People
Director
Kathy R. Fitzpatrick
Director and Professor
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Kathy R. Fitzpatrick is professor and director of the Zimmerman School of Advertising & Mass Communications
at the University of South Florida (USF). She moved to USF from American University
(AU) in Washington, D.C., where she served as professor and former senior associate
dean for academic affairs in the School of Communication. Prior to joining AU, Fitzpatrick
was associate dean of graduate programs and research in the School of Journalism and
Mass Communication at Florida International University. She previously directed graduate
programs at Quinnipiac University and DePaul University and served as head of the undergraduate public
relations program at Southern Methodist University. She is a former research fellow
in the Center on Public Diplomacy in the Annenberg School at the University of Southern
California, where she currently serves as a faculty fellow.
Fitzpatrick’s research is published in leading journals, including Journal of Public Relations Research, Journal of Advertising, Journal of Media Ethics, The
Hague Journal of Diplomacy, Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, International Journal
of Strategic Communications, White House Studies, Journal of Communication Management,
Corporate Reputation Review, Public Relations Review, and Journalism and Mass Communication Education. She is the author of The Future of U.S. Public Diplomacy: An Uncertain Fate (2010), co-editor of Ethics in Public Relations: Responsible Advocacy (2006), and co-author of Journalism Ethics (1997) and Public Relations Ethics (1995). She is the co-founder and senior editor of the Palgrave Macmillan Book Series
on Global Public Diplomacy and serves on the editorial boards of Journal of Public Relations Research, Public Relations Journal, International Journal
of Strategic Communication, and Journal of Mass Media Ethics.
Fitzpatrick has received numerous awards for her work, including the 2021 Distinguished
Scholar Award from the International Studies Association Diplomatic Studies Division
and the 2020 AEJMC Research Prize for Professional Relevance from the Association
for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication. Her work has been recognized with six
top research paper awards at national and international conferences and the PRIDE
award presented by the National Communication Association for the best article in
public relations published in 2006.
Fitzpatrick is a member of the Arthur W. Page Society, former head of the Educators
Academy of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) and former president of
the PRSA Dallas Chapter. She received her J.D. from Southern Methodist University
and M.S. and B.S. degrees in journalism from West Virginia University.