Virginia Communications Hall of Fame to Induct Four

By Mike Porter

A writer who has won awards for both her journalism and her books, a professor who has shepherded students to first-place finishes in national advertising competitions, a cable industry executive who figured prominently in bringing the “information superhighway” to all of Virginia, and a 40-year journalism veteran of the oldest newspaper in the South are the 2011 inductees into the Virginia Communications Hall of Fame.

The inductees are:

• Margaret Edds, once an editorial writer and reporter based in Richmond for The Virginian-Pilot in Norfolk whose books, most dealing with politics and civil rights in the South, have been nominated for several national book awards.
• John "Jack" H. Lindgren Jr., CBA professor of marketing and director of the McIntire Business Institute at the University of Virginia, who has mentored and coached student teams to win national American Advertising Federation  competitions even though his university does not offer a curriculum in advertising.
• Gary T. McCollum, senior vice president and general manager for Cox Communications of Virginia, who oversees Cox cable operations in Hampton Roads, Virginia military installations, Northern Virginia and Roanoke and spearheaded Cox’s effort to bring the Internet to all areas of Virginia.
• Bill O’Donovan, publisher of Virginia’s oldest newspaper, The Virginia Gazette, which dates to 1736, making it the oldest in the South, and a past president of the Virginia Press Association.

They will be inducted into the Hall of Fame April 27 at a ceremony that begins with a reception at 6:30 p.m. at The Jefferson Hotel in Richmond. The induction ceremony and dessert will follow. Virginia Commonwealth University’s School of Mass Communications will host the ceremony.

The Virginia Communications Hall of Fame recognizes communication professionals with exceptional careers in journalism, public relations, advertising and other media fields. This newest class of four inductees will bring the total number of inductees to 126.

“Induction into the Hall of Fame is a very appropriate way to recognize the contributions to excellence in mass communications that these four ‘super-stars’ have made,” said Judy VanSlyke Turk, Ph.D., professor and associate director for special projects in the School of Mass Communications at VCU.

Tickets are $100 each and can be reserved by calling 804-827-3761. Proceeds of the evening will benefit the Hall of Fame scholarship fund at VCU.

This year’s Hall of Fame induction will follow The Turpin Lectureship in News Management featuring POLITICO chief political correspondent Mike Allen. The Turpin Lecture, which will be held in the VCU Commons at 2 p.m. on April 27, is free and open to the public.