Andrew Ciofalo, journalism innovator and Catholic Review collaborator, dies at 89

Andrew “Andy” Ciofalo, founder of what would become the communications department at Loyola University Maryland and a longtime member of the board of directors of the Cathedral Foundation that once oversaw the Catholic Review, died March 7 in Moscow.

He was 89 and had been living in Russia since 2018 with his wife, Dr. Olga Timofeeva.

Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., Ciofalo earned a bachelor’s degree in English and philosophy from Brooklyn College and a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University in New York. He arrived at Baltimore’s Jesuit university in 1983 to oversee the establishment of the writing and media department that would evolve into a communications department that included journalism, public relations and advertising components.

According to Loyola, Ciofalo established the Cagli Program in International Reporting for Loyola in 2002, creating a multimedia study abroad program in Cagli, Italy. The program inspired ieiMedia, the Institute for Education in International Media.  

Ciofalo, who retired from Loyola in 2010 with the title of professor emeritus, was also a driving force behind the 2004 launch of Apprentice House Press, an innovative publishing house run by Loyola students.

At the Catholic Review, Ciofalo served as travel editor from 1994 to 2000. He produced articles for special travel sections that described his adventures in countries including Russia, Poland and Ukraine. He served on the Cathedral Foundation board for several years up until the late 2000s.

Daniel Medinger, former associate publisher/editor of the Catholic Review, remembered Ciofalo for his leadership in journalism.

“He was very important to the growth of the Catholic Review and the Cathedral Foundation,” Medinger said. “He was a steady source of talent, sending his best students to come to work at the Catholic Review. He also helped start our books division and our travel services.”

Medinger said Ciofalo was “a great help at board meetings,” promoting new initiatives and supporting technological investments.

“Andy was the best of what a Catholic layman serving the church can be: supportive, challenging and positive and always ready to help,” Medinger said, “and he had a great sense of humor.”

Stefani Manowski was a Loyola student Ciofalo recruited to work at the Catholic Review.  

“Andy was the moderator for my group capstone project during my senior year at Loyola, 1995,” Manowski said. “He announced during a class early on that the Catholic Review was seeking an editorial intern. I didn’t think much of it at that moment, but Andy mentioned to me after class that I should apply, not knowing that he had already told (Medinger) to choose me if I sent in my résumé.”

Manowski spent more than 11 years at the Review, working as a staff correspondent, production supervisor and news editor.

“What I remember most is his sense of humor and the easy rapport he had with the students,” Manowski said.

Ciofalo was the author of “American in Moscow: Final Thoughts on Life, Love and Liberty.” He also regularly published online commentaries. In a December entry, Ciofalo reflected on the state of journalism today, lamenting the lack of authenticity in the field.

“The new challenge for communications programs is to design a curriculum that enables the student to distinguish the authentic from the objective and the ideological,” he wrote. “And in that authenticity not only will budding journalists discover their unique voices, but they will also connect to their core values – a necessary step before moving to that vaunted ‘next level’ of imbuing their work with a deeper meaning and social context.”

Ciofalo said each student doing journalism must answer the question, “Why am I doing this?”

“Is it to transcribe facts? Is it to bend information to talking points? Is it to win approval? Or are you focused on that critical point, where Pulitzer meets St. Ignatius, ‘living for others?’”

Ciofalo is survived by his wife, his daughter, his son, his stepdaughter and four grandchildren. Two previous marriages ended in divorce. 

He will be remembered during the 12:10 p.m. Mass April 8 at Loyola’s Alumni Memorial Chapel, with a celebration of life to be held at Loyola in the spring.

Email George Matysek at gmatysek@CatholicReview.org.

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