WPDU to Debate the British National Debating Team
UPDATE:View the debate online here
The Department of Communication will host an international public debate between the William Pitt Debating Union (WPDU) and the British National Debating Team, Friday October 5 from 5:00pm to 6:00 pm in Pitt's English Nationality Room, 144 Cathedral of Learning.
Pitt Communication doctoral students Matthew Brigham and Catherine Morrison will defend the motion, “This House Would Give Ahmadinejad a Forum,” while visiting British national champion debaters Alex Just and Alistair Cormack will provide loyal opposition.
Born and raised in Edinburgh, Scotland, Just is a former President of the Oxford Union and is currently a senior at the University of Oxford studying History and Politics. He was a Grand Finalist at the World Schools' Debating Championships in Singapore and a Grand Finalist at the World Universities' Debating Championships in Malaysia.
Cormack recently graduated from the University of Durham with an honours degree in History and Politics. He was ranked in the top ten European speakers of 2006 and is also a finalist at the English National Championships.
As intercollegiate debaters, Brigham and Morrison both excelled in policy debate competition for Baylor University and James Madison University. The debate will be moderated by Gordon Mitchell.
Pittsburgh is the fifth stop on the British National Debate Team's four-month tour of the United States. The American Forensic Association and National Communication Association is sponsoring the British tour.
Audience questions and good-natured heckling are encouraged for Friday's debate, which is free and open to the public. For more information, call 412-624-2887.