Professors discuss public, private lives on WPRB's student-run talk radio show

Where can you hear conversations about everything from New York cocktail parties to Maxim magazine to the importance of the Honor Committee? The answer: Princeton's own WPRB.

Daniel Mark '03 began working at the University radio station as a freshman, playing music from the small studio in the basement of Holder Hall. His true interest, however, lay not in music but in talk radio.

During last January's reading period, Mark was given the chance to pursue this interest. Station manager Natalie Walker '03 had noticed the absence of talk radio shows and wanted to schedule one into the broadcasting line-up. Mark jumped at the opportunity to put together such a program.

For the focus of the talk show, he and Walker decided to interview University faculty on the air. Mark said he looked forward to presenting a broader picture of a professor than simply "the person standing behind the podium in class."

Aptly titled "The Professor Show," Mark and Walker's creation debuted in early February with economics professor Harvey Rosen as its first guest. The show airs Thursdays from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. University English professor John V. Fleming was featured on the show last week. He fielded questions about both his academic work and life outside the classroom.

The questions elicited many entertaining anecdotes. One of only two Arkansas natives ever to receive a Rhodes Scholarship, Fleming jokingly referred to himself as the "speakable" Rhodes Scholar from Arkansas and talked fondly about his days at the University of the South — also known as Sewanee — in Tennessee.

Later in the show, Fleming recalled a memorable incident from a cocktail party for a New York publishing company. Upon learning Fleming taught English, an editor asked if he had read John Updike's latest novel. Fleming truthfully responded that he had not. "Pity," the editor frowned as she turned to walk away, "it's been out for six weeks."

Calling her back, Fleming asked whether she had read "The Consolation of Philosophy" by Boethius, and learned that she had not. "Pity," Fleming told her, "it's been out for 1, 460 years."

A politics major, Mark said he will not limit his guests to professors from the social and political science arena. "You don't have to be a politics professor to have a political opinion," he said.

Thursday's show proved Mark's point, as he and Fleming talked at length about topics like the definition of democracy and the importance of religious pluralism in American society.

Mark said that most of WPRB's listeners are not students, but rather community members. However, he believes that students will be able to get something out of the show.

Despite the show's name, Mark said he would not strictly limit the guests to professors. In future weeks, Mark will interview Thomas Breidenthal, University Dean of Religious Life, and he hopes to interview President Tilghman.

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Overall, Mark said he is pleased with the quality of the show and has "received a lot of positive feedback from friends on campus who have been listening."

Mark hopes to continue the show through next year. Considering the University's virtually inexhaustible range of faculty, he will not be at a loss for interesting guests.