Law & Order SVU Executive Producer to Speak at the University of Texas at Austin

EVENT: Neal Baer, M.D., executive producer of NBC’s “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” will present “Medicine & Hollywood: Raising Awareness Through Television” as part of the John P. McGovern Centennial Award Lectureship in Health Communication. Baer will use his medical background to take the audience behind the scenes of “Law & Order” and “ER,” where some of the most pressing medical issues society deals with are incorporated into the plots.

This event is free and open to the public. Please RSVP to Wade Lee w_lee@mail.utexas.edu or (512) 232-5466.

WHEN: 4-6 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2006

WHERE: Connally Banquet Hall in the Etter-Harbin Alumni Center on The University of Texas at Austin campus, 2110 San Jacinto Blvd. (Maps of the campus can be obtained at www.utexas.edu/maps/main).

BACKGROUND: Dr. Baer graduated from Harvard Medical School and completed his internship in pediatrics at Children’s Hospital in Los Angeles. Prior to his work on “SVU,” he was executive producer of the NBC series, “ER.” A member of the show’s original staff and a writer and producer on the series for seven seasons, he was nominated for multiple Emmys for both writing and producing.

The John P. McGovern Lecture was established in the College of Communication in 1983 by a gift from the John P. McGovern Foundation. The endowed lectureship enables the College to invite a leading figure in communication to deliver a lecture related to health policy or the practice of health communication. Former lecturers include David Andrews, president of Population Communications International; Robert DuPont, M.D., president of the Institute for Behavior and Health, Inc.; Gina Kolata, science and medical reporter for the “New York Times”; and former First Lady Betty Ford.

John Phillips McGovern, M.D. is a celebrated physician, educator, author, medical historian, philosopher, philanthropist and humanitarian based in Houston. According to the American Medical Association, he is “one of the giants in American medicine.” His international reputation in various fields is reflected in honorary degrees from 30 colleges and universities. As a philanthropist with two foundations, Dr. McGovern is generous to institutions throughout the United States and abroad.

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Arrangements for the appearance of Neal Baer made the Greater Talent Network, Inc., NY, NY

Contact: Wade Lee, (512) 232-5466

or

Erin Geisler, (512) 475-8071,