Secretary Norton congratulates
John Wright on his Communicator
of the Year Award at a public infor-
mation chiefs meeting at the Main
Interior Building.
Wright Named Communicator of the Year
Secretary Norton congratulates John Wright on his Communicator of the Year Award at a public infor- mation chiefs meeting at the Main Interior Building. |
John Wright, acting director of the Department's Office of Communications, has been named Government Communicator of 2000by the National Association of Government Communicators.
He was honored at the association's recent annual communications conference in Denver, where his accomplishments earned him a standing ovation. Wright was also recognized in Washington, D.C., by Secretary of the Interior Gale A. Norton for receiving the award.
Secretary Norton surprised Wright with a congratulatory presentation at a March 7 meeting of Interior's public information officers, saying "John's rock-steady work ethic, communication finesse, leadership, and modesty are well known throughout the Department. Certainly no one is more deserving of this honor."
Noting Wright's sense of humor, the Secretary presented him a makeshift communications device--two tin cans joined by a string--"as a special award to symbolize how he does such a great job with limited resources." The cans were labeled "The Wright Stuff."
At the NAGC award presentation on March 8, Gaye Farris, president of the association, noted that the group's executive board and an independent firm that vetted Wright "were impressed by the fact that he was recommended by several different people, that we received strong accounts of his cool-handed and steady behind-the-scenes efforts to communicate the Department's varied and often controversial work, and that he started at an entry-level position. Wright receives the Communicator of the Year Award from Gaye Farris, the president of the National Association of Government Communicators. Farris is Chief, Technology and Informatics/ Biological Resources Division Publish- ing Coordinator with the U.S. Geologi- cal Survey. |
"Through natural talent, hard work, and education, he arrived near the top of the communications office of a Cabinet member," Farris said. "His is the American dream come true for a communicator."
Wright said he was shocked and flattered to receive the honor, calling it a humbling experience. "I only wish that my mother and father were alive to witness this, but I believe they are watching and hoping that I don't embarrass them." Wright also thanked his colleagues at Interior. "They are the real reason I am here," he said.
Though he fields daily media inquiries from ABC, NBC, CBS, the New York Times, and the Washington Post, Wright's colleagues like Trudy Harlow, public information officer for the U.S. Geological Survey, say his hardest work is behind the scenes. He is known for getting the tough assignments that must bring together different bureaus, offices, or federal agencies--which may not always agree.
One of 11 children raised in Charleston, South Carolina, Wright learned teamwork as a quarterback in high school. Though he was training to be a bricklayer, his plan for a trade was interrupted when he was drafted into the Army and sent to Vietnam. He was decorated twice for meritorious service, earning a Bronze Star and the Army Commendation medal. Returning home, Wright became a GS-2 clerk/messenger at Interior. While working full time, he earned a bachelor's degree and a master's degree in public relations from the American University in Washington, D.C.
Former Interior Communications Director Michael Gauldin, said, "If I were able to select a dream staff from all the people I've worked with, there is no question that John Wright would be my first-round draft choice."
Wright supervised the annual Departmental budget rollout, was a part of the Department's emergency preparedness and continuity of operations group, and the lead communications person on the government's Y2K preparedness effort. He supervised an Interior working group that eventually evolved into the White House's governmentwide Outdoor Recreation initiative.
Wright has served under every administration since President Nixon and has served under 10 Secretaries. "I've been on a first- name basis with most of those Secretaries--they call me John, and I called them Mr. Secretary," he quipped during the award ceremony. "Now I'm proud to say I will be changing that to Madame Secretary."
Interior Chief of Staff, Brian Waidmann, said Wright's communications expertise was a blessing in the first days of the transition to the new Administration. "John burned the midnight oil right alongside us as we started cranking the cogs of a new Interior Administration. He masterfully kept our communications operation running while keeping everyone in good spirits with his easy-going humor. John is a first-class professional."
 Secretary Norton congratulates John Wright on his Communicator of the Year Award |
NAGC bestows this award on individuals who distinguish themselves by conducting or managing major, significant, highly effective information activities about government programs, actions or vital issues at the local, regional, national or international level.
Former recipients include Steve Davis, spokesperson for the Jefferson County Sheriff's Department, who handled the Columbine High School shooting; James Brady, President Reagan's former spokesman; and Brian Lamb, president of C-SPAN. In 1989, USGS's Wavery Person, chief of the National Earthquake Information Center in Golden, Colorado, was NAGC's Communicator of the Year.
The association is best known for its annual Blue Pencil and Gold Screen award competitions and its annual communications school, which has featured such notables as Helen Thomas of UPI, Bob Edwards of National Public Radio, and DeeDee Meyers, former press secretary to President Clinton. This year's school of 32 speakers included Linda Edwards, former press secretary to Gov. George W. Bush; Cmdr. Hal Pittman, public affairs officer after the terrorist attack on the USS Cole; Alex Hunter, former Boulder district attorney with the Jon-Benet Ramsey investigation; Carl Cargill, director of Standards, Sun Mircosystems; and a panel of print and broadcast reporters.
Interior speakers included Terry D'Erchia and Peter Doran, Bureau of Land Management; Trudy Harlow and Diane Wells, USGS (and Carey Hamburg, USGS contractor); and Peter Martin, Bureau of Reclamation. Don Finley, retired USGS public affairs specialist, is a former president of NAGC. Farris, the current president, is also from USGS.
NAGC is a nonpartisan, national, not-for-profit professional network of federal, state, and local government employees who disseminate information within and outside government. Its members are editors, writers, graphic artists, video professionals, broadcasters, photographers, information specialists, and agency spokespersons. For more information, see www.nagc.com.