Contact Information: Contacts: Paul Luthringer Hearst Corporation 212-649-2540 Email Contact Melanie A. Farmer Columbia University 212-854-9082 Email Contact
Hearst Corporation and Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism Announce the Establishment of The Hearst Fellowship in Business Journalism Program
| Source: Hearst Corp.
NEW YORK, NY -- (MARKET WIRE) -- January 22, 2007 -- With the company's more than a century-old
commitment to quality journalism in mind, Hearst Corporation and the
Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism today announced the
establishment of the Hearst Fellowship Fund in Business Journalism at the
university. The program will provide financial assistance to graduate
students in the business and economics concentration of the school's Master
of Arts program. The goal is to attract the best qualified student for the
program by removing the financial burden which might otherwise prevent him
or her from attending the school.
Commenting on the announcement, Victor F. Ganzi, president and CEO of
Hearst Corporation, said: "Over the past 119 years, Hearst Corporation has
grown from a single newspaper in San Francisco to one of the nation's
largest diversified communications companies. Any company that desires to
provide news, information and perspective to the public must also embrace a
mission: a commitment to journalistic excellence and the passionate pursuit
of the truth. The Hearst Fellowship Fund at Columbia helps us stay true to
this goal."
The highly competitive M.A. program, introduced in 2005, attracts
outstanding students and journalists who possess strong journalistic skills
and aim to become experts able to report clearly on complicated subjects.
The program, which features concentrations in business, the arts, science
and politics, honors the principle that journalists should develop real
expertise in the subjects they cover.
"Everyone at the Journalism School is thrilled by this generous gift from
Hearst Corporation," said Nicholas Lemann, dean of the Graduate School of
Journalism at Columbia University. "It represents a vote of confidence from
one of the most respected news organizations, and, specifically, it will
help us tremendously in educating the next generation of leaders in
business journalism."
A cornerstone of the business and economics concentration is a seminar
taught by professors Sylvia Nasar and James Stewart. The program is
constructed in conjunction with faculty from the Columbia Business School
and the economics department of the faculty of Arts and Sciences. One of
its organizing principles is to use a news event as a way of understanding
larger economic themes.
The Hearst Fellowship Fund represents the latest step in Hearst
Corporation's long relationship with the university, which also hosts the
Hearst New Media Professor-in-Residence and the Hearst Dialogues programs.
The first Hearst Fellowships in Business Journalism are expected to be
awarded in 2008. Three fellowships will be awarded each year and recipients
will receive substantial financial aid.
Hearst Corporation (www.hearst.com) is one of the nation's largest
diversified communications companies. Its major interests include 12 daily
and 30 weekly newspapers, including the Houston Chronicle, San Francisco
Chronicle, San Antonio Express-News, and Albany Times Union; nearly 200
magazines around the world, including Cosmopolitan, Good Housekeeping, and
O, The Oprah Magazine; 29 television stations through Hearst-Argyle
Television (NYSE : HTV ) which reach a combined 18% of U.S. viewers; joint
venture interests in leading cable networks, including Lifetime, A&E, The
History Channel and ESPN; as well as business publishing, including a joint
venture interest in Fitch Group; Internet businesses; television
production; newspaper features distribution; and real estate.
For almost a century, the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism
has been preparing journalists in a program that stresses academic rigor,
ethics, journalistic inquiry and professional practice. Founded in 1912,
the school offers Master of Science, Master of Arts, and Doctor of
Philosophy degrees.
Founded in 1754 as King's College, Columbia University in the City of New
York is the fifth oldest institution of higher learning in the United
States and today is one of the world's leading academic and research
institutions. For more information about Columbia University, visit
www.columbia.edu.