Joy DiBenedetto, former executive at CNN and CARE press officer, Named president/CEO of Friendship Force International

ATLANTA, July 15, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Joy E. DiBenedetto, a former executive at CNN Worldwide and the international humanitarian agency CARE, has been named president and CEO of Friendship Force International. DiBenedetto most recently was CEO of HUM: Human Unlimited Media.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130715/CL47642LOGO )

Friendship Force Board Chairman Jack Mullen announced that after a seven-month search, DiBenedetto takes the reins today, replacing Dr. George T. Brown Jr., who retired this month after 23 years with FFI.

Joy is the founder and former CEO of HUM: Human Unlimited Media, the world's first and only all-nation content and information agency. An award-winning 20-year media veteran, she has covered every major global event in successively senior positions, from the television studio and in the field; domestically and internationally; as a producer and manager. 

"I believe strongly in the Friendship Force mission and in the signature program of home hospitality, which encourages personal friendships among global citizens," said DiBenedetto. "This is an authentic message and method of worldwide cooperation that, in our data-driven digital age, is often overlooked. It is an undertaking  I am eager to help elevate and represent on behalf of the incredible legacy and purpose of Friendship Force International."

She is a graduate of Marymount Manhattan College with a bachelor's degree in speech pathology/audiology. In addition to being a recipient of a George Foster Peabody award, an Alfred I. DuPont Columbia Broadcast News award, and a Jack Myers Media Award for Innovation, she is also a Marshall Memorial fellow and a UN Foundation Global Health Press fellow who sits on numerous advisory and directorial boards. She often speaks publicly about the media industry, international business strategy, and on what connects us all to the human experience and to each other across the world.

ABOUT FRIENDSHIP FORCE INTERNATIONAL
Founded in Atlanta in 1977 by Wayne Smith, with the support of President Jimmy Carter and First Lady Rosalynn Carter, Friendship Force International provides opportunities to explore new countries and cultures from the inside by bringing people together at the personal level. Through the signature program of home hospitality, local hosts welcome international visitors into their culture, sharing with them meals, conversation, and the best sights and experiences of their region.

Friendship Force today has 380 clubs in 60 countries around the world.

SOURCE Friendship Force International