Edited John Thomas Story

OXFORD, Miss. – Journalism majors at the University of Mississippi had a special opportunity to interview an interesting alum of the 1985 graduating class. John B Thomas, a Chicago native,  and not only a former Rebel but a decorated professional who has done everything but write a book on what it means to have success after college, shared the inner and outer workings of exactly what it is that he does, and how he got started.

“My partner and I had $500 to our name.” Mr. Thomas said. “We decided to let it take us as far as we could.” For a short while he talked of his parents his humble beginnings in the journalism business. His dad, who John credits for inspiring him to pursue the career that he did, graduated from Northwestern University in the field of Journalism as well.

“My father inspired me to pursue a career in writing” John exclaims. “Communications were always an influence in our house and I developed an interest in the field.”

Upon graduating himself, Mr. John Smith and a partner combined efforts to begin a startup project newspaper that would go on to be called the “Oxford Times.” The newspaper featured a different style of news story in which that the stories would sometimes be incorporated with the advertisement and stretch the length of the entire page giving it the feel of a magazine.  It was one of the few ways the young men could structure their paper to differentiate from the leading paper of the time known as the Oxford Eagle. 

After a while, the decision to charge for the output of the Oxford Eagle became the duo’s undoing. Mr. Smith credited the experience with being the perfect start point for his current endeavors.

“Biting off more than we could chew probably ended up being the biggest lesson I could’ve learned. Mr. Thomas said. “I’m only in my current position because I had learned back then not to be afraid to deal with things outside my area of expertise.”

That detail made more sense when Mr. Thomas went on explaining his position in the Abbot Corporation (founded in 1888) where a lot of America’s leading healthcare products are produced. The position he currently holds in the company, which produced $38. 9 billion in sales last year, has everything to do with financial trends and changes in the company, requiring Mr. Thomas to pour over countless figures and analyze what can be done to increase stock price, maintain investor relations, and keep the company in good standing. Obviously John graduated in Journalism and stated that he knew nothing about numbers whatsoever, but also wasn’t afraid to take the job as so many of his co-workers with similar experience were. Earning his MBA at Lake Forest Graduate School didn’t hurt either added John. Mr. Smith’s track record includes 25+ years of work for Meredith Co, work with Budget, Better Homes & Gardens Magazine, Mallinckrodt and more.

John Thomas Comes to Town

Sydney Hembree


Oxford, Miss. - John Thomas, a graduate of the Meek School of Journalism, advised journalism students Thursday on the road to a successful career.

Thomas, vice president for investor relations and public affairs at the healthcare company, Abbott, began his career co-founding and producing a newspaper, The Oxford Times.

"My partner and I thought we were ready to take on the world at that time," he said.

He and his friend tried to take on The Oxford Eagle, only to discover they could not compete with the amount of funds, sales and advertisements the Eagle had.

"I view my time with The Oxford Times as a learning experience," he said. "We became the editors, publishers, and salesmen for the newspaper."

Eventually, Thomas sold his half of the company to his partner and moved to New York to become the editorial assistant at the Metropolitan Home Magazine, then on to Iowa to work as the Health and Education Manager for Better Homes and Gardens.

"My boss used to say that readers want our greatest hits," he said. "They come for your editorial strategy."

By working for Better Homes and Gardens, Thomas became interested in healthcare, which led him to work at Abbott. Although he lacked the education to be a financial analyst, he tried it anyway; his attempt earned him the opportunity to be a vice president.

"You have to have an open mind and try new career options as they become available," he said.

Thomas went on to mention that, in today's world, social media sites, such as Facebook and Twitter, are trusted by 75 percent of people.

"Older employees, however, usually have a hard time adjusting to the newest technology," he said. "It took a lot of convincing to get the company to get into social media."

When asked about what journalism students should do to prepare for careers, Thomas noted that one should always be a reporter and ask a lot of questions.

"As a manager, I always have to think about the data I get and where the information came from," he said.

Thomas also stressed the importance of remembering the inverted pyramid.

"It is one of the basic elements that you learn in journalism, but it is crucial in the workforce," he said. "You've got to get your message across immediately and make it concise."

Finally, Thomas emphasized that, in order to be a good employee and rise up in the ranks, students muust show they are persistent, responsive and, above all, that they care.

John Thomas--Guest speaker

            UNIVERSITY, Miss. – Good writing still matters in the everyday life of Ole Miss alum and business professional, John Thomas, who on Monday advised journalism students to take all opportunities given to them.

Thomas is currently the vice president for investor relations and public affairs at Abbott, a global health care company dedicated to promoting pharmaceuticals products.  He has been with the company for 17 years.

            Inspired by his father to pursue a career in journalism, Thomas has used the techniques of writing throughout his entire career.  It started the day after college graduation when he co-founded The Oxford Times, he said. 

Having no one else on their team, Thomas and his partner received no help with selling ads, interviewing, or taking pictures.  They made the layout to be what were looking like stories in the magazine to really being just paid ads.

            “I’m not sure that I would recommend you guys do it,” said Thomas, who launched the magazine with $500.

“We were eager to start our careers right out of college and we had no fear,” he said.

Thomas has recently been working on generating a new company called AbbVie, which will be part of the pharmaceutical division of Abbott.  Many employees from Abbott will be moved over to AbbVie, which will allow many new job opportunities.

 “We are really trying to drive the reputation of the company,” Thomas said.

Thomas believes that communication is very important during the development of the new company.  Even though he is no longer a reporter, he still uses the writing and interviewing techniques he was taught at Ole Miss, he said.

“Don’t forsake face-to-face communication is my message to you,” he said.

“I was taught back in the print journalism days and I was taught the inverted pyramid.”

He explained how important the inverted pyramid is to his current job, not just in writing but also through communication with his employees.

Not having visited Oxford in years, Thomas said he is please to return.  His family is coming into town for the Texas vs. Ole Miss game and he is excited to show them around campus, he said. 

            “This is all new; the changes that have been made here are very exciting,” he said.  “We set up a scholarship here because we have so much faith in where we are going.”

Speaker Thomas

Kristen Stephens


UNIVERSITY, Miss. - Along a path that began in a newsroom and ended in a health care company, Ole Miss alumnus John Thomas enlightened journalism students on how a journalism degree and an open mindset led to his present career success.

Thomas began his journalism career the day after he graduated with an Ole Miss Bachelor's degree as he and another journalism student partnered to launch Oxford Times to compete with the Oxford Eagle. Since selling his half of Oxford Times, he has been employed at Better Homes and Gardens magazine, Meredith Corp., Abbott, a health-care company, and soon-to-be-launched Abbvie, a branch of Abbott centered on bio-pharmaceuticals.

While answering questions, Thomas enriched the students' minds with lessons he learned moving from one career field to another.

"Take those opportunities when they come along, and they don't come along that often," Thomas said.

Some of the positions Thomas held were given to him due to his willingness to take on the challenge of a new job he said. He moved up to his current position as vice president for investor relations and public affairs at Abbott simply because no one else wanted it.

"Be persistent," Thomas advised the budding journalism students. "Be responsive. Show that you're interested and that you're very responsive."

Whether working in journalism or in public relations, Thomas worked to brand his company's message, which in Abbott's case is helping people and others around the world.

"We are really the protectors of the brand," Thomas said. "We are all supporting the same message."

Picking up lessons from his journalism career, Thomas helped Abbott face the challenge of positive branding in a world driven by social media. He believes information today is skewed and scattered with lots of distractions keeping the public from truth and maintaining the company's brand can be difficult, especially with all the potential hazards social media can bring. However, though the company was resistant to entering social media at first, with Thomas' help, Abbott made its mark and now posts regularly on social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook.

A proud alumnus, Thomas and his wife, Mary, with the aid of the Abbott Fund, created an integrated marketing scholarship specifically for University of Mississippi students in the integrated marketing communications or journalism programs. Thomas said he decided to start a scholarship at Ole Miss because he is proud of what the university is doing with the Meek School of Journalism and New Media.

"The changes that have been made here are very exciting," Thomas said. "It's where the world is going. You can still use your traditional journalism skills but doing it in the way you're doing it, makes a lot of sense. You're successful in this way."

UNIVERSITY, Miss. - John Thomas has a passion for students. The passion comes from his experience at Ole Miss as a journalism student. He is currently the vice president of investor relations and public affairs with Abbott, a healthcare company with presence more than 130 countries. John expressed this in his visit to students in Jour 271 recently.

Thomas opened his presentation with a warm, “good morning” and a brief description of who he was and what he did. He went into further detail with a slideshow to narrate his past experience with Ole Miss and journalism ventures. This included Thomas starting the Oxford Times, a paper created to challenge the Oxford Eagle. “I was two days out of college and I wanted some experience,” said Thomas, “But we didn’t have enough money to continue – so the Eagle won”

Thomas’s inspiration for writing came from his father, who was a managing editor. He had a passion for William Faulkner that he passed on to his son. Thomas grew up in Chicago, but when he walked onto the Ole Miss campus, he said he fell in love with the school.

The slideshow continued to Thomas’s present career with Abbott. One of his many roles as vice president is to make sure his company can adapt to the ever-changing world of social media. Younger people who understand these things are needed for older companies like Abbott he said.

Within the year Abbott will separate into two factions, in order to better accommodate clients as well as investors, Thomas said. One faction, Abbott, will handle diversified medical products. The other, AbbVie, in which Thomas will be working, handles biopharmaceuticals. Thomas noted that because of the split, investor relations, which are key, are to be improved.  Through all this he is able to handle stress by regular exercise and a few deep breaths he added.

Thomas passed on advice concerning the importance of writing saying, “When I deal with anything, excellent writing always rises to the top," he said,"Good writing still matters. You will use that no matter what you become in life, I cannot stress that enough.”

In a technology driven world, Thomas has respect for face-to-face communication.“ Whatever Job you have, relationships are still important. Don’t forsake the face to face.”

Thomas and his wife Mary, another Ole Miss and Meek school alum, created a scholarship for students enrolled in Integrated Marketing Communications.

OXFORD, Miss. – The University of Mississippi has increased in students from 18, 224 in 2011 to 18, 793 in 2012, this according to the Institutions of Higher Learning.

            This poses a variety of problems not just for Ole Miss, who is struggling with a campus parking crisis and a demand for more faculty, but also for the city of Oxford. With more incoming students, on-campus housing is at a premium. In years past, sophomore students in sororities traditionally resided in the Crosby dormitory. Now those students and many others are being pushed off campus.

            Off-campus housing is now filling up quicker than ever, said Mary Beth Malloy, an employee at The Connection apartment complex.

            “We are running out of rooms to rent, a lot faster than we used to,” Malloy said. “Leases that were typically signed in July are now being signed in May.”

            Ross Barksdale, a senior at Ole Miss, had a lot of trouble finding a place to live for the 2012-2013 school year in July.

            “I looked everywhere, even asking friends for help,” Barksdale said. “After a few weeks, I finally found a one bedroom apartment in The Park.”

            Finding a place to live is not the only problem for students, rent is getting higher too. In the last year, rent at The Connection has raised, depending on when the lease is signed, Malloy said. When I asked her how much rent has gone up, she did not know the figures, but knew of an increase.

            There are new developments that opened this fall, making room for the growing population. Molly Barr Trails and Taylor Bend are two apartment complexes that were constructed last year that opened this fall.

Not only are new complexes being built, established communities are expanding. Grove Hill, a community of houses off of Molly Barr Road, recently changed ownership over the summer. A $38 million expansion is underway to add more houses to the end of the neighborhood.

While there are problems that come with the increased number of students, it is not all bad, Malloy said.

“More people means more demand for housing, which is always good for business.”                         

Michael Quirk

Welcome, you guys! So let's get started. Check out this opinion piece by the always insightful David Carr of the New York Times. He opines on just how good the media is in reporting unsavory and controversial breaking news stories about themselves.

"Journalism’s Misdeeds Get a Glance in the Mirror." Read it and offer your comments on what YOU think. Post at least three sentences here by 11 a.m. next Tuesday, 28 Aug. Remember, this is commentary by a NY Times reporter. What's your own opinion?