Louis Boccardi
Encyclopedia
Louis D. Boccardi was President and Chief Executive Officer
of The Associated Press (AP), the world’s largest news organization, from 1985 until his retirement in 2003. Prior to assuming the presidency, he served one year as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer and 10 years as executive editor in charge of AP's news operations.
During his tenure as CEO, Boccardi repaired the news cooperative's sometimes-shaky finances and started the process of moving AP's news report into the Internet age. That process has quickened substantially under his successor, Tom Curley
.
Born in New York City
, Boccardi holds a bachelor’s degree from Fordham University
and a master's degree in journalism from Columbia University
. He joined the AP as executive assistant to the general news editor in 1967 after eight years with New York newspapers, during which he rose to the position of assistant managing editor of the New York World-Telegram and Sun and its successor newspaper, the New York World Journal Tribune
. He was appointed AP managing editor in 1969, executive editor in 1973 and vice president in 1975.
In 1990, Boccardi was elected a fellow of the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), the highest honor SPJ awards journalists for public service. He has received the William Allen White
Foundation Award for Journalistic Merit, the Overseas Press Club
Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism
Award and was elected a Distinguished Service Member of the American Society of Newspaper Editors. Boccardi and the AP were awarded the 2001 John Peter and Anna Catherine Zenger award for Freedom of the Press and the Public's Right to Know.
Boccardi was a member of the Pulitzer Prize
Board from 1994 to 2003 and Chairman of the Pulitzer Prize Board in 2002.
Boccardi is a member of the national advisory board of the Freedom Forum
Center for Media Studies, the board of trustees of the Newseum
, and the board of visitors of Columbia's Graduate School of Journalism, and is an honorary trustee of the William Allen White Foundation at the University of Kansas
.
Boccardi has been a member of the Gannett Board of Directors
since 2003.
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
of The Associated Press (AP), the world’s largest news organization, from 1985 until his retirement in 2003. Prior to assuming the presidency, he served one year as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer and 10 years as executive editor in charge of AP's news operations.
During his tenure as CEO, Boccardi repaired the news cooperative's sometimes-shaky finances and started the process of moving AP's news report into the Internet age. That process has quickened substantially under his successor, Tom Curley
Tom Curley
Thomas "Tom" Curley is the President of the Associated Press, the world's largest news organization.-Biography:Curley was born in Easton, Pennsylvania. At age 15, he started writing for the Easton Express...
.
Born in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, Boccardi holds a bachelor’s degree from Fordham University
Fordham University
Fordham University is a private, nonprofit, coeducational research university in the United States, with three campuses in and around New York City. It was founded by the Roman Catholic Diocese of New York in 1841 as St...
and a master's degree in journalism from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
. He joined the AP as executive assistant to the general news editor in 1967 after eight years with New York newspapers, during which he rose to the position of assistant managing editor of the New York World-Telegram and Sun and its successor newspaper, the New York World Journal Tribune
New York World Journal Tribune
The New York World Journal Tribune, also known as the World-Journal-Tribune, was a newspaper published in New York City from September 1966 until May 1967...
. He was appointed AP managing editor in 1969, executive editor in 1973 and vice president in 1975.
In 1990, Boccardi was elected a fellow of the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), the highest honor SPJ awards journalists for public service. He has received the William Allen White
William Allen White
William Allen White was a renowned American newspaper editor, politician, author, and leader of the Progressive movement...
Foundation Award for Journalistic Merit, the Overseas Press Club
Overseas Press Club
The Overseas Press Club of America was founded in 1939 in New York City by a group of foreign correspondents. The wire service reporter Carol Weld was a founding member...
Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism
Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism
The Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism is one of Columbia's graduate and professional schools. It offers three degree programs: Master of Science in journalism , Master of Arts in journalism and a Ph.D. in communications...
Award and was elected a Distinguished Service Member of the American Society of Newspaper Editors. Boccardi and the AP were awarded the 2001 John Peter and Anna Catherine Zenger award for Freedom of the Press and the Public's Right to Know.
Boccardi was a member of the Pulitzer Prize
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize is a U.S. award for achievements in newspaper and online journalism, literature and musical composition. It was established by American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City...
Board from 1994 to 2003 and Chairman of the Pulitzer Prize Board in 2002.
Boccardi is a member of the national advisory board of the Freedom Forum
Freedom Forum
The Freedom Forum was created in 1991 under the direction of Al Neuharth, former publisher of USA Today newspaper. Funding was provided by a foundation started by publisher Frank E. Gannett in 1935, called the Gannett Foundation...
Center for Media Studies, the board of trustees of the Newseum
Newseum
The Newseum is an interactive museum of news and journalism located at 555 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. The seven-level, museum features 15 theaters and 14 galleries. The Newseum's Berlin Wall Gallery includes the largest display of sections of the Berlin Wall outside of Germany...
, and the board of visitors of Columbia's Graduate School of Journalism, and is an honorary trustee of the William Allen White Foundation at the University of Kansas
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...
.
Boccardi has been a member of the Gannett Board of Directors
Board of directors
A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...
since 2003.