RIP: Jody Powell

Amid the sadness over Patrick Swayze's passing and the hoopla over Kayne West's antics, the death of former White House press secretary Jody Powell seems to have been lost in the shuffle. Powell served as the go-to public relations man for Jimmy Carter throughout his presidency and even beyond. Powell's death was announced yesterday by The Carter Center in Atlanta. Powell died of a heart attack.

Powell became press secretary at a time when public relations practices and politics were first rising to a level of professionalism. I know Carter is not a popular president, but Jody Powell set the standard for many press secretaries. Just as in good corporations, the Carter cabinet viewed Powell as an essential part of the management team, not just a spokesman. His closeness to the president was illustrated by a time when Carter said he trusted Powell "more than anyone except Roslyn."

Following his death, Carter said Powell was beside him during every major decision he made as a candidate, as governor of Georgia and as president.

Powell was one of the first press secretaries to develop comfortable working relationships with members of the media, instead of viewing the media and the white house as an us vs. them strategy. He worked to get correct information out in a timely manner. He also worked to build his own credibility and the entire credibility of government press officials and, really, the entire field of public relations.

Powell took on such an intense level of responsibility at a very young age, in his mid 30s if memory serves me correctly. He brought an energy seldom seen in the office and an out-of-the-beltway mentality to his job. Following Carter's term, he wrote a best-selling book called simply "The Other Side of the Story."

I know most of you could care less, but being in public relations Jody Powell has always been one of my idols. Thank you for reading this tribute.