BLS Florida Pres. Retirement

Bellsouth Corp
01 April 2005



Media Contact
Marta Casas-Celaya
305-347-5659

BellSouth Florida President, Joe Lacher, Announces Retirement

Marshall Criser III, Vice President of Regulatory & External Affairs in Florida,
Appointed Successor

April 1, Atlanta -- BellSouth Corporation (NYSE: BLS) today announced the
retirement of Joe Lacher as the president of BellSouth's Florida operations,
bringing to a close a distinguished 38-year career in the telecommunications
industry.  Lacher will remain active in his current position until May 15, 2005.

"Joe provided great leadership during a time of transformation in the
communications industry," said Duane Ackerman, chairman and CEO of BellSouth.  "
In a market filled with new technology and competition, Joe maintained a focus
on serving our customers and our communities.  His commitment to the state of
Florida is reflected in the strong relationships he built with partners
throughout the state.  We will miss his leadership, and we wish him much
happiness in his future endeavors."

Lacher, a Florida native, grew up in Bradenton and received a B.A. from Belmont
Abbey College.  He also earned an M.B.A. from Fairleigh Dickinson University and
is a Sloan Fellow at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

For the past 15 years, he has led the Florida operations for BellSouth, the
largest telecommunications provider in the state.  Lacher began his career in
1967 as a management assistant for Southern Bell in Charlotte, N.C. After
holding various positions, he was transferred in 1975 to AT&T's corporate
headquarters in New York. Following his return to Southern Bell in 1978, Lacher
held positions of increasing responsibility in Atlanta and Florida before
entering the Sloan program at MIT in 1983. In 1984 he was appointed secretary/
assistant treasurer of Southern Bell and in 1988 was named vice president of
Southern Bell's North Carolina operations. In 1990, Lacher returned to Florida
as head of Southern Bell's Florida operations.

Lacher is well known for his involvement and leadership in many state and civic
affairs.  He serves as chairman of Great Florida Bank and director of Perry
Ellis International.  He is past chairman and current board member of the Miami
Business Forum and is a member of the Florida Council of 100 and Enterprise
Florida, Inc.  He also served as chairman for the Florida Chamber of Commerce
and Florida TaxWatch. In addition, Lacher has served on the Orange Bowl
Committee since 1991. Governor Bush appointed Lacher to serve as vice chairman
of the Florida Hurricane Relief Fund, to help Floridians rebuild after last
year's devastating hurricane season.

Marshall Criser III, vice president of Regulatory & External Affairs for
BellSouth in Florida, has been named to succeed Lacher and elected an officer.

Criser, also a Florida native, has 25 years of service with BellSouth.  In his
most recent position he was responsible for the advocacy of BellSouth's policy
and business objectives before the Florida Public Service Commission and other
key external stakeholders.  Previously, Criser led the strategic development of
BellSouth's expansion into new lines of business in Latin America and served as
director of State and Agency Relations for BellSouth in Washington, D.C.

A graduate of the University of Florida, Criser has completed the Advanced
Management Program at INSEAD in Fontainebleau.  He is past president and a board
member of the Florida Telecommunications Industry Association and current
chairman of the Florida Research Consortium. In addition he is president of the
Florida 4H Foundation Board, vice chairman of IT Florida and a member of the
boards of Florida TaxWatch, the Florida Chamber of Commerce Foundation, and the
World Class School's Foundation.

"Marshall has deep roots in Florida and extensive experience in the policy
arena," said Margaret Greene, president of Regulatory & External Affairs for
BellSouth.  "He will keep our Florida operations focused on the communications
needs of our customers and communities."

Criser's successor will be named at a later date.


About BellSouth Corporation


BellSouth Corporation is a Fortune 100 communications company headquartered in
Atlanta, Georgia and a parent company of Cingular Wireless, the nation's largest
wireless voice and data provider.


Backed by award winning customer service, BellSouth offers the most
comprehensive and innovative package of voice and data services available in the
market. Through BellSouth Answers(R), residential and small business customers
can bundle their local and long distance service with dial up and high speed DSL
Internet access, satellite television and Cingular(R) Wireless service. For
businesses, BellSouth provides secure, reliable local and long distance voice
and data networking solutions. BellSouth also offers online and directory
advertising through BellSouth(R) RealPages.com(R) and The Real Yellow Pages(R).


More information about BellSouth can be found at www.bellsouth.com.

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