Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY -- The University of Utah has scored a pretty big name in economics to headline an Abravanel Hall event tomorrow, but at a hefty cost!
It's going to cost the Utah Museum of Natural History and the U's Hinckley Institute of Politics $75,000 to bring author and columnist Thomas Friedman to town.
He's the keynote speaker for a spring lecture series called "The Nature of Things 2009," and is expected to talk about global warming, population growth and the need for a green revolution.
Friedman is reportedly a huge "get" for the lecture series. Director of the Hinckley Institute of Politics Kirk Jowers tells KSL he accepts one speaking engagement for about every 20 requests he receives. He's one of the most sought after speakers in the world," Hinckley added.
Jowers says Friedman will be fascinating to hear at the event Tuesday night at 7 in part because of his ability to start a debate about global warming.
"He blames both parties, that both parties have to at times put their partisanship behind and look at the facts, look at the science, look at the solutions," he said.
Jowers isn't worried about the $75,000 price tag for the speaking engagement. It was agreed on 18 months ago, well before the worst of the economic crisis arrived in Utah. And Jowers says taxpayers can rest assured it's not coming out of their pockets.
"Just the ticket sales, 3,000 times an average price of around $20, you've about paid him off there. And then the sponsorships, you might actually make some money on this, which is useful at this time of economic downturn," he said. Jowers added, "It won't take a penny out of the Hinckley Institute's public funds or endowment."
In Jowers' view, the price tag is more than made up for by the possibilities Friedman brings with him. "The Hinckely Institute is all about trying to get people engaged in politics and public policy, and we hope Friedman will bring new people into that discussion," he said.
Friedman's books include "The World is Flat" and "Hot, Flat and Crowded."
He speaks at Abravanel Hall Tuesday at 7 p.m. Jowers says about 90 percent of the seats are already spoken for. The remaining tickets are available through ArtTix.org or at The Museum of Natural History's Web site.
E-mail: bbruce@ksl.com
