Brookings President Michael H. Armacost announced today that Ron Nessen, currently a moderator and managing editor of Issues & Answers and The TV Book Shop on the Nostalgia TV Cable Network, will join the Brookings Institution as vice president of communications on March 15. In this position, Nessen will direct public affairs and media relations, as well as coordinate the internal and external communications programs for the Institution.
“Ron Nessen’s knowledge of public policy, his familiarity with the nuances of national politics, and his long experience with the media will be major assets for the Brookings Institution,” Armacost noted.
Nessen served five tours as an NBC war correspondent in Vietnam and later served as NBC News White House correspondent during the Johnson administration, before becoming press secretary to President Gerald R. Ford from 1974-76.
More recently, he has been the senior vice president of public affairs and communications at the Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association. Previously he served as corporate vice president for news at Westwood One, Inc. where he managed news departments of Mutual Broadcasting System and NBC Radio Network; and executive vice president and managing director of the Washington Office for Marston and Rothenberg Public Affairs.
Nessen has written several books including: It Sure Looks Different From the Inside; The First Lady; and The Hour. Nessen has also co-authored, with Johanna Neuman, a series of mystery books including Death with Honors, Press Corpse, and Knight & Day.
Nessen is a frequent commentator for MarketPlace on public radio, CNBC, CNN, MSNBC, and Fox News Channel. His articles, reviews, and opinion pieces have appeared in Newsweek, the Washington Post, Newsday, Broadcasting, Today’s Health, Media People, TV Guide, and other publications.
He is married to Johanna Neuman and lives in Bethesda, Maryland.