Meet Akeam Ashford

Professional Kansas Communicator

 1. How many years have you given to the communication field? 

Meet Felicia Rolfe

Professional Kansas Communicator

1. How many years have you given to the communication field?

I have over 20 years‘ experience as an anchor and reporter.

2. What motivated you to become a professional communicator/journalist? What are you most proud of?

I love to tell impactful stories that make a difference in the community.

I’m most proud that the work I do helps save lives.

3. How has your work in the communication field been inspiring and/or informative for you?

I’m inspired by the stories about people going the extra mile to help others in their time of need.

4. What advice or insight would you like to share with other aspiring communicators?

Be confident, objective and dedicated.

5. Please also share about your current role. Feel free to share any ways the general public could support or become involved with your business, organization or causes.

I’m currently a morning and noon anchor for KWCH and KSCW. I also work on special reports, and would like to encourage the community to forward stories ideas that we could share with our viewers.

Meet Greg “Hitman” Williams

Professional Kansas Communicator

1. How many years have you given to the communication field?

I started out at the age of 14 when I was a sophomore at Wichita East High School. I have been in broadcasting for 46 years.

2. What motivated you to become a professional communicator/journalist? What are you most proud of?

I was always a radio nerd. I used to do impersonations in talent shows at the age of 8. I had a gift of impersonating the voices of many celebrities at that time. I would emulate the voices of local radio personalities at that time. CJ the DJ, and Tevis “Mike” were two of the hottest radio DJs in Wichita at that time. As a kid, I wanted to be like those guys. They were so connected to the community and so involved with everything. If it was happening, then those two guys were a part of it. I knew if I was going to have a long sustainable and successful career that everything started by being connected to your community. I have never ever forgotten that.

3. How has your work in the communication field been inspiring and/or informative for you?

I am blessed. I am doing the one thing I ever wanted to do in life. The fact that I am even in radio in and of itself is a miracle. As a child, I had a speech impediment that required speech therapy from the age of 8 through my years in college. Early in my career, I had to really concentrate on speaking clearly and correctly. My mother was a school teacher, and she did not want me to be bullied by other kids in my neighborhood. So speaking for a living, life, and career is all a bit surreal. Early on in my career, I believed that whatever you put your mind to, you can and you will have success if you are willing to be your very best. My career in broadcasting has been a mirror of all the technological advancements that are still happening now and will continue to happen long after my life is over. I have played music on records with turntables, cart machines, digital audio wave files, and beyond. A technological career in broadcasting is always a forever evolving, growing, and advancing profession that requires the ability to adapt, change, grow, and advance.

4. What advice or insight would you like to share with other aspiring communicators?

Today’s communication is not limited to radio and television broadcast professionals. Today, anyone can podcast, Tik Tok, and post not only audio and video but also present content of any kind in any multitude of opinions, thoughts, and engagement. As long as there are people there is an opportunity for anyone to become a “social media influencer”. In many ways, radio and television professionals were the pioneers of “influencers”. There is so much information and content available to us at the click of a mouse. As a result, we are more informed and more aware than at any other time in the history of mankind. Today’s communications landscape provides a forum for anyone to talk about whatever they feel passionate about. It doesn’t matter what the subject matter may be, because whatever it is, there will always be someone willing to know, learn, and hear more about it or better yet state their own thoughts and comments.

5. Please also share about your current role. Feel free to share anyways the general public could support or become involved with your business, organization, or causes.

Currently, I am the brand manager for KDGS-FM (Power 93.5). This means I have been entrusted by my employers to be responsible for the brand that is Power 93.5. We have a target audience we seek to communicate not only to but also with. So my responsibilities are beyond what comes out of the speakers on your radio or if you are listening online. I am responsible for every podium of representation of this brand. On social media, on the internet, and on your radio. Radio is still the number one mass communication tool in the nation. Over 92% of Americans listen and interact with broadcast radio every single day. Compared to other mass media tools…newspapers, television, streaming, magazines, etc…radio is still the dominant mass communication tool in the nation and around the world. The great advantage that radio has and will always have is the fact that of all the mass communication platforms, radio is the only one that is mobile. Today’s broadcast radio can be heard online, on your mobile devices, and your choice of transportation. That is why radio will always exist and always have a presence in the daily engagement for millions in our country and around the world.

PRSA VALUES AND ETHICS

Jamie Reed, APR, Ethics Chair

Our national PRSA organization has long espoused a statement of professional values and a code of ethical conduct to guide its members in their professional work. Here is a quick refresher on those values for our PRSA Kansas chapter members:

• Advocacy – We serve the public interest by acting as responsible advocates for those we represent. We provide a voice in the marketplace of ideas, facts, and viewpoints to aid informed public debate.
• Honesty – We adhere to the highest standards of accuracy and truth in advancing the interests of those we represent and in communicating with the public.
• Expertise – We acquire and responsibly use specialized knowledge and experience. We advance the profession through continued professional development, research, and education. We build mutual understanding, credibility, and relationships among a wide array of institutions and audiences.
• Independence – We provide objective counsel to those we represent. We are accountable for our actions.
• Loyalty – We are faithful to those we represent, while honoring our obligation to serve the public interest.
• Fairness – We deal fairly with clients, employers, competitors, peers, vendors, the media, and the general public. We respect all opinions and support the right of free expression.

As ethical professionals, we believe that:

• Protecting and advancing the free flow of accurate and truthful information is essential to serving the public interest and contributing to informed decision making in a democratic society.
• Promoting healthy and fair competition among professionals preserves an ethical climate while fostering a robust business environment.
• Open communication fosters informed decision making in a democratic society. (Disclosure of information.)
• Client trust requires appropriate protection of confidential and private information. (Safeguarding confidences.)
• Avoiding real, potential or perceived conflicts of interest builds the trust of clients, employers, and the publics.
• Public relations professionals work constantly to strengthen the public’s trust in the profession. (Enhancing the profession.)

For the full statement of professional values and codes of ethical conduct, visit: https://www.prsa.org/about/prsa-code-of-ethics. Throughout the year, we will be taking a deep dive into these values and exploring how they can make us better counselors and communicators!