[media-credit name=’BEN CLASSON/Herald photo’ align=’alignnone’ width=’648′][/media-credit]A nationally syndicated progressive radio and television host spoke to University of Wisconsin students about current events and the present state of American media.

Amy Goodman, host of "Democracy Now!" and author of "Static: Government Liars, Media Cheerleaders, and the People Who Fight Back" spoke in the Memorial Union Theater Thursday night as part of the Distinguished Lecture Series.

Goodman opened her talk with news that within the previous hour of her talk, Mychal Bell, one of the Jena 6 who was imprisoned due to racial disputes in Jena, La., had been released from jail.

Goodman said a rally earlier this week that attracted 40,000 people played a significant role in the beginning of justice for the Jena 6.

"When they asked ‘what can people do?' it makes a tremendous difference when they do something," Goodman said. "When people heard, they did something."

Goodman also discussed Hurricane Katrina and the slow attention it received from President Bush, adding the media has "to tell the truth about situations; it's the only way it will change."

"What happened with Katrina was a natural disaster," Goodman said. "What happened after was unnatural."

According to Goodman, corporate media "did the right thing" when they went to Louisiana immediately after Katrina to report how the hurricane affected the citizens, adding Americans "saw true images of devastation."

When Goodman discussed the Iraq War, she questioned why we are not seeing similar images of loss and devastation.

"If we saw these images 24 hours a day for a week, people would see war is not the answer to conflict in the 21st century," Goodman said.

Americans should question what is aired on television and the radio, Goodman said, because the media uses "this national treasure which is our public airwaves."

"Our job in the media is to break the sound barrier so that people can communicate with each other," Goodman said. "I believe in a media that builds bridges, not advocates the bombing of them."

Goodman added that the media is a far more powerful tool then bombs or missiles, calling it "the most powerful weapon in the world."

UW sophomore Julia Randall said she was intrigued by Goodman's discussion on the power of media.

"I thought Amy Goodman spoke from her heart, and she said some things that were really provocative that really made me think about media and how things are run in the 21st century," Randall said.

UW sophomore Bryon Eagon said Goodman's anecdotal evidence about the current media situation was well needed.

"I thought the speaker was very personable, and her experiences really shed light on issues regarding the media and social justice at a local, nation and international level," Eagon said."

Overall, Goodman said the public has an important decision to make regarding media in the United States, regardless of our position or profession.

"We have a decision to make every day and that is whether we want to represent the sword or the shield," Goodman said.

The Distinguished Lecture Series will next host socially conscious investor Bennett Freeman Oct. 9.