University Resources Helped Shape "'68"

Tuesday, 27 May 2008 07:23

1968. An election year in which fiery Democratic and Republican presidential candidates vied for their party's nomination. A controversial war. Strained race relations. Student activism across university campuses. And Nebraska was at the center of it all.

2008. A NET Television documentary is birthed from the 40-year-old memories of University of Nebraska alumni, and with the help of current University of Nebraska students, on that pivotal year in American politics. The result: "'68, The Year Nebraska Mattered."

This documentary and its corresponding website, rich with resources and ties to the University of Nebraska, chronicles the presidential campaign of 1968, detailing the significance of the state of Nebraska to presidential contenders. The project also highlights the importance of the firsthand experience of University of Nebraska alumni who were students at the time, many of whom were both involved in the inception of the documentary and featured throughout it.

The documentary will air on NET2 throughout the rest of the election year. It can also be viewed online (www.netNebraska.org/68)

The idea of '68 emerged from the hours of film footage donated by John Prescott, UNO alumnus and editor of the 1968 Gateway student newspaper, who stored thousands of feet of film for almost 40 years.

Another UNO student in 1968, Archie Godfrey, served as a key organizer for Robert F. Kennedy's campaign in Omaha. While in Omaha, Kennedy singled out the efforts of UNO students, praising them for their role in winning the state's primary.

Archival resources at the University of Nebraska, both human and otherwise, were integral in creating the documentary. Dr. Christine Reed, with the School of Public Administration at UNO, allowed her detailed journals of the events of 1968 to be added to the collection of material in the documentary. NET Producers mined the archives of The Daily Nebraskan, UNL's student newspaper, to get student perspectives on the campaign, allowing yet another collection of firsthand experiences to be featured in the documentary and online.

"'68: The Year Nebraska Mattered" does not stop where the campaigning did. Beyond the candidates' trips to Omaha, the documentary features events and issues pertinent to the elections of both 1968 and 2008. Funds from the Nebraska Humanities Council allow for an interactive webpage featuring the scholarship of Professors Peter Longo of UNK and Michael Wagner of UNL, where discussion boards and program information are available. Linking the past with the present, UNL College of Journalism student and NET intern Alina Selyukh researched, interviewed and wrote for the online component.

Expansion of the website during the summer months and a "second premier" of "'68: The Year Nebraska Mattered" during the final weeks of the 2008 presidential campaign are planned. In hopes of a fuller, richer history of the '68 campaign, those who remember the events of the presidential campaign through Nebraska in 1968 are invited to share their thoughts and view the entire documentary online at www.netNebraska.org/68.