UA’s Communication Hall of Fame Announces 2014 Inductees

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The University of Alabama’s College of Communication and Information Sciences will induct five new members into its Communication Hall of Fame.

Inductees are:

William O. “Bill” Bolen

William O. “Bill” Bolen spent more than 50 years as an anchor for WBRC Fox 6 in Birmingham. Throughout his career, Bolen was witness to many major events, reporting from the front line of the Selma March in 1965 and interviewing John Glenn before his final flight into space in 1998, just to name two. He also represented the station on different boards, in organizations and in volunteer capacities. He retired at age 81.

Gilbert E. “Gibby” Johnston Jr.

Gilbert E. “Gibby” Johnston enjoyed a prominent career in law, becoming one of the best-known First Amendment lawyers in Alabama. In 1974 Johnston joined the Birmingham law firm Johnston, Barton, Proctor, Swedlaw & Naff, where he worked with colleagues to establish numerous favorable precedents in the law pertaining to libel and privacy defense, access to public meetings and records and the reporter’s privilege. He retired from Johnston Barton Proctor & Rose LLP in 2011.

H. Shelton Prince Jr. (posthumous)

H. Shelton Prince Jr. began his newspaper career at the Cedartown (Ga.) Standard in 1956. He spent time in Galveston and Laredo, Texas, in Jasper and Selma and was publisher of the Brownwood (Texas) Bulletin at the time of his death in 1997. Prince was a senior vice president, group manager and president of the Southwest Management Group of Tuscaloosa-based Boone Newspapers Inc. He served terms as president of the Alabama Press Association and the APA Journalism Foundation.

Stan Siegal (posthumous)

During his broadcast career, Stan Siegal moved up from staff announcer all the way to group manager and general manager. After doing commentary for Alabama basketball and working in sales, Siegal joined Imes Communications as vice president and general manager of WBOY TV in Clarksburg, West Virginia. In 1985, Siegal became a general partner in WBOY TV and in 1990 was named group manager of the four Imes television stations: WMUR TV Manchester, New Hamphsire; WCBI TV Columbus, Mississippi; WBOY TV Clarksburg, West Virginia; and KDBC TV El Paso, Texas. Siegal also served as general manager of KDBC from 1991 until his retirement in 1995.

Sela Ward

Sela Ward is an award-winning actress known for roles as Teddy Reed in the NBC drama “Sisters” and as Lily Manning on the ABC series “Once and Again,” plus roles in films like “The Fugitive” and “The Guardian.” She joined the cast of “CSI: NY” in 2010 and will appear in the 2014 film “Gone Girl,” based on the popular novel. She has won two Emmys and a Golden Globe award for “Best Actress in a Primetime Series.” She also founded Hope Village for Children, an alternative to the traditional foster-home system, in her hometown of Meridian, Mississippi. Her book, “Homesick,” was published in 2002 and appeared on the New York Times bestseller list.

Communication Hall of Fame inductees are selected based on their accomplishments that bring prominence to the state of Alabama through application of disciplines taught, researched and practiced in the College of Communication and Information Sciences.

The 2014 Communication Hall of Fame induction and dinner will be Thursday, Oct. 9, in the North Zone of Bryant-Denny Stadium. Tickets are $125 and may be purchased by phoning 205/348-4787.