After trips to the Middle East, Africa and most recently India, Jon Lee Anderson stopped by Chapel Hill on Thursday night before continuing on to Egypt.
Anderson, a foreign correspondent for The New Yorker, spoke about his experiences reporting from war-torn regions around the world to more than 100 people gathered in Carroll Hall.
“Americans have to be aware they have an impact on the world,” he said. “Things don’t just happen.”
Anderson’s speech is the first installment of the two-part series “War Stories” hosted by the global studies department.
Helene Cooper, White House correspondent for the New York Times and UNC graduate, is scheduled to speak in March.
Andrew Reynolds, chairman of the global studies department, solicited the speakers.
Reynolds said he hoped they would unveil the realities of war and share their experiences as journalists. He called Anderson one of the leading foreign correspondents in the world.
“He’s been the main person opening our eyes to what’s going on in Afghanistan,” said Reynolds, who helped write that county’s constitution.
“His breadth of knowledge of the world is unrivaled. He gives us, in much better color, an understanding of the complexity of the world.”