Contact:   Elissa Ruffino (NIAF) 202/939-3106 or elissa@niaf.org

(WASHINGTON, DC — March 18, 2003) The National Italian American Foundation (NIAF) sponsored its third annual networking dinner for leading Italian American and Italian journalists in New York City at the Columbus Club on March 6, 2003. The dinner was underwritten by Hill & Knowlton, a leading international communications consultancy.

Charles Gasparino, senior special writer at The Wall Street Journal and Rosanna Scotto, co-anchor for Fox 5 News co-hosted the dinner. Thirty-six journalists from the print and electronic media including: The Wall Street Journal, New York Post, CBS News 60 Minutes II, CNN, CBS Market Watch, The New York Observer, Fox News Network, PublishersWeekly, HBO, HarperCollins, Barron’s Magazine, WLIW-TV, Global Finance, In Touch Weekly, Dailycandy.com, La Stampa, Corriere della Sera, America Oggi, ANSA, Italian Tribune in New Jersey, Radio Vaticano, Il Giornale and Italics CUNY-TV attended the dinner.

NIAF Chairman Frank J. Guarini, NIAF President Joseph R. Cerrell and several members of the NIAF Board of Directors greeted the guests. The journalists received the latest report on the Italian ancestry of the108th U.S. Congress compiled by the NIAF, the Foundation’s upcoming events in NYC, the listing of area scholarship recipients, Gift of Discovery and Students to Leaders (S2L) participants.

Stephen R. Aiello, chairman of Cohn & Wolfe and NIAF board member who chairs the public affairs committee, addressed the group and discussed the Foundation’s goal that evening — to give journalists an opportunity to meet with their colleagues and introduce the NIAF to them as the “total source for information, issues, concerns and events in the Italian American community and internationally.” Aiello added, “our goal is also to have an enjoyable evening together and a delicious Italian dinner.”

This year, the NIAF hosted similar events in Miami Beach (January 30) and Washington, DC (February 25) for area journalists of Italian heritage.

(L to R) Charles Gasparino, senior special writer at The Wall Street Journal, Rosanna Scotto, co-anchor for Fox 5 News, co-hosts for NIAF’s third media networking dinner in New York City, with Stephen R. Aiello, chairman of Cohn & Wolfe and NIAF board member. Thirty-six journalists attended the media networking event on March 6, 2003 at the Columbus Club.