NBC's Tim Russert to Speak at UB on April 21

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Tim Russert, senior vice president of NBC News and producer and moderator of "Meet the Press," will deliver the final lecture in the 2003-04 Distinguished Speaker Series of the University at Buffalo at 8 p.m. April 21 in Alumni Arena on the UB North (Amherst) Campus.

Since Russert took over the helm of "Meet the Press" in December 1991, the show has become the most watched Sunday-morning interview program in America and the most quoted news program in the world. Russert has interviewed every major figure on the American political scene. In 2001, Washingtonian Magazine named him the best and most influential journalist in Washington, D.C., and called "Meet the Press" "the most interesting and important hour on television."

In addition to his duties on "Meet the Press," Russert serves as Washington bureau chief for NBC News and as a political analyst for "NBC Nightly News" and the "Today" program. He also anchors "The Tim Russert Show," a weekly interview program on CNBC, and is a contributing anchor for MSNBC.

Before joining NBC News, he observed firsthand the inner workings of the executive and legislative branches of government as counselor in the New York Governor's office in Albany from 1983-84 and as a special counsel in the U.S. Senate from 1977-82.

A native of Buffalo, Russert is a graduate of Canisius High School, John Carroll University and the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law. He has received 22 honorary doctorate degrees from American colleges and universities.

Tickets for Tim Russert range from $12 to $28 and may be purchased at the Alumni Arena ticket office from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, at all Tops outlets and through Tickets.com.