Nineteen-time Emmy award winner John Stossel will be speaking at Syracuse University on Monday in his lecture titled “Freedom and Its Enemies.”

Stossel, who anchors his own show on Fox Business and was an investigative reporter on ABC News, will be speaking on what’s he’s learned as a reporter. The lecture is hosted by the College Republicans, and will be held at 7:30 p.m. in the Grant Auditorium.

Through his journalistic experience, Stossel said he has shifted from advocating government regulations to watching government regulation worsen conditions.

“I was a liberal consumer reporter who won these Emmys bashing business and calling for regulation,” he said. “After seeing how regulations enriched lawyers and just slowed life down, I just tried to rethink.”

He called himself an “enemy of freedom” during his time as a consumer watchdog reporter with ABC News. Stossel was the co-anchor of “20/20,” and had several specials, including “Sick in America: Whose Body is it, Anyway?” “Stupid in America” and “John Stossel Goes to Washington.”

Stossel said he would be discussing the idea of “enemies of freedom” in the lecture, which he believes to be politicians, bureaucrats and the government force.

James Ward, chairman of the College Republicans, described Stossel as a reporter who has a “hard-lined style with facts” and said attendants can expect a “powerful argument” concerning government regulation and the nation.

Ward added that SU students would have the opportunity to learn from Stossel’s political and journalistic expertise if they attend the lecture.

Stossel has also written several books, including “No, They Can’t: Why Government Fails-But Individuals Succeed,” “Give Me a Break: How I Exposed Hucksters, Cheats, and Scam Artists and Became the Scourge of the Liberal Media…” and “Myths, Lies, and Downright Stupidity: Get Out the Shovel — Why Everything You Know Is Wrong.”

Stossel will also speak about the government shutdown, which began Oct. 1.

“I think we ought to shut more down, because we’re going broke and much of what the government does is harmful,” Stossel said.

Ward also said Stossel’s point of view as a libertarian provides a different perspective on the role of government and its role in everyday life, compared to both Democrats and Republicans.

Stossel describes himself as a libertarian and advocates for the reduction of government regulation, he said.

He added that SU students should go to the event to learn how government regulations work, and how they could be hurting the country instead of helping.  He also invites students who disagree with his point of view to attend.

Said Stossel: “If they want to tell me why I’m wrong and have an argument about it, I welcome that.”

Published on October 13, 2013 at 11:29 pm

Contact Alfred: alng@syr.edu

@alfredwkng