Edina Lekovic
Encyclopedia
Edina Lekovic is the Director of Policy & Programming at the Muslim Public Affairs Council
and frequently acts as a national spokesperson for the American Muslim community to media
outlets, government
officials, interfaith leaders, academic institutions, and community organizations.
in the former Yugoslavia
. She is one of the founders of Elev8, an arts-based youth program which has a mission to identify, train and develop youth community leadership rooted in awareness, responsibility, and action. In 2005, she was pursuing her Master’s degree in Communication
s at Pepperdine University
. The topic of her master's thesis was to understand whether Arab males' willingness to speak out on airline racial profiling is determined by their perception of dominant public opinion. Lekovic is also a 1999 graduate of UCLA where she earned a degree in American Literature & culture. During this time she was the Editor in Chief of The Daily Bruin
, the third largest paper in Los Angeles. Under her leadership, the staff won a number of national awards, including the Society of Professional Journalists Best of the West in college publications.
, MSNBC
, BBC
, and the History Channel. She has also written for several leading newspapers such as the Wall Street Journal, Washington Times, Associated Press
, Chicago Tribune
, and Los Angeles Times
. Lekovic has also participated in many national and international conferences and interfaith dialogues speaking on a variety of issues related to American Muslims.
In 2003, the Malaysian government invited Lekovic to be one of two U.S. representatives to the International Conference of Muslim Young Leaders, which was as a precursor to the annual conference of the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC).
, who accused her of being one of two managing editors of
Al-Talib: The Muslim Newsmagazine at UCLA for its July 1999 issue, which contains the passage: “When we hear someone refer to the great Mujahid …, Osama bin Laden, as a ‘terrorist,’ we should defend our brother and refer to him as a freedom fighter.”
Muslim Public Affairs Council
The Muslim Public Affairs Council is a national American Muslim advocacy and public policy organization headquartered in Los Angeles and with offices in Washington D.C...
and frequently acts as a national spokesperson for the American Muslim community to media
News media
The news media are those elements of the mass media that focus on delivering news to the general public or a target public.These include print media , broadcast news , and more recently the Internet .-Etymology:A medium is a carrier of something...
outlets, government
Government
Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...
officials, interfaith leaders, academic institutions, and community organizations.
Biography
Lekovic is a Bosnian American whose parents came from MontenegroMontenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
in the former Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
. She is one of the founders of Elev8, an arts-based youth program which has a mission to identify, train and develop youth community leadership rooted in awareness, responsibility, and action. In 2005, she was pursuing her Master’s degree in Communication
Communication
Communication is the activity of conveying meaningful information. Communication requires a sender, a message, and an intended recipient, although the receiver need not be present or aware of the sender's intent to communicate at the time of communication; thus communication can occur across vast...
s at Pepperdine University
Pepperdine University
Pepperdine University is an independent, private, medium-sized university affiliated with the Churches of Christ. The university's campus overlooking the Pacific Ocean in unincorporated Los Angeles County, California, United States, near Malibu, is the location for Seaver College, the School of...
. The topic of her master's thesis was to understand whether Arab males' willingness to speak out on airline racial profiling is determined by their perception of dominant public opinion. Lekovic is also a 1999 graduate of UCLA where she earned a degree in American Literature & culture. During this time she was the Editor in Chief of The Daily Bruin
Daily Bruin
The Daily Bruin is the student newspaper at the University of California, Los Angeles.-Frequency and governance:When classes are in session, the Bruin is published Monday through Friday during the school year and once a week on Mondays in the summer quarter.It is overseen by the ASUCLA...
, the third largest paper in Los Angeles. Under her leadership, the staff won a number of national awards, including the Society of Professional Journalists Best of the West in college publications.
Appearance in the media
Lekovic has made many appearances in the media including FoxNews, CNNCNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
, MSNBC
MSNBC
MSNBC is a cable news channel based in the United States available in the US, Germany , South Africa, the Middle East and Canada...
, BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
, and the History Channel. She has also written for several leading newspapers such as the Wall Street Journal, Washington Times, Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
, Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
, and Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
. Lekovic has also participated in many national and international conferences and interfaith dialogues speaking on a variety of issues related to American Muslims.
In 2003, the Malaysian government invited Lekovic to be one of two U.S. representatives to the International Conference of Muslim Young Leaders, which was as a precursor to the annual conference of the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC).
Participation in lectures and presentations
- Defining the Muslim American Identity Post 9/11 - March 15, 2003 at Wellesley College
- Confronting IslamophobiaIslamophobiaIslamophobia describes prejudice against, hatred or irrational fear of Islam or MuslimsThe term dates back to the late 1980s or early 1990s, but came into common usage after the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States....
- Dec 7, 2004 at the United Nations HeadquartersUnited Nations headquartersThe headquarters of the United Nations is a complex in New York City. The complex has served as the official headquarters of the United Nations since its completion in 1952. It is located in the Turtle Bay neighborhood of Manhattan, on spacious grounds overlooking the East River... - The Rising voice of Moderate Muslims - Dec. 29, 2001, California
Controversy
On May 23, 2007 she appeared on CNBC's Kudlow and Company with Islam expert Steve EmersonSteve Emerson
Steve Emerson may refer to:* Stephen G. Emerson, stem cell biologist and 13th President of Haverford College* Steven Emerson, journalist and author specializing in national security, terrorism, and Islamic extremism...
, who accused her of being one of two managing editors of
Al-Talib: The Muslim Newsmagazine at UCLA for its July 1999 issue, which contains the passage: “When we hear someone refer to the great Mujahid …, Osama bin Laden, as a ‘terrorist,’ we should defend our brother and refer to him as a freedom fighter.”
External links
- Project Elev8 - Official website (on MySpace)
- Edina Lekovic: Communications Director - MPAC Staff & Board
- Expert says women honored in Islam - DailyTexanOnline