Emmy Award-winning journalist Harry Smith is returning to Central College tonight to interview a bestselling author.

Reza Aslan will be on campus tonight for a free event at 7 p.m. in Graham Conference Center’s Vermeer Banquet Hall.

Aslan is author of “Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth” and “No god but God,” and will discuss topics including Islam, the Middle East and Muslim Americans.

Aslan earned a B.A. in Religious Studies from Santa Clara University, a Master of Theological Studies from Harvard University, a Ph.D. in Sociology of Religions from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and an M.F.A. from the University of Iowa.

He is professor of creative writing at the University of California, Riverside, and also hosts a television series about writing, “Rough Draft with Reza Aslan.”

Smith, a Central College graduate, trustee and NBC News correspondent, previously hosted “The Early Show” on CBS, as well as A&E’s television series “Biography” and The History Channel’s “Modern Marvels.” His career has included interviews with international leaders from Richard Nixon to Margaret Thatcher, as well as leaders in literature, performing arts, science and education.

Aslan’s books “Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth” and “No god but God,” will be available at the event. Copies will be available in Central’s Spirit Shoppe in Maytag Student Center.