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Former RTNDA President Paul Davis inducted into the NATAS prestigious Silver Circle in Chicago

Former Radio Television News Directors Association (RTNDA) President Paul Davis is being inducted into the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences’ (NATAS) prestigious Silver Circle in ceremonies in Chicago today (April 24, 2009). The silver circle was established by NATAS to recognize outstanding individuals who have devoted 25 years or more to the television industry and have made significant contributions to Chicago television.

A veteran broadcast journalist and news administrator, Paul began his career as a staff announcer at radio station WCRA in Effingham, Illinois, where his mother was a pioneering news director for 37 years.  He was only 15.  Paul earned a BA Degree in Communications from the University of Illinois and did graduate work in Educational Psychology.

By age 20, Paul was anchoring news in Texas.  In 1960, he joined the news department of WCIA-TV in Champaign, Illinois, as anchor-reporter and was given the added duties of news director in 1967. During Paul’s 20-year run at the station, WCIA enjoyed one of the nation’s highest audience shares for news programming.

Paul left WCIA to become news director at WGN Television and Radio in Chicago, a position he held for nearly 13 years. During his tenure, WGN-TV expanded its 9-pm news to an hour while dramatically increasing its ratings, created an hour-long Midday News and began Chicago’s first weekend morning newscast.  Paul implemented the city’s first computerized television newsroom.  He established a Washington Bureau for all Tribune stations (Tribnet) and was its first president.

Paul is one of only four journalists to have served as national president of two of the nations largest journalism organizations, RTNDA and the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ, SDX). Paul chaired the RTNDA’s EEO Committee, served as a member of the RTNDA’s Task Force on Diversity and chaired the Radio Television News Directors Foundation’s (RTNDF) National Advisory Committee on Diversity. As a volunteer, Paul has spent countless years doing performance critiques for participants at minority journalist conventions.

Most recently, Paul served as Senior Vice President of the Foundation for American Communications in Pasadena, California, where he provided journalists around the world with educational training on complex subjects.  He has three grown children and six grandchildren.

Paul served for more than ten years on the Board of Governors of the National Television Academy’s Chicago chapter and he received the organization’s Governor’s Award in 1994.  It’s only fitting that he return to Chicago in 2009 to become part of the Academy’s prestigious Silver Circle.