Professor Abe Peck to Receive ASBPE Lifetime Achievement Honor
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - reprinted with permission from ASBPE
April 21, 2008
Contacts:
Robin Sherman, info@asbpe.org <mailto:info@asbpe.org>; or
Janet Svazas, jsvazas@integrated-solutions.com <mailto:jsvazas@integrated-solutions.com>
Abe Peck, eclectic professor, writer, B-to-B editorial consultant to receive ASBPE Lifetime Achievement honor
Wheaton, Ill. — Veteran Northwestern University journalism professor Abe Peck — a magazine specialist whose journalistic roots were in the “alternative press” of the 1960s and 1970s — was chosen for the American Society of Business Publications’ Lifetime Achievement Award.
Peck will take the award into retirement this year after 28 years at Northwestern’s Medill School. He is currently the Chair of Journalism & Cross-Media Storytelling at Medill; holds the Helen Gurley Brown professor and previously the Theodore R. and Annie Laurie Sills professorship; and is deeply involved with the prestigious Media Management Center.
In addition to his magazine-related work at the school, Peck has represented business-to-business publications well over the years. His primary client is Advanstar Communications, a large B-to-B publisher, for which he helps lead editorial performance reviews in the U.S. and U.K. He has also worked with Crain, Lebhar-Friedman, Vance, Putman, and Global Sources.
Award ceremony July 24 in Kansas City, Mo.
Peck will receive the award at a noon luncheon on July 24, 2008, in Kansas City, Mo., site of the 44-year-old ASBPE organization’s two-day National Editorial Conference, July 23-25. ASBPE’s awards, including the Azbee Awards of Excellence, this year celebrating their 30th anniversary, are highlights of each year’s conference.
The eighth winner of ASBPE’s Lifetime Achievement honor, Peck began his career in magazines with the then-fledgling underground press in Chicago, with The Seed. He then covered music during Rolling Stone’s meteoric rise in popularity, covering a range of non-music topics as well.
Among his most memorable stories were studies of author Studs Terkel, a rundown on the drug paraphernalia industry, and among the first national stories introducing a young California bodybuilder named Arnold Schwarzenegger as he began to move toward wider career aspirations.
He is also the author of Uncovering the Sixties: The Life and Times of the Underground Press for Pantheon/Citadel, and has edited or contributed to nine other books, some of which touched on the theme of the cultural past.
After working with Rolling Stone, Peck moved on to Chicago’s Sun-Times and Daily News newspapers.
New digital work for Medill
>From his new home in Santa Barbara, Calif., Abe Peck will continue as Special Counselor to the Dean at Medill, and work on developing B-to-B media and the school’s New Digital/Publishing Projects. Together, Abe and wife Suzanne will continue offering executive seminars on magazines and on his wife’s special topic, diversity, at the Northwestern Media Management Center, with Abe also representing the Center in China and India.
Previous winners of the Lifetime Achievement Award are Stan Modic of Nelson Publishing; Don Ranly, University of Missouri School of Journalism professor emeritus; International Data Group founder and chairman Patrick J. McGovern; Dana Chase Jr., chairman of Dana Chase Publications; editorial consultant Howard Rauch; Vernon Henry of Advanstar Communications; and Bernie Knill of Penton Media.
In addition to recognizing more than a quarter-century of significant involvement with business-to-business publishing, the Lifetime Achievement Award honors commitments to editorial excellence and to the B-to-B press.
About ASBPE
Founded in 1964, ASBPE, Wheaton, Ill, (www.asbpe.org <http://www.asbpe.org/> ) is the nation’s only professional association for full-time and freelance business-to-business editors and writers who work for business, trade, association, and professional print magazines and newsletters, and digital and Web publications.
The Society helps editors develop and improve their editorial and publishing management skills, and enhance their ethical standards and the editorial excellence of their publications. ASBPE tries also to prepare members to play larger roles in their publishing organization.
The Society is widely known for its annual Azbee Awards of Excellence competition in editorial and design of magazines, newsletters, and digital publications, as well as its annual National Editorial Conference.
ASBPE has more than 700 members and chapters in 14 locales—Atlanta, Boston/New England, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Houston, Kansas City, New York, Northern Michigan, Twin Cities (Minneapolis/St. Paul), and Washington, D.C.—which host meetings to provide face-to-face professional guidance, networking, and educational presentations to editors at the local level.
The Society also sponsors an annual scholarship for young editors and conducts a host of original editorial-related research. ASBPE’s Web site features a popular job posting area, along with a members-only section with a wealth of how-to articles and a discussion forum geared to help editors do their work more effectively.
For more information about ASBPE, contact Holly Lundgren, administrative director, ASBPE, 214 North Hale St., Wheaton, IL 60187, 630-510-4588, hlundgren@integrated-solutions.com.
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About Abe Peck from those who know him
Jann Wenner, editor and publisher, Rolling Stone
Throughout his remarkable 28-year career at Northwestern University, Abe remained a member of the Rolling Stone family, staying in touch with our own far-flung alumni and frequently visiting our New York offices. He also gave a number of our editors a chance to guest lecture his students at the Medill School of Journalism, where he literally built a magazine curriculum from the ground up.
So I can only close with a deep bow of gratitude and affection, and say: “Well done, Abe.”
Rennie Davis, president, Foundation for a New Humanity, member of Chicago 7
Great advances in social change are often stirred and galvanized by the courageous independent voice of one individual. Abe Peck has contributed to a great human tradition his entire adult life. In 1968, he was the editor of the Chicago Seed, inspiring me and so many others with his words of encouragement and courage of conviction. From a single seed planted in Chicago decades ago, the legacy, vision, and dedication of Abe Peck have emerged for all to see.
Thank you for inviting me to add my support for your choice of Abe Peck for the 2008 Lifetime Achievement Award.
Shabnam Mogharabi, editor-in-chief, Multifamily Executive Developer
The day I was offered a job that required me to move from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., Abe Peck was one of the first people I called. . . . I have consulted with Abe on nearly every career move I have ever made. . . . My questions were many, and his answers were always welcome. Abe’s advice is practical, wise, and above all, selfless. In his tenure at Northwestern University, Abe has helped hundreds of students like me navigate the challenging, competitive world of media. . . . While most J-schools scoff at trade journalism, Abe touted its benefits. He encouraged young, driven journalists to take the skills and ideas they learned about the news industry and change the stigmas associated with B2B publishing. . . . He will put you in touch with just about anybody in the industry — a classmate at Medill once said that Abe’s Rolodex was “J-school grad gold.”
Queenie Burns, vice president, design & production, Marketing & Technology Group
In a recent class, a student jokingly said, “We've never been invited to the Oprah Book Club.” Abe was sitting in back of the room, computer on lap, typing, presumably engrossed in answering e-mails. He piped up… “Speak for yourself!”
That’s Abe. Witty, original, multi-tasking, thinking, listening . . . always in motion.
Working with Abe is a once-in-a lifetime opportunity. I have been very fortunate to have that privilege for 12 years. I thank you, Abe.
Here’s to the next life achievements you have on your “to do” list.
Bill McDowell, vice president, editorial, Marketing & Technology Group
How do you capture a man forever “in motion?” Maestro of the Muse, Swami of the ’60s, Sultan of Schmooze, Abe Peck has tightly woven 28 years of mentorship into a worldwide web of relationships.
Like Jacob, Abe sired a global tribe of writers, editors and literati that now dots the media landscape, from the corner offices of Conde Nast to the basement bureaus of aspiring novelists, screenwriters, and bloggers.
Although far flung, an entire generation of “Abe’s children” today shares a common language, perspective, and unyielding commitment to the written word. With humor, wit, and boundless energy, Abe has been our personal Sherpa on a great adventure that now extends far beyond the printed page.
Vernon E. Henry, corporate editorial director, Advanstar Communications
ASBPE Lifetime Achievement Award, 2001
When you travel with Abe (for me, it has been 12 years, now) one thing is certain: no matter where you go, chances are you’ll run into a student or former student of his. I’m always amazed at the many lives that Abe has touched in such positive ways.
Like Mr. Chips, the beloved teacher who guided generations of students, Abe genuinely cares for those he’s taught. He instills in them a respect for the craft of journalism in what becomes an ongoing education and life-long friendship.