Curious CEO – C-SPAN founder Brian Lamb visits Sentinel High School

C-SPAN founder and CEO visits Sentinel’s journalism class

By JENNA CEDERBERG and ANDREA MILLER of Represent in the Missoulian

Sitting in the same room with the founder and CEO of a major cable company is rather incredible. Watching him shake 25 students’ hands, ask their names, grades and where they’re from, then recall that information during a 50-minute class is purely awe-inspiring.

Sentinel High School journalism students recently received that opportunity Oct. 3 when

C-SPAN founder and CEO Brian Lamb gave an interactive lecture to teacher Jennifer Keintz’s Journalism I and II classes.

Lamb came to Sentinel because he wanted to know more about what teenagers think about politics and learn their views on our government system. Sentinel was the last stop on a Rocky Mountain tour Lamb and several of his colleagues made. He made the trip because he was, well, curious.

"I am, more than anything else, curious. Curiosity is the only thing that leads to journalism," Lamb said.

Lamb began his lecture by writing "CURIOUS" across the board, then prompted students to become curious about him. He believes if students want to excel in the world of journalism, they must first be curious. He stressed that the only way to be a successful journalist is to learn more.

Lamb’s own life and success prove his assertions. A native of Lafayette, Ind., Lamb started C-SPAN 25 years ago with the help of 22 other men, including Bill Bresnan of Bresnan Communications, the current cable provider in Missoula. Bresnan was also present at the lecture.

At 35 and living in Washington, D.C., Lamb decided he wanted to reduce the power and influence of the three major networks, NBC, CBS and ABC. "I was meeting guys like (Bill) Bresnan and kept asking, ‘How about us doing something other than what these three networks are doing?’ " he said. "I just kept doing and talking to people. At the time, I didn’t know it was hard. I’d go to bed at 9 and get up at midnight."

Lamb and his supporters started C-SPAN to "provide an opportunity for people who are interested in government, politics and history as they happen."

Because C-SPAN was one of the first cable television channels, Lamb said, "Not many people in those days thought we had much of a chance."

However, since 1977, C-SPAN has grown to occupy three different TV stations, a radio station, and is an important contributor to the political education of Americans.

In addition to his duties as CEO, Lamb is also the host of the weekly program "Booknotes," an author interview series. Each week, Lamb must read a different book and familiarize himself with the author he will interview. In the past 15 years, he has read 745 books.

To achieve this overwhelming number (for the average person), he gets up at 4 a.m. to read his book for the week. Yet, he doesn’t stop there. Upon arrival at work around 6:30 a.m., he reads six to nine newspapers, including The Washington Post, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, in addition to the Web site thedrudgereport.com.

Lamb’s reading habit illustrates his internal curiosity. He said, "I want to find out before anyone else. I want to know before someone says, ‘Did you hear?’ "

Before he left, Lamb challenged the classes to read Catherine Drinker Bowen’s "Miracle at Philadelphia," a book he read 17 years ago that changed his life. In addition, as a fellow journalist, he felt it important to stress that "if you’re not excited about what you do every day, you’re in the wrong profession."

Andrea Miller is co-editor in chief of Sentinel’s student newspaper, the Konah. Jenna Cederberg is co-assistant managing editor. Both are seniors

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