Geoffrey F.X. O’Connell is a former media executive who has owned or managed news and visual arts information properties in Phoenix, New Orlean and San Antonio, as well as Lafayette, Louisiana, and Western Massachusetts. His work as a journalist has earned national attention, including the Amos Tuck Award for Economic Understanding for his in-depth examination of the Western Massachusetts economy and First Place in Investigative Reporting from the National Association of Business Publications for his work on the savings and loan crisis. His work as a television writer and producer included “Gray’s Sporting Journal,” an 18-film series that earned the coveted “Teddy” (named for President Theodore Roosevelt) for best conservation-oriented outdoor programming. He worked closely with television talk show pioneer Jack Paar on the documentary about Paar’s career for “American Masters” on PBS and served as a principal in the development of the PBS musical special “Christmas Is Coming” with Ossie Davis, Vanessa Williams, Michael McDonald and David Sanborn, showcasing the work of composer Rob Mathes. Under Mathes’s mentorship, O’Connell composed “Diamonds In Disguise,” a musical drama about life in the Pennsylvania coal mines.

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