Michael Parks, a Pulitzer Prize-winning foreign correspondent and former Los Angeles Times editor, has been named director of the School of Journalism at the USC Annenberg School for Communication.

Parks, who had been serving as interim director of the journalism school since fall 2001, was the overwhelming choice of the Annenberg search committee, which lauded both his professionalism and his exemplary work as interim director.

"Michael's leadership and commitment have been outstanding," said Dean Geoffrey Cowan, who announced the appointment.

"He has used his intellectual curiosity and his vast experience as a journalist to enrich existing courses and programs and to launch new ones. His collaborative style and vision for the school will place it at the forefront of professional journalism education for the 21st century," Cowan said.

During Parks' tenure as interim director, the USC Annenberg School of Journalism has created an innovative core curriculum and expanded its international reporting programs and its focus on developing expertise in covering diverse communities, Cowan said.

The school has deepened its commitment to mid-career training for journalists through the work of the Online Journalism Program, the Western Knight Center for Specialized Journalism, the Institute for Justice and Journalism and the newly created USC Annenberg Getty Arts Journalism Fellowship program and Strategic Public Relations Center.

Parks' appointment drew praise from journalists and educators.

"I have followed Michael Parks' career for three decades and always have been impressed with his professional knowledge and dedication," said John Carroll, editor of the Los Angeles Times. "He is admirably qualified for this important position, and we at the Times are looking forward to working with him at USC Annenberg."

Orville Schell, dean of the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism, said he had admired Parks’ work ever since his days as a foreign correspondent in Beijing. "He knows how a newsroom is run and how to make an organization work – a perfect match of experience for the job at USC."

Parks served as editor of the Los Angeles Times from 1997 to 2000. His experience also includes service as managing editor and deputy foreign editor, and 25 years as a foreign correspondent for the Times and the Baltimore Sun.

He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1987 for his "balanced and comprehensive coverage" of the struggle against apartheid in South Africa. He covered the Vietnam War as the Baltimore Sun's Saigon correspondent from 1970 to 1972 and has worked for the Detroit News, Time-Life News Service and the Suffolk (New York) Sun.

Parks succeeds Loren Ghiglione, who left USC Annenberg last year to become dean of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.