Allegheny General Hospital and the West Penn Allegheny Health System announced today that nationally recognized, senior CNN political analyst David Gergen will deliver the featured presentation at the fourth annual Gerald McGinnis Cardiovascular Institute Speaker Series. 

Presented in part by Phillips Respironics, Inc., PNC and KDKA news radio, the program will take place at Carnegie Music Hall on Tuesday, October 20 at 7:30 p.m.

A commentator, editor, teacher, public servant, best-selling author and adviser to U.S. presidents for more than 30 years, Gergen has been an active participant in America’s national political scene. He served as director of communications for President Reagan and held positions in the administrations of Presidents Nixon and Ford as well. In 1993, Gergen put his country before politics when he agreed to first serve as counselor to President Clinton on both foreign policy and domestic affairs, then as special international adviser to both the president and Secretary of State Warren Christopher.

In addition to his role at CNN, Gergen currently serves as editor-at-large at U.S. News & World Report. He is also a professor of public service at the Harvard Kennedy School and director of the School’s Center for Public Leadership.

From 1984 - 1993, Gergen worked mostly as a journalist, and his collaboration with U.S. News owner and editor-in-chief Mortimer Zuckerman is credited with reviving the magazine and guiding it to record gains in circulation and advertising. During that period, he also teamed up with Mark Shields for political commentary every Friday night on the PBS MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour. The two were a popular political team and won numerous accolades for their political coverage.

In the fall of 2000, Gergen published the best-selling book Eyewitness to Power: The Essence of Leadership, Nixon to Clinton

“With the recent election of a new President and the myriad of pressing international and domestic concerns that have engulfed our nation – from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to healthcare reform and the economic recession – David Gergen’s keen insight into the current and historical machinations of Washington and their implications across the national and global landscape are certain to make for an engaging and enlightening presentation,” said Srinivas Murali, M.D., medical director of the Gerald McGinnis Cardiovascular Institute.

Gergen’s participation in the Gerald McGinnis Cardiovascular Institute Speaker Series follows that of Pulitzer Prize winning author and historian David McCullough in 2006, the late managing editor and moderator of NBC’s “Meet the Press” Tim Russert in 2007 and celebrated documentary filmmaker and historian Ken Burns in 2008.

The Gerald McGinnis Cardiovascular Institute is a leading center for advanced cardiovascular disease care and research in western Pennsylvania. Funds raised via its Speakers Series are used to support and expand the Institute’s comprehensive clinical services and research endeavors.

General admission tickets for “An Evening with David Gergen” are on sale for $50 at www.aghgiving.org.