BATON ROUGE, La. (KLFY) — After this morning’s breaking news of the death of former Louisiana Gov. Edwin Edwards, two organizations have teamed up to create a public archive of some of his most famous interviews and debates.
Louisiana Public Broadcasting (LPB) and Louisiana Digital Media Archive (LDMA) have made the archive free to stream for the public at www.ladigitalmedia.org. The archive can also be accessed at www.lpb.org.
LPB President/CEO Beth Courtney interviewed the former governor multiple times. She began her career as a capitol reporter for KWKH radio in 1972, just as Edwards’ first term as governor began. She continued covering Edwards for LPB.
“Back in Sept. 6, 1975, when LPB first began broadcasting, we were fortunate to have a charismatic governor who attracted viewers to our legislative and political coverage,” said Courtney. “Louisiana: The State We’re In has continued that tradition and we have a rich archive highlighting the highs and lows of our recent history. We have a remarkable digital media archive of Edwards’ four terms as governor and of the many political debates that ushered in the careers of future governors.”
A sample of some of the files you’ll find in the archive:
- From 1978 “Gov. Edwards Profile” – LPB’s earliest archived profile of Governor Edwards where he discusses the major issues of the 1978 Legislative Session on LPB’s weekly news program, Louisiana: The State We’re In.
- From 1980 “Gov. Edwards Interview” – Another interview for Louisiana: The State We’re In finds Edwards reflecting on his first two terms in office.
- From 1982 “Edwards Campaign Preview” – Edwards was preparing to run for his third term against Governor Dave Treen. He talks about his campaign.
- From 1983 “The Treen/Edwards Debates” – LPB’s Beth Courtney moderated two debates between Dave Treen and Edwin Edwards.
- From 1984 “Edwards Inauguration” – Watch LPB’s live coverage of Edwards’ third gubernatorial inauguration at the State Capitol.
- From 1985 “Indictment of Gov. Edwin Edwards” – From Louisiana: The State We’re In, a report on the indictment of Gov. Edwards by a federal grand jury and a look back at his past scandals.
- From 1988 “Gov. Edwards’ Ranch” – LPB’s Beth Courtney visited Edwards at his Texas ranch as his third term in office came to a close.
- From 1991 “The Duke/Edwards Debate” – A fiery run-off debate between Edwards and David Duke for the 1991 gubernatorial election.
- From 1994 “Louisiana Legends” – In this in-depth interview, Edwards discusses his life and career.
- From 2012 “Four Governors; One Event” – In honor of CABL’s 50th anniversary, Edwards participated in a panel discussion with former governors Roemer, Foster, and Blanco.
- From 2014 “Edwin Edwards Interview” – In this interview from Louisiana: The State We’re In, Edwards discusses his campaign for Louisiana’s 6th Congressional District.
