John Charles Woodland Tisdall: Public Relations Icon, Philanthropist, and Co-Founder of Canada NewsWire, 1919-2007

Public relations pioneer was renowned trailblazer for his contributions to setting national standards for PR ethics and practice, creative solutions to complex challenges, and helping herald high tech in communications while supporting numerous important causes.

March 27, 2007 - TORONTO -- Charles Tisdall didn't invent public relations; seeing the potential power of the profession he simply dragged it out of the dark ages of early information distribution and into an era where it has become essential to every endeavour in every sector.

Charles Tisdall began his career writing for a Hamilton radio station soon after graduation from Aurora, Ontario's St. Andrew's College. Later, he joined a Toronto advertising agency. In 1941, he was called to Ottawa where he worked as Associate Director of Industrial Information for the federal government's Canadian Information Services, later to become the War Information Board.

Returning to Toronto after World War II, he became a film writer and director for the J. Arthur Rank Organization, England's largest motion picture studio, where he created information films for Canadian and worldwide markets that were, in fact, precursors to today's modern film video news releases and short subjects.

By 1952, Charles teamed up with Joseph Clark, who had a successful career at Massey-Ferguson to establish what became one of the country's most prestigious public relations firms of its era: Tisdall Clark. Their success was based on the premise that the best public relations counsel often comes from outside an organization - from experts who bring fresh ideas and solid public and media feedback to the top decision makers. Over the course of 34 years, Tisdall Clark's clients included Toronto Dominion Centre, American Express, London Life, and more. In 1985, Tisdall Clark and Partners Ltd. merged with Toronto-based Continental Public Relations, creating a new national public relations company.

Charles was at the forefront of just about everything public relations practitioners now consider common place. Tisdall Clark, for example, was a founder of Canada NewsWire and one of its three major shareholders until 1986. Charles led the movement to establish accreditation programs for both the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) and the Canadian Public Relations Society (CPRS). In 1979, he became the first non-American on the U.S. National Accreditation Board and was later named Chairman of the Canadian Board. He was the founding chairman of the International Accreditation Council and founder of the Communications and Public Relations Foundation, an organization of public relations professionals dedicated to educational initiatives that focus on the value and power of public relations. In 2005, Charles established the prestigious Diana and Charles Tisdall Lecture in Communications, a series of presentations by top leaders in the public relations community, emphasizing his values of understanding, ethics, accountability, and community goodwill. The lecture is presented annually at the CPRS national conference.

Learning, for Charles, was a natural and lifelong commitment- to do, and to share. Despite long hours and the pressure of client needs, he always found time to share his knowledge and experience with others. He lectured at Humber College, Ryerson University, University of Western Ontario, and New York University. He served on the advisory board for the Mount Saint Vincent University public relations degree program and was a seminar leader for the American Management Association and Financial Post conferences. But he also was ever hungry and open to new ideas and concepts; he always was a keen student of world events and how those influenced the course of decision making, and thus, the course of history.

Given the man and his mission, it was not surprising that in 1984 New York-based Public Relations News named Charles one of the world's 40 outstanding public relations professionals.

But public relations was only a part of the Charles Tisdall story. When it came to generosity of time and money, he was a steadfast supporter and tireless worker for a range of community, artistic and church organizations, devoting much to the Anglican Church of Canada, Toronto Theatre Alliance, Arts Development Fund of Toronto, Canadian Opera Company, Famous People Players, St. Paul's Anglican Church, St. John Ambulance, Canadian Red Cross, Canadian Diabetes Association, the University of Toronto Prime Mentors program for at-risk children, and yet more.

Until his hospitalization last year, Tisdall closely monitored media and public relations, often suggesting that while delivery technology has changed radically, professional dialogue and communication has not. He always said that it always has been and still is all about relationships, telling the truth, learning from success and failure and never forgetting that, like journalists, professional public relations practitioners serve the public interest as much as their employers.

John Charles Woodland Tisdall (Charles) was born in Toronto on May 8, 1919 died in Toronto on March 24, 2007 in his 87th year. Until her death in 2000, he was married to Diana Gage Griffith Tisdall, whom he adored and who meant more to him than all his accomplishments and accolades. He is survived by daughters Marilee Carmen Tisdall MacFarlane and Martha Gage Tisdall Smith; by grandchildren Kendra Mary MacFarlane, Tiffany Gage Smith, and Brittany Jane Smith; by brother Douglas Michael and Marjorie Tisdall.

Remembrances to St. Paul's Anglican Church, 227 Bloor Street East, Toronto, M4W 1C8; Famous People Players, 33 Lisgar Street, Toronto M6J 3T3; Communications and Public Relations Foundation, 73 Widdicombe Hill Blvd., Suite 1515, Toronto M9R 4B3.