Maggie Patterson

Maggie Patterson passed on to her next adventure Nov. 10, 2025, leaving behind her granddaughter, Sophia; her son, Alex; her daughter-in-law, Alison Perrotti; husband, Rob Ruck; and brothers, Ken Jones (Sue), Dave Jones (Maggie), and Bob Jones (Kathy). Born and bred in Pittsburgh to Ruth Wilson Jones and Robert Jones, she studied journalism at Ohio University, where she was Miss Sorority, and began working at the Pittsburgh Press. She relished joining Betty Friedan and other women after an interview for the press at the Hilton Hotel when they crashed a previously all-male lounge after they talked. It was her first front-page story. Maggie later worked for the University Times at the University of Pittsburgh and completed a Master of Fine Arts. She then taught journalism at Indiana University of Pennsylvania before joining what became the Media Department at Duquesne University. In addition to teaching journalism, she focused on media ethics, chaired the Publications Board, and was a board member for Public Source. A prolific award-winning scholar, she co-authored four books: Behind the Lines about investigative reporting, Birth or Abortion Private Struggles in a Political World is about the choices made when people are faced with difficult decisions. Rooney: A Sporting Life, about the life and times of Art Rooney and the Pittsburgh Steelers, and most recently Murder in Our Midst: Comparing Crime Coverage Ethics in an Age of Globalized News, which took her and her co-author Romayne Smith Fullerton to more than a dozen countries across Europe and in North America to examine the practice and ethics of journalism. She was honored and humbled to receive the Service to Journalism Award from the Press Club of Western Pennsylvania last May. She headed the Duquesne Duke's centennial celebration in October after returning from Dublin with Alex, where they watched the Steelers at Croke Park. One of 100 women to run the first Pittsburgh Great Race, she biked, walked, and ran whenever she could. She and Rob took half a dozen weeklong rides in Europe, especially Ireland, which fondly reminded her of Pittsburgh. A fierce defender of free speech and the rights and responsibilities of the press, Maggie was passionate about her friends, family, and Pittsburgh. She had a wicked sense of humor and loved to be with them and part of the city. We will miss her but remember her forever. Friends will be received from 3 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025, at JOHN A. FREYVOGEL SONS INC., 4900 Centre Ave., at Devonshire Street (freyvogelfuneralhome.com), where a Blessing Service will be held at 1 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 13, 2025. In lieu of flowers, we suggest donations to Public Source: 1936 Fifth Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15219.