JOURNALIST DAVID GERGEN TO SPEAK AT ARKANSAS BUSINESS HALL OF FAME CELEBRATION

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. -- David Gergen, editor-at-large of U.S. News & World Report and adviser to four U.S. presidents, will be keynote speaker at the inaugural Arkansas Business Hall of Fame celebration on Friday evening, Feb. 5, at the Excelsior Hotel in Little Rock.

Established by the Sam M. Walton College of Business Administration of the University of Arkansas, the Arkansas Business Hall of Fame is designed to honor the accomplishments of outstanding Arkansas business leaders and showcase the opportunities for achievement that the state offers.

The inaugural class of business leaders being inducted at the celebration are: William T. Dillard Sr. of Dillard's, Inc.; Charles H. Murphy Jr. of Murphy Oil Corp.; Jackson T. Stephens of Stephens Inc.; and the late Sam M. Walton of Wal-Mart, Inc.

Gergen, the keynoter, has been widely recognized for his role as a commentator, editor, teacher, public servant and advisor to presidents for more than a quarter century.

Aside from his role at U.S. News & World Report, he is a regular conversationalist on the PBS NewsHour with Jim Lehrer. This spring he will join the faculty at Harvard University, where he will become a professor of public service, teaching at the John F. Kennedy School of Government while continuing to work in journalism and in Washington.

Gergen has served in the White House as an advisor to four presidents: Nixon, Ford, Reagan and Clinton. Most recently, he served for 18 months in the Clinton administration, first as counselor to the president and then as special advisor to the president and the secretary of state. He returned to private life in January 1995.

From 1984-1993, Gergen worked mainly as a journalist. For some two-and-a-half years, he was editor of U.S. News. Working with owner and editor-in-chief Mortimer Zuckerman and a revitalized staff, he helped to guide the magazine to record gains in circulation and advertising. During that period, he also teamed up with Mark Shields for political commentary every Friday night for five years on the MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour. The two were a popular team and won numerous accolades for their political coverage.

Since his return to private life, Gergen has taught at Duke University during spring semesters. He will return to teach there periodically in the years ahead.

A native of Durham, North Carolina, he is an honors graduate of both Yale University (A.B., 1963) and the Harvard Law School (LLB, 1967). He is a member of the D.C. bar. In addition, he served for three-and-a-half years in the U.S. Navy.

Among his current non-profit boards, he was elected by the alumni to serve on the Yale Corporation and he is chairman of the National Selection Committee for the Ford Foundation's program on Innovations in American Government. He frequently lectures in the United States and overseas and holds five honorary degrees.

The Arkansas Business Hall of Fame celebration has almost sold-out, even before invitations were mailed. A reception is being held at 6 p.m. and dinner is at 7 p.m. Tickets are $125 a person. For more information or to purchase tickets, contact the Office of External Affairs, Sam M. Walton College of Business Administration, at (479) 575-6146.

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