Albert Scardino
{{short description|American journalist}}
{{Infobox person
| name =
| birth_date = {{birth based on age as of date|35|1984|04|18}}
| birth_place = Baltimore, Maryland, US
| education = Columbia College (BA)
University of California at Berkeley (MA)
| alma_mater =
| occupation = Journalist
| years_active =
| known_for =
| spouse = {{marriage|Marjorie Scardino|1974}}
| children = 3, including Hal
| father =
| relatives =
| awards = Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Writing (1984)
}}
Albert Scardino (born {{birth based on age as of date|35|1984|04|18|noage=1}}{{Cite web |last=Randolph |first=Eleanor |date=April 18, 1984 |title=Prize Briefly Frees Editor From Doghouse |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1984/04/19/prize-briefly-frees-editor-from-doghouse/e667ecf9-0bc8-40c7-9768-5a52ac6c4ae1/ |work=The Washington Post}}) is an American journalist and former publisher of The Georgia Gazette who is known for winning the Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Writing in 1984.{{Cite web|title=The 1984 Pulitzer Prize Winner in Editorial Writing|url=https://www.pulitzer.org/winners/albert-scardino|website=The Pulitzer Prizes|access-date=May 31, 2020}}
Early life and education
Scardino was born in Baltimore, Maryland, and grew up in Savannah, Georgia, where his father, Dr. Peter Scardino, practiced medicine.{{Cite news|last=Prial|first=Frank J.|date=1989-12-09|title=New Administration: Profiles of Dinkins's Eight Appointees; Albert Scardino: Press Secretary|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1989/12/09/nyregion/new-administration-profiles-dinkins-s-eight-appointees-albert-scardino-press.html|access-date=2020-06-01|issn=0362-4331}} He graduated from Savannah Country Day School.{{Cite web|title=Albert Scardino papers|url=http://ghs.galileo.usg.edu/ghs/view?docId=ead/MS%201694-ead.xml;query=;brand=default|website=ghs.galileo.usg.edu|access-date=2020-06-01}} After receiving his Bachelor of Arts from Columbia College in 1970, he went on to get his Master of Arts in journalism at the University of California at Berkeley.{{Cite book|url=http://archive.org/details/ldpd_12981092_026|title=Columbia College Today|date=1984|publisher=Columbia College, Office of Alumni Affairs and Development|others=Columbia University Libraries|location=New York|pages=7}} At Columbia, he was night editor of the Columbia Daily Spectator.
Career
On April 10, 1978, he started The Georgia Gazette with his wife Majorie on $50,000 raised among family and friends and the two managed the daily operations of the newspaper as publishers and maintained a staff of around twenty.{{Cite web|title=It's Black and White and in the Red Overall, but Their Paper Won a Pulitzer for the Scardinos|url=https://people.com/archive/its-black-and-white-and-in-the-red-overall-but-their-paper-won-a-pulitzer-for-the-scardinos-vol-22-no-9/|website=PEOPLE.com|language=EN|access-date=2020-06-01}} The newspaper was famous for its investigative journalism that exposed the corruption of Sam Caldwell, who was later convicted of fraud conspiracy.{{Cite web|title=COUPLE'S JOURNALISTIC SUCCESS DIES IN DEBT|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1985-02-28-8501120056-story.html|last=Tribune|first=Michael Hirsley, Chicago|website=chicagotribune.com|date=28 February 1985 |language=en-US|access-date=2020-06-01}} He won the Pulitzer Prize in 1984 for his editorials exposing the corruption and ineptitude of local and state governments.{{Cite book|url=http://archive.org/details/ldpd_12981092_027|title=Columbia College Today|date=1985|publisher=Columbia College, Office of Alumni Affairs and Development|others=Columbia University Libraries|location=New York, N.Y.|pages=49}} However, their style of journalism did not appeal to many locals, and the paper occasionally met resistance from the officials, including then mayor John Rousakis. Circulation of the newspaper was meager and hovered between 2,500 and 4,000. Eventually, financial constraints forced the couple to shut down the newspaper in 1985.
Scardino was later hired by The New York Times as an editor and worked there until 1990, when he was hired by mayor David Dinkins as his press secretary, a role he served until his resignation 1991.{{Cite news|last=Purdum|first=Todd S.|date=1991-02-14|title=Press Secretary Resigns as Dinkins Reaches Out to Public|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/02/14/nyregion/press-secretary-resigns-as-dinkins-reaches-out-to-public.html|access-date=2020-06-01|issn=0362-4331}}
He later moved to the United Kingdom with his wife after she was promoted to the CEO of the Economist Group and worked as a journalist and executive editor of The Guardian from 2002 to 2004.{{Cite web|title=Marjorie Scardino {{!}} Biography & Facts|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Marjorie-Scardino|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en|access-date=2020-06-01}}{{Cite news|last=Online|first=By Rhys Blakely and Steven Downes, Times|title=Scardino resigns from Guardian|newspaper=The Times |language=en|url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/media/article/scardino-resigns-from-guardian-q9w68878n03|access-date=2020-06-01|issn=0140-0460}} He also served as a governor of The Royal Shakespeare Company, a director of Media Standards Trust, and judge on the Orwell Prize jury in 2008.{{Cite web|title=Albert Scardino|url=https://www.orwellfoundation.com/judge/albert-scardino/|last=Prize -|first=The Orwell|website=The Orwell Foundation|language=en-GB|access-date=2020-06-01}}{{Cite news|last=Phillip|first=Robert|date=2002-12-05|title=American chairman loves being tied up in Notts|language=en-GB|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/competitions/league-one/3039096/American-chairman-loves-being-tied-up-in-Notts.html|access-date=2020-06-01|issn=0307-1235}}
Outside of his journalism career, he owned Notts County F.C., the world's oldest professional association football club, in a futile attempt to help it get out of debt.{{Cite web|title=Notts County FC rescued after takeover by Blenheim Consortium {{!}} Political Economy of Football {{!}} December 2003|url=https://www.footballeconomy.com/archive/archive_2003_dec_06.htm|website=www.footballeconomy.com|access-date=2020-06-01}}{{Cite news|last=Harper|first=Nick|date=2002-06-10|title=Notts County plunged into crisis|language=en-GB|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/football/2002/jun/10/clubsincrisis.sport|access-date=2020-06-01|issn=0261-3077}}{{Cite news|date=2002-03-06|title=Scardino's Notts County takeover|language=en-GB|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/n/notts_county/1857858.stm|access-date=2020-06-01}}
Personal life
In 1974 he married Marjorie Scardino (née Morris), who was raised in Texas and received her BA from Baylor University and JD from the University of San Francisco. She became the first female CEO of a FTSE 100 Index company when she was appointed as the chief executive of British publisher Pearson plc in 1997.{{Cite web|title=BBC Radio 4 - Woman's Hour Timeline - Key Events Print Version|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/womanshour/timeline/keyevents_print.shtml?1990|website=www.bbc.co.uk|access-date=2020-06-01}} The couple has three children, including Hal Scardino, who was a child actor known for playing the protagonist in The Indian in the Cupboard and two films Searching for Bobby Fischer and Marvin's Room.{{Cite web |last=Cohen |first=Jason |date=September 1999 |title=Media: Marjorie Scardino |url=https://www.texasmonthly.com/articles/media-marjorie-scardino/ |work=Texas Monthly}}{{Cite web|title=Hollywood Actor Hal Scardino Joins Cast Of SALTONSTALL'S TRIAL|url=https://www.broadwayworld.com/boston/article/Hollywood-Actor-Hall-Scardino-Joins-Cast-Of-SALTONSTALLS-TRIAL-20190725|author=BWW News Desk|website=BroadwayWorld.com|language=en|access-date=2020-06-01}}
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Scardino, Albert}}
Category:American newspaper founders
Category:American newspaper editors
Category:Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Writing winners
Category:Columbia College (New York) alumni
Category:Mass media people from Savannah, Georgia
Category:UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism alumni
Category:Editors of New York City newspapers
Category:The New York Times editors