annenberg Center on Communication Leadership & Policy.

Monday, September 3 2:00 – 3:30 p.m, The Bloomberg Link, Epicentre – Level 3, 210 East Trade Street, Charlotte NC 28202. Confirmed participants: Marcus Brauchli, executive editor, The Washington Post; Matt Bai, chief political correspondent, The New York Times Magazine; Olivia Ma, news and politics manager, YouTube; Ben LaBolt, press secretary, Obama for America; Al Hunt, Washington editor, Bloomberg News; Dan Schnur, director, USC Unruh Institute of Politics and senior fellow, USC Annenberg Center on Communication Leadership & Policy. Hunt will serve as program moderator.

The program will also include a presentation by Schnur on results from the USC Annenberg-Los Angeles Times Poll on Politics and the Press, which was conducted immediately following the announcement of Rep. Paul Ryan as the Republican candidate for Vice President.

“Our job is to inform the public with facts about the critical issues in this year’s U.S. elections,” said Norman Pearlstine, chief content officer for Bloomberg LP. “By joining forces with USC Annenberg and Harvard, we will have a substantive debate about the role of the media in shaping political dialogue and the importance of accurate, non-biased and precise reporting.”

“We are delighted to partner with Bloomberg and Harvard’s Institute of Politics to bring together some of the field’s brightest leaders for an insightful discussion on the ways the press, including new media, are setting the tone for political debate as the nation heads into a spirited general election campaign,” said Geoffrey Cowan, USC Annenberg dean emeritus and director of the Center on Communication Leadership & Policy.

“The Institute of Politics is pleased to join Bloomberg and USC Annenberg at our National Party Conventions in producing a frank look at how traditional and new media define America’s political discourse and continue to shape the 2012 election cycle,” said Harvard’s Institute of Politics Director Trey Grayson.

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Contacts:

Geoffrey Baum, USC Annenberg

Meghan Womack, Bloomberg

Esten Perez, Harvard Institute of Politics