Inaugural awards honor leaders in public relations and journalism

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Arthur W. Page Center at Penn State has named a journalist and two public relations professionals as honorees for its inaugural Awards for Integrity in Public Communication. The honorees will be recognized at a dinner on Feb. 22 in New York City. With this event, the center will publicly distinguish ethical and responsible work at the highest levels of public communication.

The Page Center will honor Ann Barkelew, founding general manager and senior partner of FleishmanHillard; Dick Martin, author and former executive vice president of public relations of AT&T; and Alan Murray, chief content officer of Time Inc. and editor-in-chief of Fortune magazine.

"The careers of these three individuals demonstrate high standards for integrity in public communications, " said Denise Bortree, director of the Arthur W. Page Center and associate professor of communications at Penn State. "We are delighted to recognize their work as emblematic of the standards to which all those in the fields of public communication should be held."

In addition to the honorees, the event will pay tribute to the Page Center’s founder, the late Lawrence (Larry) G. Foster, who exemplified integrity over his decades-long career as a public relations practitioner and journalist. At the Feb. 22 awards dinner in the Grand Hyatt Hotel in New York City, each honoree will receive an individual Larry Foster Award for Integrity.

The Page Center is housed in the College of Communications at Penn State, Foster’s alma mater. Proceeds from the awards dinner will go to fund innovative research by national and international faculty. It will also be an opportunity to bridge the academic and professional worlds of journalism, public relations and corporate communications. Tickets for the dinner can be purchased on the Page Center website.

More about the 2017 honorees:

Ann Barkelew
Over her 35-year career, Ann Barkelew has gained experience in public, private and international sectors. Today, she remains a prominent leader in the corporate public relations world with a commitment to maintaining integrity in all aspects of her work. She is the founding general manager of the Minnesota office of FleishmanHillard, a global public relations firm.

Barkelew was vice president of corporate public relations for the Dayton Hudson Corporation from 1981 to 1994 where she supervised all internal and external communication. Before her time at Dayton Hudson, she established a new corporate program as the vice president of corporate affairs for Munsingwear, Inc. She also served as the chief public relations officer for the Los Angeles County Office of Education.

Dick Martin
Dick Martin is the former executive vice president of public relations for AT&T and chairman of the AT&T Foundation. He has written several books, many on ethics in the industry, including “Tough Calls: AT&T and the Hard Lessons Learned from the Telecom Wars” and “OtherWise: The Wisdom You Need to Succeed in a Diverse and Divisive World.” He has also co-authored other books and has published articles in such publications as the Harvard Business Review, Chief Executive and the Journal of Business Strategy.

Alan Murray
As chief content officer, Alan Murray oversees editorial policies and standards at Time Inc. He is responsible for the media company’s commitment to quality journalism and storytelling. Murray also serves as editor-in-chief of Fortune magazine, where he oversees print and digital operations. Before joining Time Inc., Murray was president of the Pew Research Center and spent two decades at the Wall Street Journal in positions that included deputy managing editor and executive editor, online. Murray has also authored four books, including “The Wall Street Journal Guide to Management” and “Showdown at Gucci Gulch.”

About the Arthur W. Page Center
The Page Center advances ethics and responsibility in corporate communication by promoting research and education initiatives to build awareness in the academic and professional worlds. Since its founding in 2004, the center has funded more than 200 scholars and awarded more than $700,000 in research funding. It is currently accepting research proposals on digital media and new technology. 

Housed in the College of Communications at the Pennsylvania State University, the Page Center offers numerous opportunities — from research funding to public lectures — that uphold the vision of Arthur W. Page.

Ticket and event information are available at http://awards.thepagecenter.org.