Bell Atlantic - MD Brings New Jobs to Downtown Baltimore

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 18, 1996

BELL ATLANTIC BRINGS NEW JOBS
TO DOWNTOWN
BALTIMORE

Additional Engineers At 1 E. Pratt Street
Bolster Vitality of Inner Harbor

Baltimore, Md. -- Bell Atlantic will bring 132 new jobs
to the
company's Maryland headquarters at 1 East Pratt Street in downtown
Baltimore, the company, city and state officials announced at a news
conference today. The new employees are scheduled to arrive in
Baltimore by the end of the year.

Bell Atlantic plans to add 129 managers and three clerks to the
network planning and engineering department, which serves the
company's entire region from the downtown Baltimore location. Today's
announcement is in addition to the transfer and hiring of about 600
network engineers to the facility at 1 East Pratt in December, 1995.

This consolidated team will focus on two critical assignments: The
design of a broadband network that will deliver voice, video, and data
to millions of customers throughout the Bell Atlantic region, and the
preparation of the company's facilities to accommodate new competitors
entering the local telephone business. Under the Telecommunications
Act of 1996, companies like Bell Atlantic must permit competitors
without networks of their own to use Bell Atlantic's to offer new
services.

"When the Governor and the Mayor pledge to make Maryland a business
friendly region by updating and streamlining regulations affecting
business, then we believe that the business community must respond in
kind," said Daniel
J. Whelan, president - Bell Atlantic - Maryland.
"So when we were in a position to support the city's economic
revitalization, we worked to bring these jobs to Baltimore, and we're
happy we succeeded," he added.

Whelan noted that the new location meets all of the network planning
organization's needs. The city offers an excellent transportation
infrastructure, superior education and housing, and an outstanding
quality of life. He predicted these many benefits will ease the
transition for many employees and their families, some of whom will
relocate from around the company's service territory.

"We appreciate Bell Atlantic's decision to bring 132 new jobs to
Maryland, in addition to the 600 jobs announced just last December,"
said Maryland Governor Parris N. Glendening. "We are proud that
Maryland's increasingly positive business climate played such a
significant role in Bell Atlantic's corporate decision, and we look
forward to working closely with company officials to ensure their
continued success here."

"Bell Atlantic is setting the pace for continued economic growth in
and revitalization of downtown Baltimore," said Mayor Kurt Schmoke.
"I welcome the network engineers and I commend Dan Whelan. His
effort
to bring these high-skill, high wage jobs here has paid off, and his
work on my YouthWorks campaign has helped hundreds of Baltimore city
teens find jobs this summer."

Maryland's Secretary of Economic Development, James Brady, noted that
the engineers will bolster the tax base and local economies by
purchasing goods and services in Maryland. "Governor Glendening's
administration will continue to press hard to make Maryland a business
friendly state," Brady said. "Everyone wins with this
decision - the
city, the state, the employees of Bell Atlantic, and most importantly,
the citizens of Maryland."

Bell Atlantic Corporation (NYSE: BEL) is at the forefront of the new
communications, entertainment and information industry. In the
mid-Atlantic region, the company is the premier provider of local
telecommunications and advanced services. Globally, it is one of the
largest investors in the high-growth wireless communication
marketplace. Bell Atlantic also owns a substantial interest in
Telecom Corporation of New Zealand and is actively developing
high-growth national and international business opportunities in all
phases of the industry.

####

Media contact:

Shannon Fioravanti, 703-974-5455
shannon.l.fioravanti@bell-atl.com