Memorial fund set up in honour of New York Times journalist

The university at which New York Times foreign correspondent Anthony Shadid studied has set up a memorial fund "to ensure that his life and legacy lives on".

Shadid died after suffering an apparent asthma attack while reporting from Syria.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison, where Shadid studied journalism and political science until his graduation in 1990, has announced that the fund was set up following a "volume of inquiries and desire to honour Anthony's time on our campus".

Money raised will be used in ways decided by the journalist's family, and funds can be submitted online.

"The pure volume of inquiries and desire to honor Anthony’s time on our campus is a testament to his lasting impact, countless friendships and distinguished career," Jennifer Karlson, development director for the School of Journalism and Mass Communication said in the university's announcement.

As well as a memorial fund there are also plans to create a scholarship "and possibly an award bearing his name".

Reporting the news of his death last week the New York Times paid tribute to Shadid, who won two Pulitzer prizes in 2004 and 2012, describing him as "an intrepid reporter, a keen observer, an insightful analyst and a lyrical stylist".

Prior to working at the New York Times had been at the Associated Press, the Boston Globe and the Washington Post.

The university has written more about Shadid as "a young journalism student on deadline for the Daily Cardinal" in an online article, and has also collected together "tweets, images and videos assembled by the College of Letters and Science" using Storify.

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