For immediate release: May 16, 2008 Schaffer and Vahlberg Join Ethics and Excellence in Journalism Foundation Advisory Committee (Oklahoma City) --- Robert J. Ross, President and CEO of Ethics and Excellence in Journalism Foundation, announced today that Jan Schaffer, Executive Director of J-Lab: The Institute for Interactive Journalism, and Vivian Vahlberg, Managing Director of the Media Management Center at Northwestern University, have been named to the Advisory Committee of the Foundation. “Jan Schaffer is one of the nation’s leading thinkers in the area of convergence in journalism and Vivian Vahlberg has spent her ground-breaking career in the news business and in organizations that serve it,” said Ross. “They will be an extraordinary resource to the Foundation as we continue to develop strategies to promote excellence in journalism and instill and encourage high ethical standards in all media.” Schaffer, former Business Editor and a Pulitzer Prize winner for The Philadelphia Inquirer, launched J-Lab in 2002 at the University of Maryland’s College of Journalism to help newsrooms use innovative computer technologies to engage people in important public issues. She left daily journalism in 1994 to lead pioneering journalism initiatives in the areas of civic journalism, interactive and participatory journalism and citizen media ventures. She is a regular discussion leader for the American Press Institute and other industry organizations and holds a master’s degree from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. “I am honored to join the Journalism Advisory Committee,” said Schaffer, “and I’m looking forward to contributing to the Foundation’s efforts to improve the quality and standards of journalism, especially amid the challenges generated by new media developments.” Vahlberg joined the Media Management Center at Northwestern University in 2006 where she directs the Center’s programs for news media executives with an emphasis on digital media. Previously, she was Director of Journalism Programs for the McCormick Tribune Foundation. She was also the Assistant Washington Bureau Chief for the Daily Oklahoman, the Oklahoma City Times and Colorado Springs Sun. She is a member of the Oklahoma Journalism Hall of Fame and was the first woman President of the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. She received a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Rice University. “Edith Kinney Gaylord made such an enormous contribution to journalism in creating and endowing the Ethics and Excellence in Journalism Foundation, which has become one of the most important funders in journalism-related programs in the country. As someone who knew Edith and admired her pioneering spirit and dedication to journalism, I’m honored to serve,” Vahlberg said. Members of the Ethics and Excellence in Journalism Foundation Board of Directors are: Patrick T. Rooney, Robert J. Ross and William J. Ross, Oklahoma City; David O. Hogan, Tulsa; and Andrew W. Roff and J. Hugh Roff, Jr., Houston, TX. Members of the Advisory Committee are: Andy Barth, Baltimore, MD; Janet Cromley, Los Angeles, CA; Marian Cromley, Falls Church, VA; Kay Dyer, El Reno; John Greiner and Ed Kelley, Oklahoma City; and Andy Rieger, Norman. To learn more about the Ethics and Excellence in Journalism Foundation and its founder, Edith Kinney Gaylord, visit www.journalismfoundation.org or call 405-604-5388. < back to press releases