Jack E. Hill film opens lecture series at Pryor Center

FAYETTEVILLE — The David and Barbara Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History in Fayetteville will open its 202223 season of Pryor Center Presents lectures at 6 p.m. Wednesday with a discussion by Robert Cochran and Dale Carpenter about their recently published book, “Reporting for Arkansas: The Documentary Films of Jack Hill.” This event is cosponsored by the University of Arkansas Press.

The book is a biography of journalist and documentary filmmaker Jack E. Hill, told in part through discussion of his many films. Hill’s work for KAIT-TV in Jonesboro and his own production company, TeleVision for Arkansas, reflects a passion for Arkansas history and a determination to report on significant events and local perspectives, according to the Pryor Center.

The presentation will feature Hill’s 2004 film, Doing the Right Thing, about the 1954 desegregation of the public schools in Charleston. Individuals interviewed in the documentary will make guest appearances Wednesday evening.

Carpenter taught broadcast journalism and documentary filmmaking at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville for a quarter century. His documentary films have been broadcast nationally on PBS and have garnered seven regional Emmy Awards. Carpenter was also a cameraman on many of Jack Hill’s documentaries including Doing the Right Thing.

Cochran is professor of English and director of the Center for Arkansas and Regional Studies at the university. He is currently finishing a book on Charles Portis.

Cochran edits the Arkansas Character series for the UA Press, of which “Reporting for Arkansas” is the fourth volume.

This event will be held in person and via Zoom at https://bit.ly/3BlnVCP. If you wish to attend virtually, please register in advance with an e-mail address that is associated with a Zoom account. Registration is not required for in-person attendance.

The Pryor Center is located at 1 E. Center St., Suite 120, on the downtown Fayetteville square. The event is free and open to the public.