LIVONIA, Mich., May 11 -- Valassis, the leading company in marketing services and Connective Media(TM), proudly announced today that it has been named to Business Ethics magazine's 2004 "100 Best Corporate Citizens" list. Of the 1,000 companies considered, Valassis ranked 79th overall. Business Ethics' annually published list identifies companies among the Russell 1000 -- the largest publicly traded companies -- that excel at serving a variety of stakeholders well. The ranking is based on quantitative measures of corporate service to seven stakeholder groups: stockholders, employees, customers, the community, the environment, overseas stakeholders and women and minorities. "Being on the '100 Best Corporate Citizens' list is of special significance for a company like Valassis and our subsidiary, NCH Marketing Services, since we both provide services requiring a high degree of accountability," said Alan F. Schultz, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Valassis. "Valassis carefully manages the currency of its customers with valuable promotions like coupons or the redemption services provided by NCH. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act has brought to the forefront the importance of corporate governance and ethical standards that we have always held in high regard." Some of Valassis' model business strategies in good corporate citizenship include: Recognition for its corporate governance standards. Valassis ranked in the top 10% of its industry by Institutional Shareholder Services. Management of billions of dollars in transactions for its customers every year with SAS 70 certified operational procedures and quality controls by NCH Marketing Services, a subsidiary of Valassis that provides coupon information management and clearing services. Inclusion for seven consecutive years, as one of the "100 Best Companies to Work For" by FORTUNE magazine. Valassis also ranked in the top 10 companies in the employee category on this "100 Best Corporate Citizens" list. A strong commitment to diversity. Valassis' employee Diversity Councils have been a catalyst for numerous diversity initiatives. A belief in giving back to the communities where Valassis does business and raising money through the employee Giving Committee for employee-selected charities. Statistical analysis for the list was done by Sandra Waddock and Samuel Graves of the Carroll School of Management at Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Mass. Social ratings were provided by KLD Research & Analytics of Boston, a research firm serving socially responsible investors.