[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 122 (Wednesday, September 12, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1487]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         REMEMBERING ANN ARNOLD

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. MICHAEL C. BURGESS

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 12, 2012

  Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Ann 
Arnold. After a decades-long battle with leukemia, she passed away 
earlier this month at the age of 67. Ms. Arnold is the longtime 
president and CEO of the Texas Association of Broadcasters, and served 
as the press secretary to former Texas Governor Mark White.
  Ms. Arnold was always fascinated by the media and its ability to 
uncover the truth. She founded her junior high school newspaper and 
moonlighted for community newspapers, covering evening city council and 
school board meetings. In 1968, she earned a journalism degree from the 
University of Texas at Austin. To pay her way through college, Ms. 
Arnold worked three jobs; including working at the Capitol Bureau of 
the Dallas Times-Herald. In 1966, she received the Headlines Award.
  After graduation, Ms. Arnold joined the Capitol Bureau of United 
Press International. That same year she married her high-school 
sweetheart, Reg Arnold. In 1980, Ms. Arnold joined the Fort Worth Star-
Telegram's Capitol staff. In 1983, she became the press secretary for 
Governor Mark White, the first Texas woman in history to hold the 
position.
  Shortly after Governor White lost his bid for re-election to a second 
term, Ms. Arnold was diagnosed with leukemia. Although she was told 
that she only had six months to two years to live, twenty years later, 
and after an experimental treatment at Houston's M.D. Anderson Cancer 
Center, Ms. Arnold was still going strong and became an icon of hope 
statewide.
  As executive director of the Texas Association of Broadcasters, and 
through her work at the Texas Capitol, before Congress and the Federal 
Communications Commission, Ms. Arnold was influential in helping 
broadcasters achieve a positive business climate in Texas. Ms. Arnold 
also positioned the Texas Association of Broadcasters as a primary 
defender of Texas' open government laws and was repeatedly recognized 
for her achievements on behalf of the industry. In 2001, she received 
the Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas' James Madison Award 
with then Attorney General John Cornyn.
  During her tenure at the Texas Association of Broadcasters, Ms. 
Arnold doubled station membership, expanded an array of member services 
for stations, recruited top professional staff, and oversaw the 
construction of the association's permanent home just blocks from the 
Texas Capitol. In 2007, Ms. Arnold received the Texas Association of 
Broadcasters' ``Lifetime Achievement Award''.
  Ms. Arnold's successes with the broadcast industry and local 
communities throughout Texas have strengthened the communities she 
worked with and her passion and dedication will certainly be missed. I 
would like to extend my sincerest condolences to Ms. Arnold's family 
and friends.

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