The Insurance Information Institute (I.I.I.) announced that Michael F. Barry has joined the organization as director of Media Relations.

In this role, Barry will be developing strategic communications for the I.I.I. and will serve as a spokesperson for the institute. He will also provide insurance information to a wide array of the institute's stakeholders, including media, member companies, regulators, legislators and the general public, who have come to rely on the I.I.I.'s expertise and analysis.

Barry comes to the I.I.I. from the New York State Insurance Department, where he served since 2004 as the agency's director of Public Affairs. He oversaw all of the department's communications functions and reported to New York's Superintendent of Insurance, Howard Mills. Before joining the Department of Insurance, he was Corporate Communications Manager at The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) between 1998 and 2003, and Public Information officer for the New York State Banking Department (1996-1998).

"Mike was the spokesman for one of the nation's top regulatory agencies during a tumultuous period in the insurance industry's history," said Gordon Stewart, president of the I.I.I. "Moreover, his ability to convert complex topics into layman's terms will prove an asset to the media, the general public and insurance industry decision-makers as they continue to look to the I.I.I. as a thought leader on important insurance and risk management issues."

Barry, a former weekly newspaper editor, was, early in his career, the Public Information Officer for the Town of North Hempstead in Nassau County, Long Island and an elected member of the Village of Manorhaven's Board of Trustees in Port Washington, He holds a B.A. in communications from Fordham University.

Barry and his wife Theresa live in New Hyde Park with their three sons Michael, Nicholas and Peter.