M. Charles Bakst papers (MS-1U-B6)

The papers of M. Charles Bakst consist of manuscripts, correspondence, typed articles, notebooks, ephemera, and other materials documenting the career of M. Charles Bakst as a student at Brown University and the Providence Journal. After graduating from Brown University in 1966, he was a fulltime reporter and columnist covering education and politics for the Providence Journal from 1968 to 2008. The earliest materials include a scrapbook belonging to Bakst's mother, Anna Horvitz Bakst (Brown '31) and a newspaper scrapbook detailing the 1960 Presidential election. Bakst's educational career at Brown is documented in course notebooks, term papers, and other materials relating to Bakst's time as editor of the Brown Daily Herald. Political papers include letters from President George H.W. Bush, Massachusetts Governor Mike Dukakis, Rhode Island Governor Bruce Sundlun, and Providence Mayor Buddy Cianci.

Audio microcassettes are arranged chronologically and provide on-hand interviews with politicians, including then-Senator Barack Obama and Vice President Al Gore. Videotapes (177 in total) include political debates, some involving Governor Donald Carcieri (Brown '65) and Senator Lincoln Chaffee (Brown '75). Approximately 100 of these videotapes include primarily episodes of "A Lively Experiment", a Rhode Island-based political show and the flagship program of Rhode Island PBS in which M. Charles Bakst participated.