Lowell Bergman, a distinguished journalist and news producer with more than 50 years of experience in print and broadcast news, including CBS News’ 60 Minutes and FRONTLINE, will be the featured speaker at a Cal State San Bernardino forum on Wednesday, May 22, where he will receive the Pi Alpha Alpha award for Ethical Leadership. “The Abdication of Truth and the Decline of Public Trust” will be from 2-5 p.m. in the Santos Manuel Student Union Theatre, presented by the Department of Public Administration in the Jack H. Brown College of Business and Public Administration in conjunction with Pi Alpha Alpha Honor Society. The event will include video clips of some of his most noteworthy productions, an in-depth discussion the impact of a steadily decline in trust of public officials, a panel discussion with faculty and graduate students, as well as questions, comments, and answers from the audience.  Throughout the event, Bergman will reflect on the ethical and practical necessity of public leaders to be truthful in all matters of public governance. Bergman will be interviewed by Professor Tom McWeeney of the Brown College’s Department of Public Administration. McWeeney said the discussion will also focus on the effect that the recently released Mueller Report will have on the overall issue of public trust in America. “The Mueller report confirms why the public doesn’t trust government. It confirms the deceit throughout the government,” McWeeney said. “We will be talking about the role the press can play and the role public administration can play to help reverse the trend. This is a serious threat to democracy. The implications are staggering.” Bergman’s remarkable career in journalism included being a reporter for the New York Times and as an executive producer at 60 Minutes, 20/20 news magazine and as a producer/correspondent for the PBS documentary series FRONTLINE. Bergman is the Reva and David Logan Distinguished Chair in Investigative Journalism at the Graduate School of Journalism at the University of California, Berkeley, where he has taught a seminar dedicated to investigative reporting for more than 20 years. He is the founder of the school’s Investigative Reporting Program and chairman of its new nonprofit production company, Investigative Studios. Bergman was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for his reporting on the illegal/unethical practices of the tobacco industry. His role was depicted in the highly acclaimed film “The Insider,” in which Al Pacino played Bergman. Some of the ethical dilemmas from that story will be discussed at the CSUSB forum.  Bergman is also the recipient of numerous Emmys, five Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Silver and Golden Baton awards, three Peabody Awards, a George Polk Award in Journalism , a Sidney Hillman Award for Labor Reporting, a Bart Richards Award for Media Criticism, the National Press Club’s Arthur Rowse Award for Press Criticism, a Mirror Award from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, and the James Madison Freedom of Information Award for Career Achievement from the Society of Professional Journalists. For more information contact the Jack H. Brown College’s Public Administration Department Office at (909) 537-5758 or email Marisol.Botello@csusb.edu. For more information on Cal State San Bernardino, contact the university’s Office of Strategic Communication at (909) 537-5007 and visit inside.csusb.edu.