LEWISTON — On Monday, Nov. 8, the Harward Center for Community Partnerships will sponsor a panel discussion titled “The Role of Journalism in a Democracy.”

The event will be held at Chase Lounge, Bates College, starting at 7:30 p.m.

A panel of distinguished journalists will discuss the role of journalism in American democracy, the impact of new media, and the criteria for excellence in the profession. Panelists will include Rex Rhoades, executive editor of the Sun Journal, Thomas Fiedler, dean of Boston University’s College of Communication and former executive editor of the Miami Herald, and Justin Ellis, a staff member at the Nieman Journalism Lab at Harvard University and former columnist/blogger, staff writer and multimedia producer for the Portland Press Herald.

The presentation is free and open to the public.

The Civic Forum is a lively series that invites the audience to wrestle with and explore civic, political and policy issues of significance to the Bates community, Maine and beyond. For more information, contact Kristen Cloutier at the Harward Center, 786-6202.