Rhoden will be discussing his work at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 13, in the Convocation, Athletic and Recreation Center nicknamed Roos House. The event is free and open to the public.

William Rhoden, author of “Forty Million Dollar Slaves,” will answer questions about his writing at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 13, at Roos House.

“Focusing on the juggernaut of professional sports, Rhoden forces us to examine and question some of the fundamental ideas our culture has to offer about race, power, and history,” said Assistant Professor of English Phil LaMarche, who created the series to allow students enrolled in his Living Writers Course to meet and hear from the authors whose books they are required to read in class.

Rhoden is perhaps best known for his book “Forty Million Dollar Slaves: The Rise, Fall, and Redemption of the Black Athlete,” which deals with the challenging issue of the status of the black athlete in contemporary America. Using the pervasive metaphor of the plantation, Rhoden describes a modern sports industry defined by white ownership and black labor.

During a journalism career that has spanned more than three decades, Rhoden has tackled complex issues in the sports world. He has written “The Sports of the Times” column since 1990, and his work has been included in a number of anthologies including “The Best American Sports Writing 2007.” Rhoden is also a frequent guest on ESPN’s long-running Sunday morning show, “The Sports Reporters.”

Rhoden’s accolades include a Peabody Award for his writing on the HBO documentary “Journey of the African American Athlete.” Most recently, he wrote the HBO documentary “Breaking the Huddle,” about the integration of College Football, which won a 2009 Emmy for outstanding Documentary Film. He is also author of the critically acclaimed book, “Third and A Mile: The Trials and Triumphs of The Black Quarterback.”

Rhoden will answer questions and be available for book signings after the event. Copies of “Forty Million Dollar Slaves” will be available for purchase.

Upcoming presenters will include Iain Haley Pollock, author of “Spit Back a Boy,” at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 27, and Siobhan Fallon, author of “You Know When the Men Are Gone,” at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 24. Both events will be held in the College’s Kingston Theater and are free and open to the public.

Media inquiries should be directed to Gregory Kie, Media Relations Manager, or call 315/386-7527.

The 1975 graduate is co-owner of Carr-Hughes Production in Saratoga Springs, a respected sports TV production company with a long history handling international television coverage for sports like luge, bobsled and skeleton.

Hughes will be coming back to SUNY Canton to talk about filming and production at 2 p.m. Friday, March 11, in the Richard W. Miller Campus Center’s Kingston Theater. The event is free and open to the public. The presentation will be of particular interest to the College’s graphic and multimedia design students.

“I was responsible for managing the production process at the luge, bobsled and skeleton venue during Vancouver,” Hughes said. “The production was massive with 54 cameras and a crew of about 100 people from around the world.”

Hughes has worked with NBC and Universal Sports and produced programming for ESPN, Speed Channel and many other networks. He and his company filmed the World Equestrian Games and are the host broadcaster for all the major Track and Field meets in the U.S. If it’s moving fast or flying through the snow, he can find a way to film it and rebroadcast it to major networks around the world.

“I’m going to enlighten students about the uniquely democratic world of mobile television production,” Hughes said. “Motivated students who have interest and ability in any aspect of production (sound, editing, filming, or direction) can launch their career straight out of college.”

Carr-Hughes Productions is renowned for their global sporting events and home to world-class post-production facilities. They offer site production, post-production, and live televised event programming.

“We’re in the process of establishing an educational relationship with Mr. Hughes with the hopes of establishing internship possibilities for our fourth-year students in the graphic and multimedia design program,” noted SUNY Canton President Joseph L. Kennedy. “His insights will provide our students an inside look at a competitive and lucrative career option. Students who are interested in the possibility of an internship or career in television production should plan on attending the presentation.”

Guests at the program will be able to screen some of Hughes’ recent work, including a track meet recently filmed for ESPN. He said each broadcast presents its own unique decisions that need to be made and major production decisions need to be made rapidly without any hesitation. “In this business, you need to be a self-starter with the ability to learn and do things on the fly,” Hughes said.

Hughes was a competitive luge athlete after graduating from SUNY Canton. He went on to coach the 1984 U.S. Olympic luge team in Sarajevo before moving to television production. Examples of some of his work can be viewed at www.carr-hughes.com.

Media inquiries should be directed to Gregory Kie, Media Relations Coordinator, or call 315/386-7528.