Jim Quello’s memoirs, My Wars, were published by Alexis de Tocqueville Institution Publishing in early April, 2001. My Wars chronicled the adventures, exploits and accomplishments of this remarkable member of the “Brokaw Generation.” Following valorous service in the U.S. Army in Europe in World War II, Jim pursued a distinguished career in broadcasting, eventually with ABC at WJR in Detroit. He interrupted private sector success to pursue public service in what became a 23-1/2 year tenure on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Jim Quello was appointed to fill a Democratic seat on the Commission, by a Republican, President Richard Nixon, with strong support from his Vice President Gerald Ford, whose political career was anchored in Michigan. By the end of his tenure, Jim had served under six Presidents. As an FCC Commissioner, and as Acting Chair for a year, prior to the appointment of Reed Hunt, Jim wielded significant influence on U.S. communications policy during a period of dramatic change in communication technologies and industries. James Quello served as Chairman of the Quello Center until he died on the 24th of January 2010.
Jim Quello embraced innovation in communications. In his prologue to My Wars, he noted that in his 23 1/2 years at the FCC: ‘Telecommunication [moved] from the three-network era of TV scarcity in 1974 to a seven-network era of multi-channel, multi-faceted abundance complemented by cable, satellite and the Internet–all now facing an advanced technological future in the converging digital age.’
Read more about James H. Quello’s career.
More photographs of James H. Quello and his colleagues and friends are available on our Flickr.
