Ernest J. Wilson III, Walter Annenberg Chair in Communication and dean of the Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism at the University of Southern California, has been appointed to the team advising President-Elect Barack Obama as he continues to assemble his administration.
Dean Wilson will serve several functions in the transition. He will lead a team reviewing America’s international broadcasting services, including the Voice of America and the Broadcasting Board of Governors. He will also be an advisor to the transition team working with the U.S. Department of State on public diplomacy issues.
An expert on global communications issues and sustainable innovation, Dean Wilson is the author of numerous articles and books on the subject, including The Information Revolution and Developing Countries (MIT Press), Negotiating the Net and The Governance of Global Electronic Networks. He has served as a consultant to the World Bank, corporations, nongovernmental organizations and governments around the world.
During the presidential campaign, Dean Wilson was a member of the Technology / Media / Telecommunications campaign advisory group, and of the international affairs advisory group. In the Clinton administration he served in the White House as a senior staff member of the National Security Council, where his portfolio included international communications policies. He was also director of the Policy and Planning Unit, Office of the Director, U.S. Information Agency; and deputy director of the Global Information Infrastructure Commission. Dean Wilson is the ranking senior member of the Board of Directors of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, nominated by Presidents Clinton and Bush and confirmed by the Senate. He chairs the Board’s Digital Media Committee.
Beginning December 5, Dean Wilson will take a month-long leave of absence from his position at USC Annenberg to fulfill his appointment. While he is away, Larry Gross, director of USC Annenberg’s School of Communication, will serve as acting dean.
Ernest J. Wilson III, Dean of the USC Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism, gives opening remarks during the USC Annenberg and the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Los Angeles 23rd annual Kenneth Owler Smith Symposium, Thursday, April 11, 2013 in Los Angeles.
Dean Wilson appointed to presidential transition team
December 2, 2008
Updated April 28, 2023 11:55 a.m.
