- Ah Jook Ku
Ah Jook Ku (
April 24 ,1910 Kailua, Hawaii –August 6 ,2007 Honolulu ) was an Americanjournalist ,reporter ,writer ,media advocate andpublic relations practitioner. Ku holds the distinction of being the firstAsian American reporter for theAssociated Press , as well as the first Asian American female reporter for theHonolulu Star-Bulletin . cite news |first=Mary |last=Adamski |title= Star-Bulletin reporter pushed for free press |url=http://starbulletin.com/2007/08/10/news/story02.html|work=Honolulu Star-Bulletin |publisher= |date=2007-08-21 |accessdate=2007-09-04] Hernickname was "Jookie." cite news |first=|last=|title= Pioneering Hawaii journalist Ku dies at 97 |url=http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2007/Aug/09/br/br0218496357.html|work=Honolulu Advertiser |publisher= |date=2007-08-09 |accessdate=2007-09-04]Early life
Ah Jook Ku was born on
April 24 1910 inKailua, Hawaii . She was one of 15 children in her family. She and her family grew up on the'Ewa Plantation (Ewa Beach ) inHawaii , where her father worked as a luna. Ku wasChinese American and a descendant of earlyChinese immigrants to Hawaii. cite news |first=Christie|last=Wilson|title= Hawaii journalist 'Jookie' Ku dies at 97 |url=http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2007/Aug/10/ln/hawaii708100350.html|work=Honolulu Advertiser |publisher= |date=2007-08-10 |accessdate=2007-09-04]Ku attended
Mid-Pacific Institute on ascholarship . Ku served as a high school reporter for the Honolulu Star-Bulletin while at Mid-Pacific. She went on to earn a degree in education from theUniversity of Hawaii in 1933. Following her degree at Hawaii, Ku graduated from theUniversity of Missouri School of Journalism in 1935, also on a scholarship. Ku was only the third woman of Chinese decent to graduate from the School of Journalism. Additionally, she became only the second Hawaiian "exchange student" to graduate from the journalism school.Ku was often involved with various university journalism clubs while in college. She often appeared on
campus radio broadcasts and before community groups as an advocate for Hawaii.Despite her academic achievements, Ku's parents believed that girls did not deserve an education. She often recounted a story about how her father once considered selling her for a single bag of
rice . Ku commented on her father's atitude towards education, "the head of the family wasn't eager about educating women."Career
Ah Jook Ku returned to
Honolulu following her graduation form the University of Missouri. She began work at the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, where she had previously worked as a high school correspondent. Ku was hired by theAssociated Press in 1943 duringWorld War II , becoming the AP's first Asian American reporter. She remained as a reporter for the APwire service until 1946.Ku left Hawaii for China in 1948 aboard the Pacific
maiden voyage of theS.S. President Cleveland . She took a job at the information office of theNationalist Chinese government ofChiang Kai-shek as anEnglish language editor. She was based inNanking, China , for just 18 months at the position before the 1949 Communist Revolution forced her to return to Hawaii.Ku began working in the growing field of
public relations once she returned to Hawaii from China. She worked at a number of organizations including the Hawaiian branch of theSalvation Army , the HawaiianChamber of Commerce and theHawaii Employers Council . She ultimately worked as aninformation specialist for the Hawaii state Department of Education before her retirement in 1975.Advocacy
Ah Jook Ku became
executive director of theHonolulu Community Media Council in 1975, the same year that she retired from the Department of Education. The council had been founded as anonprofit volunteer group in 1970. The group was created in response to a ban on reporters from the Honolulu Star-Bulletin and Honolulu Advertiser frompress conference s by then Honolulu mayorFrank Fasi . Its purpose was to promote accurate and ethical journalism within Hawaii, support First Amendment rights and seek transparent public access to government information. Ku remained involved with the Council as executive director for 25 years. Ku was especially active in the 1980s, fighting on behalf of Hawaii'ssunshine law . She retired from the Council in 2002.Ku was an original founding member of a group called "Save Our Star-Bulletin" in the late 1990s. The group was formed in response by an attempt by
Liberty Newspapers , the former owner of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, to shut down the newspaper in 1999. The "Save Out Star-Bulletin" sued Liberty Newspapers inU.S. federal court and successfully blocked the closure of the Star-Bulletin.Awards
Ah Jook Ku was awarded the
Fletcher Knebel Award for outstanding contributions to journalism by the Honolulu Community Media Council in 2002.Books
*"The Chinese in Hawaii" (1961)
Death
Ah Jook Ku died on Monday,
August 6 2007 atLeahi Hospital in Honolulu. She was 97 years old. She was survived by one sister, Yuk Jun Joseph, and several nieces and nephews. Her funeral was held onAugust 21 2007 .External links
* [http://www.mediacouncil.org/ Honolulu Community Media Council]
References
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.