On Monday our Shaftesbury Society forum looked at the controversy over the hiring of New York Times reporter Nikole Hannah-Jones by UNC-Chapel Hill’s journalism school and the claims Hannah-Jones makes about the founding of our country in the 1619 Project.
Our guests included Peter Wood, President of the National Association of Scholars, and Dr. Matthew Spalding, Vice President for Washington Operations, Hillsdale College. Wood is the author of 1620: A Critical Response to the 1619 Project. Dr. Spalding recently took leave from Hillsdale College when he was appointed Executive Director of the President’s Advisory 1776 Commission, which produced the 1776 Report.
Hannah-Jones’ hiring has thrust North Carolina into the national spotlight over the discussion of who we are as Americans, what our country represents, and the principles on which she was founded. During our conversation, we asked our experts to explain Hannah-Jones’ claims about our founding in the 1619 Project.
WATCH Spalding and then Wood describe and discuss her central claim.
