I was in David’s Politics & the Media Class in the early 80s. Here are my thoughts:
Prescient. That’s the only word to describe him.
He taught about politics and the media before anyone even used the word “media.” And before the days of cottage industry consultants, spinmeisters, polling, and everyday people looking at election maps in obscure faraway counties.
And though I didn’t get to take the class—“Politics and the Libido” before a spate of highly publicized scandals that took down candidates-including one shortly after my college days—a name no one’s heard in a while—Gary Hart.
I fondly remember the Wednesday night classes when you had to watch a movie from a film reel on a projector (that David himself had to set up).
In particular, I remember watching the Manchurian Candidate, the Sorrow and the Pity, and most of all—Leni Reifenstahl’s Triumph of the Will. The lessons of that film about propaganda and manipulation have stayed with me more than anything else I learned in college.
I also made lifelong friends in that class.
David’s teaching was one of a kind. He is a legend.
Duke Class of 1983