Robert Giles says that although Marlin Fitzwater may be a nice guy, it’s not enough to qualify him as a journalist.

So it angered Giles, a trustee for the William Allen White Foundation, when Fitzwater was announced as recipient of the foundation’s top honor — the annual William Allen White national citation. The award is intended for “an American journalist who exemplifies William White ideals in service to his profession and his community.”

“People tell me (Fitzwater’s) a terrific guy,” said Giles, curator of the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University. “In some sense he’s a victim of the process. However fine a man he is, he’s not qualified for the award.”

White was the longtime publisher of the Emporia Gazette who gained national prominence in the late 1800s. A graduate of Kansas University, its journalism school bears his name.

Fitzwater, a native of Abilene, early in his career did serve as editor of the Lindsborg News-Record and as a journalist for the Manhattan Mercury and the Topeka Daily Capital, but he’s best known for his tenure as press secretary for Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush.

“We’ve recognized some of the finest journalists of our time,” Giles said. “To give the award to a man whose major work is (public relations) seemed to be totally inappropriate.”

John Marshall, editor and president of the Lindsborg News-Record and a foundation trustee, said he has also been troubled by recent selections for the White citation, especially Cokie Roberts, the TV journalist who was honored in 2002.

“What surprised me about the selections lately, without commenting directly on Marlin Fitzwater, are the number of hacks and celebrities who seem to be at the top of our list now,” Marshall said. “I like Marlin. He’s a nice guy. He has a connection to Lindsborg. But I don’t know if he belongs up there with Walter Cronkite.”

Ned Valentine, chairman of the White Foundation board of trustees, said he supported the board’s decision to honor Fitzwater.

“My position is basically that if he wasn’t qualified, the trustees wouldn’t have selected him,” said Valentine, publisher of the Clay Center Dispatch. “He’s been nominated the last four years.”

Fitzwater said he didn’t plan to enter the debate on whether he was an appropriate selection for the citation.

“It seems to me it’s kind of between the complainer and the foundation,” Fitzwater said. “I am who I am. I’m deeply honored they want to give me this citation. William Allen White was held up to me as the great sage of Emporia. I think it’s an important award.”