April 10, 2012
For Immediate Release
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| David Brody, chief political correspondent for the Christian Broadcasting Network, speaks at Campbellsville University’s weekly chapel service. (Campbellsville University Photo by Sarah Ames) |
By Tori Banks and Matt Schmuck, student news writers
CAMPBELLSVILLE, Ky. – “We all go into the lion’s den every day,” David Brody, chief correspondent with the Christian Broadcasting Network, said in Campbellsville University’s weekly chapel service. “Mine is the mainstream media.”
Brody, Emmy winning, chief political correspondent for the Christian Broadcasting Network, spoke at Campbellsville University recently for chapel, for a Kentucky Heartland Institute on Public Policy event and also at the 8th annual Media Appreciation Luncheon.
Brody is a 23-year veteran news journalist who covers the White House and interviews national newsmakers across the country. His political blog, The Brody File, has been featured in The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times and The Washington Post.
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| David Brody is interviewed by CU students in a press conference at WLCU Broadcast Services. (Campbellsville University Photo by Matt Schmuck) |
Throughout his career, Brody has had the opportunity to speak with and interview many big name individuals including Barack Obama, Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum, Hillary Clinton, Newt Gingrich and Donald Trump; however, he is not your typical broadcaster.
At the chapel service on campus, he spoke of his spiritual journey, and at the KHIPP event he spoke more on politics while at the Media Appreciation Luncheon, he spoke on journalism as a whole. At chapel, Brody said he strives to integrate his faith with his work by interviewing individuals in the secular world from a Godly perspective, but Brody said he hasn’t always had a personal relationship with Christ. “I grew up in the Jewish faith where I participated in Passover dinners and Bar Mitzvah but I was just going through the motions,” Brody said.
He said it wasn’t until he met his future wife in high school that he began to understand the importance of having a relationship with Christ. “She was the one who started talking to me about God,” Brody said. “But I thought I didn’t need Him because I was Jewish.” “Shortly after we were married I gave my life to Christ. I knew He was calling me to that decision,” he said. Although his family didn’t quite understand why he surrendered his life to the Lord, Brody said he never felt more Jewish than he did in that moment. “All of the traditions and customs made sense,” he said.
After a long career, Brody came to CBN news where he continues to work today interviewing individuals in the mainstream media. Brody strives to incorporate his faith with his work every day as he lives his life sold out for the Lord.
At the KHIPP forum, Obama’s potential Republican opponents were analyzed individually by Brody, who believes Romney sits comfortably in the driver’s seat due to the splitting of the Republican votes three other ways.
With Romney having the upper hand, the question arose in regard to the possibility of either Newt Gingrich or Rick Santorum dropping out of the race.
Brody believes this will not happen, expecting a four-way shootout, including Ron Paul, for the Republican presidential nomination further down the road of the nominating process.
Santorum’s message is that America is a moral enterprise. “There is a moral component to everything about this country,” Brody said of Santorum’s message.
Brody believes Romney looks to be more of a “Mr. Fix it” guy, where as Santorum’s message has a high bandwidth, meaning he covers many key issues. The problem is that Santorum doesn’t have the campaign money that Romney does, Brody said.
“Money isn’t going to win the election,” Santorum said in an interview with Brody for his political blog, “The Brody File.”
When Gingrich begins to enter the discussion of Republican presidential candidate, he wins the evangelical vote with no contest, in Brody’s opinion.
“Evangelicals like Newt Gingrich because he pulls no punches and doesn’t try to mask anything in political correctness,” Brody said.
The problem for Brody when it comes to Gingrich being “that guy” in the fall is simple.
“[Gingrich] is a walking train-wreck,” Brody said in reference to Gingrich’s state-to-state mindset, instead of having a long-term plan.
As to the campaign of Ron Paul, he noted that he will likely stay in the campaign until the Republican nominating convention, that he knows he can’t win the nomination, and he hopes to influence the platform and direction of the fall campaign.
Brody believes that by the end of June, the Republican Party is going to come together to figure out the bigger picture of things. The topic at the forefront of that bigger picture is the question of whether Mitt Romney is a damaged candidate as he prepares to take on President Obama in the fall.
Brody feels that it will be a tight race for president with President Obama a slight favorite due to the power of incumbency and the improving economy.
With the likelihood that Romney will win the GOP nomination, Brody wonders who will be his vice president. Listing a few possible names from out of the woodwork, Brody said Mike Huckabee will most likely be the man who is able to bring evangelical voters onto the Romney express.
“Mike Huckabee would most definitely be the guy to seal the deal,” Brody said. “He’s probably the one guy who could truly get evangelicals off the couch who are skeptical of Romney.”
At the Media Appreciation Luncheon, Brody touched base on similar topics to that of his KHIPP speech. Brody showed a YouTube video of a Herman Cain interview for Brody’s political blog, “The Brody File.”
In the video, Brody asked Cain how he would respond to “gotcha” type questions in his then-attempt at winning the GOP race for Presidential candidate.
Brody asked, “Are you ready for the ‘gotcha’ questions that are coming from the media and others on foreign policy? Like, who’s the president of Uzbekistan?…”
Cain’s response went viral within days with the help of YouTube.
“I’m ready for the ‘gotcha’ questions and they’re already starting to come. And when they ask me, ‘Who is the president of Ubeki-beki-beki-beki-stan-stan?’ I’m going to say, ‘You know, I don’t know. Do you know?’” Cain said. “And then I’m going to say, ‘How’s that going to create one job?’”
Brody’s advice to journalism students, and aspiring journalists alike was simple.
“Be careful,” Brody said. “Because you never know who is going to hear this stuff.
Campbellsville University is a widely acclaimed Kentucky-based Christian university with more than 3,500 students offering 63 undergraduate options, 17 master’s degrees, five postgraduate areas and eight pre-professional programs. The website for complete information is campbellsville.edu.