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EXPLORING NEW TERRAIN - West Virginia University

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SUMMER 2010<br />

Perley Isaac Reed SCHOOL OF JOURNALISM<br />

<strong>EXPLORING</strong><br />

<strong>NEW</strong> <strong>TERRAIN</strong><br />

STUDENT JOURNALIST MERGES<br />

PASSION WITH PROFESSION<br />

SEE STORY ON PAGE 4


ADMINISTRATION<br />

James P. Clements<br />

President<br />

<strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> <strong>University</strong><br />

Maryanne Reed<br />

Dean<br />

John Temple<br />

Associate Dean<br />

Steve Urbanski<br />

Director of Graduate Studies<br />

Chad Mezera<br />

Director, IMC Master’s<br />

Degree Program<br />

Jensen Moore<br />

Director of Undergraduate<br />

Online Programs<br />

EDITORIAL STAFF<br />

Kimberly Brown<br />

Editor<br />

Angela Lindley<br />

Cynthia McCloud<br />

Candace Nelson<br />

Christa Vincent<br />

PHOTOGRAPHY<br />

WVU Photography Services<br />

Lingbing Hang<br />

DESIGN<br />

WVU Creative Services<br />

SPECIAL THANKS TO:<br />

Forrest Conroy, Brian<br />

Persinger and Brad<br />

Robertson<br />

CONTENTS<br />

1 Message from the Dean<br />

2 Around Martin Hall<br />

4 Journalism student finds passion<br />

and niche<br />

7 Student journalist hits the high<br />

notes nationwide<br />

8 Motocross journalism drives SOJ<br />

graduates<br />

10 SOJ students promote green efforts<br />

11 Returning veteran’s video goes viral<br />

12 Advertising graduate promotes own<br />

business venture<br />

16 New book brings death penalty case<br />

to light<br />

17 SOJ welcomes new faculty<br />

18 Students study international media<br />

in <strong>West</strong> Africa<br />

19 The road to becoming a tweet<br />

jockey<br />

20 SOJ students tackle blogging and<br />

Web 2.0<br />

21 Giving for the future<br />

22 New Shott Chair shares world view<br />

25 Personal advertising takes on a<br />

whole new meaning<br />

26 J-Week 2010: Where the jobs are in<br />

the changing media industry<br />

29 Network journalists offer career<br />

advice<br />

30 IMC students develop interactive<br />

campaigns for Red Cross<br />

31 Fulbright Scholar prepares for<br />

career change<br />

32 December Convocation<br />

33 May Commencement<br />

34 About Our Donors<br />

35 About Our Scholarships<br />

36 Faculty Briefs<br />

38 Class Notes<br />

Cover photo of Jonathan Vickers by Gabe DeWitt<br />

4<br />

JOURNALISM STUDENT FINDS<br />

PASSION AND NICHE<br />

12<br />

ADVERTISING GRADUATE<br />

PROMOTES OWN BUSINESS<br />

VENTURE<br />

22<br />

<strong>NEW</strong> SHOTT CHAIR SHARES<br />

WORLD VIEW<br />

<strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> <strong>University</strong> is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Institution.<br />

<strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> <strong>University</strong> is governed by the WVU Board of Governors<br />

and the <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> Higher Education Policy Commission.


Message from<br />

the Dean<br />

WWelcome to the SOJ Insider, our magazine for<br />

alumni and friends of the Perley Isaac Reed<br />

School of Journalism.<br />

In addition to highlighting the School’s<br />

accomplishments of the previous year, this<br />

edition of the SOJ Insider underscores the value<br />

of a journalism education during challenging<br />

times.<br />

Working in an industry in constant flux<br />

and transition, our students, faculty and alumni<br />

are finding and creating their own opportunities,<br />

both in journalism and allied fields.<br />

The magazine captures some of these<br />

success stories, including a student who is<br />

climbing to new heights as an outdoor journalist,<br />

an alumnus using his advertising skills to promote<br />

an organic eatery, and a budding Hollywood<br />

actor learning how to market himself in a highly<br />

competitive field.<br />

To ensure our students are equipped<br />

for a dynamic and increasingly global media<br />

marketplace, our faculty are developing<br />

innovative courses and programs.<br />

The new converged Journalism major is preparing our students to<br />

become digital storytellers – capable of writing and producing content across<br />

media platforms. Our advertising and public relations faculty are developing<br />

an integrated curriculum aimed at engaging audiences through digital and<br />

social media.<br />

In the coming year, we will continue to evolve our program and to<br />

reiterate the relevance of a journalism education – one that provides graduates<br />

with the skills and creativity to succeed in whatever field they choose.<br />

We thank you for your continued support and for demonstrating by your<br />

own example the value of a degree from the P.I. Reed School of Journalism.<br />

Sincerely,<br />

Maryanne Reed<br />

Dean<br />

WVU Photo Services<br />

Save the Date!<br />

Join us for WVU<br />

Homecoming 2010 on<br />

Saturday, October 23.<br />

Details about the School<br />

of Journalism’s annual<br />

homecoming tent will be<br />

available on the website.<br />

journalism.wvu.edu<br />

1


Around Martin Hall<br />

SOJ reaccredited by national<br />

council<br />

In May 2010, the Accrediting Council on Education<br />

in Journalism and Mass Communications (ACEJMC) voted<br />

unanimously to reaccredit the undergraduate programs at the<br />

School of Journalism. ACEJMC is the agency responsible for the<br />

evaluation of professional journalism and mass communications<br />

programs in colleges and universities. It accredits 113 programs<br />

in the United States and one international program. ACEJMC<br />

Council members made the decision to reaccredit the School at a<br />

meeting in Arlington, Va. The decision was based on the Accrediting<br />

Committee’s recommendations and the site team report. A site team<br />

visit is scheduled every six years to repeat the process. The School<br />

is accredited through the 2015-2016 academic year.<br />

Summer blogging provides<br />

additional publication<br />

opportunities for students<br />

SOJ students have been blogging this summer as part of courserelated<br />

activities, study abroad programs and extra-curricular work.<br />

Follow their experiences online.<br />

2<br />

News-editorial senior Candace Nelson<br />

traveled to Paris as part of the School’s<br />

2010 Kearns Fellowship and captured<br />

some of those moments online.<br />

Led by Assistant Professor Steve<br />

Urbanski, a group of students traveled<br />

to <strong>West</strong> Africa for the special topics<br />

course, International Media: <strong>West</strong><br />

Africa. They shot photos and videos and<br />

blogged about their trip.<br />

News-editorial senior Paige Lavender<br />

blogged about her study abroad<br />

experience this summer as part of<br />

WVU’s London Internship Program.<br />

Public relations senior Bailee Morris<br />

and broadcast news senior Corey Preece<br />

traveled this summer collecting video<br />

testimonials of alumni for the SOJ website<br />

and logged their adventures online.<br />

Alex Wilson<br />

Dean Reed greets NBC’s Andrea Mitchell at the SOJ alumni reception in<br />

Washington, D.C., in April 2010.<br />

SOJ hosts alumni reception and<br />

Visiting Committee meeting in D.C.<br />

In A pril 2010, the School of Jour nalism hosted an<br />

alumni reception for area alumni and friends at the Widmeyer<br />

Communications office in Washington, D.C. The event, which<br />

featured a “State of the School” address by Dean Maryanne Reed,<br />

was highlighted by guest speaker Andrea Mitchell, Chief Foreign<br />

Affairs Correspondent for “NBC News.”<br />

Nearly 80 friends of the School attended the reception for an<br />

opportunity to meet with fellow alumni, Mitchell, Reed and other<br />

SOJ faculty. The following day, the School’s Visiting Committee<br />

convened for its spring meeting, beginning with a tour of The<br />

Washington Post newsroom and then discussions with Executive<br />

Editor Marcus Brauchli and Multimedia Editor Chet Rhodes. The<br />

Committee also learned about the future of the news industry<br />

from Paul Taylor, Executive VP of the Pew Research Center, and<br />

Tom Rosenstiel, Director, Project for Excellence in Journalism.


National and regional<br />

media outlets employ<br />

SOJ students following<br />

Montcoal Mine Disaster<br />

SOJ students put their skills to work<br />

r e p o r t i n g f o r l o c a l a n d n a t i o n a l n e w s<br />

organizations following the April 5 explosion<br />

at Upper Big Branch Mine in Raleigh County,<br />

W.Va., in which 29 miners died and two others<br />

were injured.<br />

Visual journalism sophomore Codi Yeager<br />

and news-editorial junior Travis Crum filed<br />

online stories for AOL News, while broadcast<br />

news senior Chip Fontanazza produced<br />

radio reports and posted Web updates for<br />

<strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> MetroNews, a statewide media<br />

network.<br />

The students were responsible for covering<br />

press conferences, taking photos, conducting<br />

interviews, writing their own pieces and<br />

communicating with producers and editors.<br />

SOJ students establish<br />

first NABJ chapter in<br />

the state<br />

T h e N ational A s s o c i ation o f B l a c k<br />

Journalists (NABJ) officially accepted WVU’s<br />

application to begin a student chapter. The<br />

new organization, known as <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong><br />

<strong>University</strong> Association of Black Journalists<br />

( W V UA B J ) ,<br />

i s t h e f i r s t<br />

NABJ chapter<br />

(student or professional) in the state. SOJ<br />

Visiting Assistant Professor Tori Arthur is the<br />

club’s advisor. News-editorial junior Morgan<br />

Young will be the club’s inaugural president.<br />

Two students are already receiving handson<br />

experience. In July 2010, news-editorial<br />

junior Chelsea Fuller and broadcast news senior<br />

Brandon Radcliffe took part in the 2010 NABJ<br />

Convention’s multimedia training project,<br />

working in an onsite newsroom alongside<br />

experienced industry professionals during the<br />

convention in San Diego, Cal.<br />

Student Awards<br />

2009-2010 HEARST JOURNALISM AWARDS PROGRAM<br />

KARILYNN GALIOTOS<br />

Broadcast news senior<br />

Sixth place<br />

Television Hard News Reporting<br />

KASEY HOTT<br />

December 2009 broadcast news graduate<br />

Eighth place<br />

Television News Features<br />

“WVU <strong>NEW</strong>S”<br />

Top ten<br />

Intercollegiate Broadcast News Competition<br />

DAVID RYAN<br />

May 2009 news-editorial graduate<br />

19th place<br />

Editorial Writing<br />

2009 SOCIETY OF PROFESSIONAL JOURNALISTS<br />

REGION 4 MARK OF EXCELLENCE AWARDS<br />

FIRST PLACE AWARDS<br />

KARILYNN GALIOTOS<br />

Broadcast news senior<br />

Television Breaking News Reporting<br />

GEOFF COYLE<br />

May 2009 broadcast news graduate<br />

Television Feature<br />

BEN ESHENBAUGH<br />

SPECIAL CONGRATULATIONS TO<br />

Broadcast news senior<br />

THE DAILY ATHENAEUM<br />

Television Sports Reporting<br />

FIRST PLACE BEST ALL-<br />

SECOND PLACE AWARDS<br />

AROUND DAILY <strong>NEW</strong>SPAPER<br />

DAVID RYAN<br />

May 2009 news-editorial graduate<br />

Editorial Writing<br />

JON OFFREDO, SARAH MOORE<br />

News-editorial senior, MSJ candidate<br />

Online Feature Reporting<br />

CHIP FONTANAZZA<br />

Broadcast news senior<br />

Television Sports Reporting<br />

SPECIAL CONGRATULATIONS TO<br />

THIRD PLACE AWARDS<br />

“WVU <strong>NEW</strong>S”<br />

TONY DOBIES<br />

SECOND PLACE BEST ALL-<br />

MSJ candidate<br />

AROUND TELEVISION <strong>NEW</strong>SCAST<br />

Sports Writing<br />

CLUB AWARDS<br />

WVU PUBLIC RELATIONS STUDENT SOCIETY OF AMERICA<br />

Dr. F.H. Teahan Outstanding Community Service Award<br />

Public Relations Student Society of America<br />

2009 PRSSA National Conference<br />

WVU AD CLUB<br />

Second place<br />

American Advertising Federation<br />

District Five Regional Student Advertising Competition<br />

WVU ED ON CAMPUS: ALL THINGS MAGAZINE<br />

Best Established Chapter<br />

Ed2010<br />

The Best of Ed on Campus Awards<br />

3


Journalism student<br />

finds passion and niche<br />

Pete Clark climbs Scar Tissue (5.12a) in Kentucky’s Red River Gorge.<br />

Jonathan Vickers<br />

24<br />

INTERVIEW BY CANDACE NELSON<br />

By combining his two<br />

passions, news-editorial<br />

senior Jonathan Vickers<br />

is hoping to make a name<br />

for himself in the climbing<br />

photography world. After<br />

scoring a spot at Rock and<br />

Ice magazine’s photography<br />

camp last summer, Vickers<br />

has secured an internship at<br />

the only climber-owned and<br />

operated climbing magazine<br />

for summer 2010. A<br />

climber himself, Vickers<br />

feels he has an advantage<br />

in this niche market<br />

because of his climbing and<br />

journalism experience.


When did you first become interested in<br />

photography?<br />

I took an introduction to photojournalism<br />

class with instructor Sean Stipp, and he<br />

turned me onto journalism because I like a<br />

lot of subjects. I like learning. And that’s the<br />

idea with journalism, you’re always learning<br />

about something new, and you can always<br />

change your subject matter. So, I started<br />

doing journalism and photojournalism. And,<br />

I’ve been with that ever since.<br />

When did you start climbing?<br />

I first got involved with climbing as an<br />

incoming freshman [at WVU]. I was a<br />

participant in WVU’s Adventure <strong>West</strong><br />

<strong>Virginia</strong> program. It was an “Explore WV”<br />

trip, which does backpacking, climbing,<br />

camping, whitewater rafting, and it’s also the<br />

freshman orientation class. I started climbing<br />

Photo by Chris Hunter/HunterImagery.com<br />

Instructor Keith Ladzinski (right) gives pointers to<br />

Jonathan Vickers (left) at the 2009 Rock and Ice Spring<br />

Photo Camp held outside Redstone, Colo.<br />

then and really enjoyed it. I continued to<br />

climb through my freshman year, but I didn’t<br />

seriously start climbing outside until after<br />

my sophomore year. Sophomore year, I got<br />

the job at the [WVU Recreation Center]<br />

climbing wall. That’s when I really got into it.<br />

How do you learn about climbing?<br />

Basically, you just find mentors. Find<br />

someone who’s willing to go out and teach<br />

you stuff. I’ve had several people throughout<br />

the years who have taken me under their<br />

wing and shown me things. A little bit here<br />

and there, different climbers, stuff like that.<br />

How did you discover the photography<br />

camp hosted by Rock and Ice magazine?<br />

I had advanced photojournalism with<br />

[Associate Professor] Joel Beeson, and<br />

we had to do a project where we picked a<br />

photographer who did what we would like to<br />

do one day. We researched different climbing<br />

photographers, and I emailed a bunch of<br />

them. One of them got back to me, and<br />

that was David Clifford. After interviewing<br />

him and learning about his job and doing a<br />

presentation about him and his work, he sent<br />

me an email saying I should check into this<br />

Rock and Ice photo camp and that he was<br />

going to be one of the instructors – him and<br />

a guy named Keith Ladzinski. I checked into<br />

it, decided to do it and shuffled some finances<br />

around to pay for it. That was the first time<br />

that I really made such big strides so quickly.<br />

It was amazing.<br />

What did you do at the photography camp?<br />

I went there thinking I might climb, do some<br />

climbing photography and hang out. No!<br />

It was photography all day, every day. We<br />

would wake up in the morning – early, right<br />

after breakfast – and we were out on the site<br />

shooting all day. We had bagged lunches<br />

during the shoot . . . and we’d come back, eat<br />

dinner and start going through all our photos<br />

for the whole day – editing them, processing<br />

them, doing post-production on them, and<br />

then you had to have five for the critiques.<br />

We would, a lot of times, start the critiques<br />

at 11 at night. We would be critiquing until<br />

after midnight. So, we’d be sitting there with<br />

photographers, editors … We had Duane<br />

Raleigh [the publisher and editor-in-chief ]<br />

of Rock and Ice magazine. He was there . . .<br />

Then the next day, it was the same thing – for<br />

five days.<br />

How did your photography improve with<br />

the camp experience?<br />

When I had decided to go to the workshop,<br />

I really started shooting climbing. But I<br />

didn’t start shooting [it] well until after the<br />

workshop. I thought some of my pictures<br />

were cool. They were terrible! After going to<br />

the workshop, my climbing photography has<br />

just gotten so much better. I was amazed at<br />

how much I learned in such a short period<br />

of time . . . There are reasons to break the<br />

rules sometimes, but in most cases, you want<br />

to see all four points of contact. You want<br />

to see where the climber’s left, right, foot and<br />

hand are at. You want to see their face if you<br />

can – you want “face time.” Obviously, you<br />

want everything exposed correctly. These are<br />

things I knew, but they taught me how to<br />

expose everything correctly. How to be out<br />

in a climbing situation, bouncing light with a<br />

reflector, using filters to help adjust and balance<br />

the exposure. When you’re out there, there are a<br />

lot of environmental things to consider.<br />

What do you consider when shooting<br />

climbers?<br />

Every situation is different. It depends on the<br />

type of climbing, and it depends on what’s<br />

around. Generally, you can find an easier<br />

thing to climb nearby than what they’re<br />

climbing. If you’re climbing what they’re<br />

Portrait of Jonathan Vickers during an advanced photojournalism course at the School of Journalism.<br />

climbing, it’s pretty difficult. You have to set<br />

yourself up somehow. You can maybe get in a<br />

tree, or you can rappel in. Definitely a lot of<br />

technical skills are needed. As far as physical<br />

ability, that helps. The fact that I climb helps<br />

me get into vantage points that others would<br />

not be able to get into. So you have the<br />

opportunity to get a really unique shot that<br />

others may not have.<br />

How did attending the camp lead to your<br />

internship?<br />

I was talking to some of the people working<br />

with Rock and Ice, and a couple of them<br />

had been interns in the past, and I decided<br />

35<br />

Beth Ploger


6<br />

Jonathan Vickers<br />

Submitted photo<br />

Jonathan Vickers<br />

Jonathan Vickers<br />

“Journalism allows me to have a<br />

passion and combine my passion<br />

with my career. Whether my<br />

passion will continue to be climbing<br />

throughout the rest of my life, I don’t<br />

know, but if I find a new passion,<br />

journalism will still be a part of it.”<br />

—Jonathan Vickers<br />

to apply. I applied during the fall semester,<br />

and I got the email that said I was in. I was<br />

pretty excited. I was a little unsure because<br />

all it said was, “You’re in.” I was like, “What?”<br />

I didn’t feel comfortable, so I sent an email<br />

back to Alison Osius, one of the editors, for<br />

confirmation. She was like, “Yes, you are the<br />

intern!” So that was pretty rad.<br />

What do you enjoy most about climbing?<br />

I enjoy climbing because when you climb,<br />

you can really push yourself because of the<br />

risks and because of the consequences. You<br />

know that you’re pushing yourself to the<br />

limit because you don’t want to fall. You can<br />

actually find out what you can do.<br />

What’s the best part about combining<br />

these two passions in your life?<br />

Climbing is my passion. Anything where<br />

I can continue to be around climbing and<br />

climb is good. I really enjoy writing. I have<br />

written a little bit about climbing, and I<br />

hope to write more. I like photography, too,<br />

and I’m getting into a lot of multimedia and<br />

videography.<br />

Journalism allows me to have a passion<br />

and combine my passion with my career.<br />

Whether my passion will continue to be<br />

climbing throughout the rest of my life,<br />

I don’t know, but if I find a new passion,<br />

journalism will still be a part of it.<br />

Jonathan Vickers<br />

LEFT TOP TO BOTTOM<br />

Gabe DeWitt climbs a V3 boulder problem in the Snow<br />

Globe Area at Cooper’s Rock State Forest in <strong>West</strong><br />

<strong>Virginia</strong>.<br />

Left to Right: Jonathan Vickers, David Mitchell, Thomas<br />

Martin and Pete Clark hike to a local climbing cave<br />

outside of Morgantown, W.Va.<br />

Lauren Lee climbs in the Narrows near Carbondale,<br />

Colo.<br />

Jenn Vennon laces up her climbing shoes before<br />

climbing in Colorado.<br />

Ben Rueck on a V5 boulder problem above Redstone<br />

near Carbondale, Colo.<br />

RIGHT SIDE<br />

Brieanna Genowitz on Plate Tectonics (5.9+) in<br />

Kentucky’s Red River Gorge.<br />

Jonathan Vickers


Student journalist hits the<br />

high notes nationwide<br />

BY CANDACE NELSON<br />

Award-winning vocalist and student journalist<br />

Kasey Hott found a way to merge her two<br />

greatest passions in life.<br />

Since coming to WVU in 2005, Hott’s<br />

background in music, natural stage presence and<br />

on-air talent have been paving a path to success<br />

for the December 2009 graduate.<br />

In 2006, Hott won the <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong><br />

<strong>University</strong> Mountaineer Idol competition,<br />

singing “Hopelessly Devoted to You” from the<br />

musical “Grease,” “The Wizard and I” from<br />

the musical “Wicked” and “Old Time Rock ‘n’<br />

Roll” by Bob Seger.<br />

As a broadcast news senior, Hott stole<br />

the show once again – this time as a student<br />

television reporter.<br />

In June 2009, Hott was named the ABC<br />

News On Campus “Roving Reporter of the<br />

Year.” The Roving Reporter program invites<br />

student journalists at accredited colleges to<br />

submit video, text or photos for potential use on<br />

Hott on set during her summer 2008 internship<br />

at FOX News Channel in New York City.<br />

Hott gets an unexpected opportunity to pose<br />

with “ABC News” anchor Diane Sawyer on the<br />

“Good Morning America” set. Hott was invited<br />

to New York, N.Y., to tour ABC studios and meet<br />

with news executives after winning the ABC<br />

News On Campus “Roving Reporter of the Year.”<br />

ABCNews.com or on television. The program is<br />

an extension of ABC News On Campus, which<br />

was established in 2008 to showcase studentproduced<br />

pieces.<br />

Hott was selected as the winner based on<br />

the quality of two submissions: “Recession-<br />

Proof City,” a story about Morgantown, and<br />

“<strong>Virginia</strong> Tech’s Legacy of Safety,” a piece<br />

More on the Web<br />

Watch Hott’s stories produced for ABC<br />

News On Campus<br />

Read more about Hott’s accomplishments<br />

http://journalism.wvu.edu<br />

about the second anniversary of the <strong>Virginia</strong><br />

Tech shootings. As a result, she earned an allexpenses-paid<br />

trip to New York City to meet<br />

with “ABC News” executives and visit the “Good<br />

Morning America” studios.<br />

At the top of her game in both genres, the<br />

star performer finds similarities between her two<br />

creative pursuits.<br />

“I think music and journalism are alike<br />

in a lot of ways – they’re just different ways of<br />

expressing yourself,” said Hott. “With singing,<br />

you’re expressing yourself with music and lyrics,<br />

and with journalism, you’re putting yourself<br />

out there through written words and on-air<br />

delivery.”<br />

She never imagined how much she would<br />

accomplish after changing her major from music<br />

theater to journalism as a sophomore at WVU.<br />

In addition to her ABC News On Campus<br />

award, Hott has landed a number of internships<br />

at the local level and at national broadcast<br />

networks, including Fox News and Fox Business<br />

Network.<br />

“Every single place I’ve gone, I’ve learned<br />

different things that are going to help me in<br />

different ways in my career,” Hott said. “I just<br />

think you can never learn too much.”<br />

Hott aspires to be a network anchor but<br />

realizes she will need to start out in small-market<br />

television.<br />

“That’s where you really ‘learn the ropes’<br />

of broadcasting,” said Hott. “My ultimate career<br />

goal is to be an anchor for a large television news<br />

market. I know I have a long way to go and a<br />

lot to learn before I get there, but it’s something<br />

that I can aspire to be.”<br />

Hott is currently working as a general<br />

assignment reporter for WVIR-TV, the NBC<br />

affiliate in Charlottesville, Va.<br />

7


Selling 70,000 paid copies<br />

a month, Racer X Illustrated<br />

provides opportunities for<br />

SOJ graduates in the niche<br />

publication industry.<br />

If you’re a motorcycle racing fan, chances are<br />

you’ve heard of Racer X Illustrated and Road<br />

Racer X, the major publications that cover the<br />

sport, and MX Sports Pro Racing and Racer<br />

Productions, the companies that host and<br />

promote dozens of races each year.<br />

What you may not know is that these<br />

companies are based in Morgantown, W.Va.,<br />

and have been powered in part by several<br />

graduates from the School of Journalism.<br />

Bryan Stealey (BSJ, 1994), David Brozik<br />

(BSJ, 1995), Julie Kramer (BSJ, 1998), Jeff<br />

Kocan (BSJ, 1999), Rachel Fluharty (BSJ, 2009)<br />

and current news-editorial senior Alissa Murphy<br />

have been making good use of their SOJ<br />

degrees within the motocross industry, working<br />

in editorial, management, graphics, production,<br />

circulation and event promotion.<br />

The Racer X magazines, published by<br />

Filter Publications, report motocross news in<br />

America and in exotic locales, including Qatar<br />

and Portugal, and their associated websites<br />

garner millions of visitors from around the<br />

world. Racer Productions’ and MX Sports<br />

produce and promote some of the top off-road<br />

motorcycle races in the world.<br />

Filter Publications editorial director and<br />

founder Davey Coombs, also a WVU graduate,<br />

combined his passions for motocross and writing in<br />

The Racing Paper, first printed in 1991. It gained<br />

popularity and grew into a glossy named Racer X<br />

Illustrated. Filter Publications still produces The<br />

Racing Paper to cover regional races.<br />

“Years ago, Dave Coombs, Davey’s father,<br />

started going to races and racing himself,” said<br />

Filter Publications president Bryan Stealey. “He<br />

thought he could do it better. And he did. He<br />

built bigger and better events, making the best<br />

off-road races in the U.S. That’s the core of the<br />

company and how everything started, which<br />

gave us deep roots in the industry.<br />

“Davey grew up at the races,” Stealey<br />

added. “He’s always loved it.”<br />

Much like many of his employees, Coombs<br />

came up through the ranks and learned the craft<br />

of motojournalism.<br />

While Coombs was growing The Racing<br />

Paper from a newsletter into a tabloid and then<br />

into a glossy, he brought on some employees who<br />

are still with him.<br />

Jeff Kocan, senior editor of Racer X and<br />

co-senior editor of Road Racer X, signed on<br />

in 1998 as a part-time proofreader while still<br />

an undergraduate student at the School of<br />

Journalism. David Brozik, a longtime friend<br />

of the Coombs family, came to work for them<br />

professionally as a graphic designer in 2001. He is<br />

currently the pre-press manager for both glossies.<br />

Stealey, too, has made a long-term<br />

commitment. He has worked for Coombs for<br />

almost 14 years, since the early days of shipping<br />

8<br />

Rachel Fluharty began working at Racer Productions as<br />

an intern and later leveraged that position into a fulltime<br />

job when she graduated in 2009.<br />

newsletter paste-ups to the printer via FedEx.<br />

“I asked Davey for a job 100 times and the<br />

100th time I got one,” Stealey said. Stealey was<br />

fresh out of WVU and looking for a job.<br />

He started out in the shipping room and<br />

talked his way into the darkroom, thanks to<br />

skills he learned at the School of Journalism.<br />

He made his own opportunities and took on<br />

additional duties. Stealey sought out ways to<br />

move up, becoming a copy editor and writer<br />

and, eventually, managing editor.<br />

“I kept looking for responsibilities,” Stealey<br />

said. “I started doing it, and then I got the job title.”<br />

Stealey also has helped the company<br />

become more efficient in its operations. He led<br />

Filter Publications in integrating technology,<br />

such as desktop publishing and email, to ease<br />

Julie Kramer began writing for the original publication,<br />

The Racing Paper, when she was 17 years old and is<br />

now production director for Filter Publications.<br />

BY CYNTHIA MCCLOUD<br />

& KIMBERLY BROWN


Davey Coombs, editorial director and founder of Filter<br />

Publications, found a way to combine his passions<br />

for motocross and writing, building a successful<br />

Morgantown-based business.<br />

work flow and in tackling the Web for social<br />

marketing opportunities.<br />

He says his SOJ training helped him in the<br />

early years when the small staff had to multitask.<br />

“We all had to be part of everything,” Stealey<br />

said. “I learned the anatomy of a press release, and<br />

I probably learned a good bit about crisis control<br />

from Associate Professor Dr. [Ivan] Pinnell.”<br />

Stealey is one of two SOJ grads who have<br />

been with Coombs the longest. The other is Filter<br />

Publications’ production director Julie Kramer.<br />

Kramer finished her degree at WVU in<br />

1998 while already working for the motocross<br />

publications. She met Coombs at a race while<br />

she was still in high school, attending events with<br />

a friend who rode motocross. At 17 years old,<br />

Kramer was already writing stories and shooting<br />

Having started out in the shipping room, Filter<br />

Publications president Bryan Stealey has worked his<br />

way up through various positions during his nearly 14<br />

years with the company.<br />

PHOTOGRAPHS BY LINGBING HANG<br />

ILLUSTRATION BY FORREST CONROY<br />

photography for The Racing Paper.<br />

Kramer transferred to WVU when she was<br />

a sophomore, and the magazine went glossy<br />

when she was a senior. Now, she oversees the<br />

production of Racer X Illustrated, Road Racer<br />

X and the event program books for several<br />

racing series.<br />

She says the School of Journalism taught<br />

her she wanted to stay right where she was.<br />

“I think what the J-school did, to be honest,<br />

was open to me things I didn’t want to do,”<br />

Kramer said, referring to reporting on crimes<br />

and meetings. She prefers to tell the stories about<br />

the people in the motocross industry.<br />

“It pointed me in the direction I wanted to go.”<br />

SOJ student Alissa Murphy also credits<br />

the School with opening doors and providing<br />

her with flexible skills applicable to today’s<br />

evolving industry.<br />

Murphy was an advertising major when she<br />

started her internship at Racer Productions. She<br />

learned of the opportunity when Stealey visited<br />

Martin Hall in 2008 as a panelist for an event<br />

sponsored by the student organization, Ed on<br />

Campus: All Things Magazine. Murphy didn’t know<br />

much about the magazine industry or motocross, but<br />

she was impressed by Stealey’s insight.<br />

“I like being around people that make me<br />

want to learn and that have something to give<br />

back,” said Murphy. “Stealey had so much<br />

knowledge, and I knew he would be the perfect<br />

person to work for. I could tell he was busy, but I<br />

kept emailing him . . . eventually he let me come<br />

in for an interview, and I got the internship.”<br />

Within a year, Murphy was able to leverage<br />

the skills that she learned in both the advertising<br />

and news-editorial programs and during the<br />

internship into a more long-term position<br />

with Racer Productions. In her current job,<br />

she manages online advertising for six of the<br />

company’s websites, uses social media to market<br />

Racer X magazines and oversees more than 500<br />

magazine vendor accounts.<br />

She says working for Racer X reminds her<br />

of why she chose advertising when she started at<br />

the School, but it also allows her the flexibility to<br />

explore her new passion for journalism as well.<br />

“It’s really whatever opportunity presents<br />

itself,” said Murphy. “I’ve designed pages for<br />

the magazine. I’ve done research for programs.<br />

I’ve shot a feature for the magazine. I’ve done<br />

everything. I’ve had the opportunity to flesh out<br />

all avenues and see what I really like.”<br />

In addition to hiring full-time employees,<br />

Filter Publications has offered internships off<br />

and on for 10 years, according to Stealey. Five<br />

interns have been from the School of Journalism.<br />

Editorial director Coombs sees the value in<br />

adding SOJ students and graduates to his team.<br />

“Media is evolving so fast [that] it’s always<br />

a good idea to hire younger people,” Coombs<br />

said. “We challenge each other to stay ahead of<br />

the trends. The vast potential out there changes<br />

every day. Having young WVU-educated people<br />

almost assures that I’ll be at the leading edge of<br />

whatever comes next.”<br />

9


SOJ students use social media skills to<br />

promote green efforts BY CANDACE NELSON<br />

Five School of Journalism students are using<br />

their professional skills to contribute to a cleaner<br />

environment.<br />

They are participating in the EcoCAR<br />

Challenge, a national competition that gives<br />

engineering students from across the country the<br />

chance to design and build an eco-friendly car.<br />

However, Nicole Fernandes, Elyse Petroni,<br />

Cate Mihelic, Nicholas Cavender and Marilyn<br />

More on the Web<br />

Watch a video about the EcoCAR outreach team<br />

http://journalism.wvu.edu/projects/ecocar_team<br />

Visit the EcoCAR website<br />

http://ecocar.wvu.edu/<br />

Check out the team blog<br />

http://greengarageblog.org/<br />

McCarthy aren’t using automotive technology<br />

in their efforts. Instead, they’re using their public<br />

relations and social media skills to help promote<br />

the WVU College of Engineering and Mineral<br />

Resources’ EcoCAR team.<br />

“It’s a great experience because it’s like<br />

they’re our client, and we’re trying to get the word<br />

out on a project that they’re doing,” said Petroni,<br />

a public relations senior. “I think that it’s good<br />

experience for what we’re going to be doing when<br />

we graduate.”<br />

The School began its involvement in the<br />

competition last year when Aubrey Mondi (BSJ,<br />

2009) and Cara Slider (MSJ, 2009; BSJ, 2006)<br />

partnered with the engineering team to develop the<br />

10<br />

8<br />

Linbging Hang<br />

Linbging Hang<br />

initial communications plan and project website.<br />

This year, MSJ candidate Nicole Fernandes<br />

was granted a graduate assistantship from the<br />

College of Engineering and Mineral Resources<br />

to recruit an outreach team and lead their efforts.<br />

“We really want to get the message out there<br />

that we’re involved, especially with what’s going<br />

on with the auto industry,” Fernandes said. “It’s<br />

important that WVU is involved with this program<br />

and promoting clean energy and hybrid vehicles.”<br />

To promote the competition, the outreach<br />

team is using a variety of media to get the word<br />

out and has participated in several public events,<br />

including WVU EngineerFEST 2009, WVU’s<br />

Homecoming Parade, WVU’s National Campus<br />

Sustainability Day, the GM vehicle delivery<br />

media event and EcoCAR presentations at seven<br />

middle and high schools in <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> and<br />

Pennsylvania.<br />

Each team member has been assigned a<br />

specific area to cover within the outreach strategy.<br />

Fernandes is in charge of promoting the project<br />

through a variety of venues, including social<br />

media.<br />

“We started tweeting about EcoCAR, and<br />

last year they started a Facebook fan page, so we’ve<br />

been updating that,” Fernandes said. “We have<br />

also updated our blog and have been shooting<br />

video and photos.”<br />

Petroni handles state and political outreach,<br />

and Mihelic, a public relations senior, is working<br />

on the K-12 outreach efforts. Cavender focuses<br />

on media relations, and McCarthy works with the<br />

WVU campus and Morgantown community. Both<br />

also are public relations seniors.<br />

“It’s a nationally recognized competition,”<br />

Submitted photo<br />

Fernandes said. “WVU is only one of 17<br />

universities across the U.S. and Canada who was<br />

accepted for this competition. So just for them<br />

to put this on their resume is one way they [the<br />

students] can benefit.”<br />

Another perk of the project is the opportunity<br />

to travel with the EcoCAR team. In January 2010,<br />

Mihelic and Fernandes flew to Daytona Beach,<br />

Fla., for the competition’s Year Two Winter<br />

Workshop where preliminary judging took place.<br />

The outreach team was awarded a score of 4.3<br />

out of 5.0 for their website.<br />

Fernandes’ fellow team members also<br />

recognize that this is an experience that will make<br />

them stand out to future employers.<br />

“The classes at the J-school have helped<br />

because we’ve been applying those techniques<br />

we’ve learned,” Mihelic said. “It’s what we would<br />

face in an agency because we have to juggle<br />

multiple priorities between this and class.”<br />

Top Left: WVU mechanical engineering seniors<br />

Alan Kuskil (left) Ryan Mesches (right) exit the<br />

EcoCAR after taking it for the inaugural test<br />

drive in October 2009. Public relations senior<br />

Nick Cavender captures the moment on video.<br />

Bottom Left: Mechanical engineering senior and<br />

EcoCAR team leader Brody Conklin (left) and<br />

engineering graduate assistant Andrew Yablonski<br />

(right) take a look under the hood of the team’s<br />

2009 Saturn Vue.<br />

Right: The EcoCAR team poses for a photo<br />

outside the Daytona International Speedway in<br />

Daytona Beach, Fla., during the competition’s<br />

Year Two Winter Workshop in January 2010.<br />

From left: SOJ students Cate Mihelic and Nicole<br />

Fernandes; engineering students Zhenhua Zhu,<br />

Andrew Blazek, Brody Conklin, Ryan Hanlon;<br />

and faculty advisor Dr. Scott Wayne.


Returning veteran’s video goes viral<br />

IMC graduate learns the pros and cons of social media<br />

It’s a timeless story – soldier and “man’s best<br />

friend” reunited during wartime. But little did<br />

Captain Andrew Schmidt (MS-IMC, 2009; BSJ,<br />

1994) know that when his Golden Retriever,<br />

Gracie, jubilantly leaped into his lap, the videotaped<br />

moment would garner more than a million<br />

hits on YouTube.com.<br />

The video was captured when Schmidt, a<br />

public affairs officer for the <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> Air<br />

National Guard, returned home from Afghanistan<br />

in 2005. More than a year later, he uploaded the<br />

video to YouTube.com to share with friends and<br />

family.<br />

On Veteran’s Day 2009, however, he awoke<br />

to more than 300 comments from strangers in his<br />

email inbox. It was then<br />

that Schmidt realized<br />

the video had gone<br />

viral, garnering him<br />

and Gracie international<br />

fame.<br />

“I wasn’t sure what<br />

was happening,” said<br />

Schmidt. “What I found<br />

out was that a website<br />

More on the Web<br />

Watch the video and interviews<br />

http://journalism.wvu.edu/<br />

(see “Success Stories”)<br />

Learn more about the IMC program<br />

www.imc.wvu.edu<br />

called mentalfloss.com had posted a thing for<br />

Veteran’s Day, and it said ‘top ten homecoming<br />

videos.’ Then my video got picked up at some other<br />

places . . . The Huffington Post, National Review<br />

Online, CNN, the Today Show.”<br />

His brush with viral media proved to be<br />

an invaluable lesson for the 2009 Integrated<br />

Marketing Communications (IMC) program<br />

graduate. Schmidt was bombarded with media<br />

requests, engaged in conversations with strangers<br />

on his YouTube.com page and busy policing his<br />

video, protecting it from Internet pirates looking<br />

to make a profit.<br />

Schmidt says he relied on his experience in<br />

the IMC master’s degree program, recalling lessons<br />

in social media and how he could apply them to<br />

his situation.<br />

“It got so big. People were ripping it down,<br />

saying they were me, then going out there and<br />

selling ads . . . there was a lot of fraud involved,”<br />

said Schmidt. “I learned in the Emerging Media<br />

course that my video is intellectual property, and I<br />

was able to quickly get control of that. The IMC<br />

program gave me a good understanding of what<br />

was going on – of what happens when a video<br />

goes viral.”<br />

This wasn’t the<br />

first time Schmidt<br />

had used his IMC<br />

coursework to navigate<br />

real-life situations. He<br />

says the knowledge he<br />

gained from his online<br />

courses helped him to<br />

establish a brand for the<br />

global risk mitigation<br />

firm he helped to start up, iSight Partners, Inc.<br />

Schmidt says he’s thankful for both the<br />

innovative content and the flexibility of the IMC<br />

program. That flexibility allowed him to complete<br />

his coursework while working a full-time job,<br />

completing his military officer training, starting a<br />

new business and caring for a newborn.<br />

“Without the flexibility of the IMC program,<br />

there is no way I could have earned a master’s<br />

degree,” said Schmidt. “I simply would not be able<br />

to achieve what I’m achieving now if I would have<br />

Submitted photo<br />

Submitted photo<br />

BY CHRISTA VINCENT<br />

TOP<br />

Captain Andrew Schmidt reunites in 2005 with<br />

his dog, Gracie, after a five-month tour of duty<br />

in Afghanistan.<br />

INSET<br />

Schmidt snaps a photo of himself with Gracie<br />

during a game of fetch.<br />

been stuck with a traditional classroom schedule.”<br />

Schmidt believes his proverbial “15 minutes<br />

of fame” is over for now. Not only did he get<br />

control of his video, but he also sold ads on his<br />

Youtube.com page and parlayed the revenue into<br />

money for the Alexandria, Va., animal shelter –<br />

the same shelter from which he adopted Gracie.<br />

Schmidt is currently on his second tour of<br />

duty in Afghanistan. He says he looks forward to<br />

returning home, using his IMC skills on the job<br />

and making another reunion video with Gracie.<br />

11


The Perfect Niche<br />

Advertising graduate finds perfect market for independent business venture<br />

12<br />

Three years after graduating with a degree from<br />

the advertising program, the only account Jason<br />

Coffman (BSJ, 2000) was managing was for a<br />

restaurant – his own.<br />

Though he hasn’t followed the typical career path<br />

he might have envisioned as a young School of<br />

Journalism student, Coffman’s entrepreneurial<br />

spirit is paying off.<br />

Using his degree on a daily basis to market Black<br />

Bear Burritos, the Morgantown-based eatery he cofounded<br />

in 2003, Coffman has helped build more<br />

than a brand – he’s found his niche.<br />

BY CYNTHIA MCCLOUD & KIMBERLY BROWN<br />

PHOTOGRAPHS BY BRIAN PERSINGER, WVU PHOTOGRAPHIC SERVICES


Inset: Jason Coffman (BSJ, 2000) is using his advertising skills to promote and build the restaurant he co-founded in 2003, Black Bear Burritos, in Morgantown, W.Va.<br />

13


Black Bear Burritos serves up a variety of local brews and organic menu items, popular among the WVU and Morgantown communities.<br />

Mountain State pride. Healthy food. Family<br />

atmosphere. Coffman and co-owner Matt<br />

Showalter, also a WVU graduate, had what they<br />

thought were the perfect ingredients for a new kind<br />

of Morgantown business.<br />

“What we wanted to do somewhat defied the<br />

norms of the restaurant industry,” Coffman said.<br />

“We were two guys with no culinary school training<br />

pursuing a restaurant venture catering to both<br />

families and university students in a predominantly<br />

college community.”<br />

Referred to locally as just “Black Bear,” the<br />

small, innovative business serves a variety of ethnic<br />

and vegetarian cuisines, using local and organic<br />

products whenever possible.<br />

Though flavors range from Thai to Greek,<br />

Coffman and Showalter like to keep things “local,”<br />

paying tribute to the Morgantown and <strong>West</strong><br />

<strong>Virginia</strong> influence.<br />

Several of the “Special Guest” menu items<br />

have been named for local fixtures, such as “The<br />

Rail Trail” quesadilla, coined for the popular<br />

walking and biking trail connecting Marion,<br />

Monongalia and Preston Counties. “The Gym’s<br />

Jim” quesadilla, which features a spicy salsa, pays<br />

tribute to the owner of a boxing gym located<br />

behind the restaurant. And, of course, “The<br />

Motown Philly” cheesesteak wrap is a local<br />

favorite.<br />

But the menu selection isn’t the only reason<br />

Black Bear has become a Morgantown staple.<br />

“Matt and I love to have fun, and we want<br />

to incorporate as much fun in everything we do,”<br />

Coffman said. “We want the experience of dining<br />

here to be fun. All of this plays into our brand image.”<br />

26 14<br />

The regular music acts – always free of<br />

charge – enhance that “good time” feeling.<br />

“Our love of live music and art and <strong>West</strong><br />

<strong>Virginia</strong> in general was going to be at the forefront<br />

of our concept,” said Coffman. “We were going<br />

to be adamant about using local products . . . and<br />

supporting local artists by giving them a venue to<br />

hang and sell their art, taking no commission, and<br />

supporting local musicians by putting them on our<br />

stage during the dinner hour.”<br />

Employees hand out toys to guests with each order<br />

to help servers identify tables.<br />

Building a family-friendly environment into<br />

their business also was important to Coffman,<br />

who now has two small children of his own. The<br />

restaurant features a “Little Cubs” menu with free<br />

dishes for kids, fast service and a casual setting in<br />

which children are clearly welcome.<br />

The cozy atmosphere, green business practices<br />

and free Wi-Fi have aided in attracting a wide<br />

demographic of customers<br />

from the <strong>University</strong> and<br />

Morgantown communities.<br />

Coffman says he and<br />

Showalter have succeeded<br />

by adhering to the original<br />

concept they had for the<br />

business – one that perhaps has<br />

its roots in their college days.<br />

O r i g i n a l l y f r o m<br />

Parkersburg, W.Va., Coffman<br />

and Showalter became friends<br />

while attending WVU. They<br />

traveled during breaks and<br />

enjoyed cuisine and venues that<br />

were nothing like what was in<br />

Morgantown at the time.<br />

Both graduated in 2000<br />

and went about pursuing<br />

traditional careers.<br />

While his wife Jessica<br />

was busy with graduate<br />

studies at Appalachian State<br />

<strong>University</strong>, Coffman worked<br />

in advertising for an outdoors<br />

store in Boone, N.C. He spent his evenings,<br />

however, capitalizing on the time he spent working<br />

in restaurants in <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong>. He started rolling<br />

burritos, jotting down ideas and making plans.<br />

Coffman remembered dishes he and<br />

Showalter had eaten at hip restaurants in cities<br />

such as Portland, Ore., and food they had cooked<br />

together on a Coleman camping stove and served<br />

to hungry passers-by in concert parking lots.<br />

Soon he called Showalter, asking him to leave<br />

his desk job and begin their next adventure.<br />

A return to <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> was inevitable.<br />

Coffman and Showalter have strong family ties<br />

to the state and the <strong>University</strong>. Coffman’s wife,<br />

mother, father, brother, uncle, grandfather and<br />

great-grandfather all have degrees from WVU.<br />

Even the location of their restaurant has a<br />

family connection. Located at 132 Pleasant Street,<br />

Black Bear Burritos is in the same building in which<br />

Coffman’s mother lived as a WVU undergraduate<br />

student in the 1970s.<br />

Planning the menu and finding the perfect<br />

location were the first hurdles. Developing an<br />

identity and gaining a loyal customer base were<br />

separate challenges. That’s where Coffman’s<br />

advertising skills kicked in.<br />

Coffman says branding was one of the most<br />

important things he learned in his advertising<br />

classes at the School of Journalism. He believes<br />

that having his business recognized by a lot of<br />

people has been a key to their success.<br />

One of the ways Coffman has solidified<br />

the business’ brand is through the logo design.<br />

Coffman and Showalter’s love of Appalachian<br />

heritage and music are represented by the logo’s


lack bear – <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong>’s official state animal<br />

– playing a banjo.<br />

Designed to be a stamp on everything, the logo<br />

appears on the labels of bottled <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> spring<br />

water, takeout containers and bumper stickers.<br />

“We try to find opportunities to carry our<br />

brand, our image, as far from the front door as<br />

possible,” he said.<br />

That approach has served them well.<br />

The logo has been spotted more than 2,000<br />

miles from Black Bear’s door – on the Caribbean<br />

island of Saint Martin and in Montana’s Glacier<br />

National Park.<br />

“That has proven to be some of the best<br />

advertising dollars spent,” Coffman said. “Is that<br />

going to gain us business in<br />

Saint Martin? No, but it’s<br />

pleasing to hear how well<br />

traveled these stickers are and<br />

that we have such a branding<br />

of this establishment.”<br />

S u c h t r a d i t i o n a l<br />

advertising efforts have<br />

helped the business gain<br />

a loyal following. At the<br />

same time, that dedicated<br />

customer base is providing<br />

significant word-of-mouth<br />

marketing for the restaurant<br />

as well.<br />

In October 2007,<br />

a National Geographic<br />

Adventure magazine writer<br />

urged readers to “rock out with the guitar singers<br />

at Black Bear Burritos over a home-brew stout and<br />

an organic tofu wrap.”<br />

As far as Coffman knows, the author was in<br />

the area exploring outdoor recreation and was<br />

encouraged to stop by Black Bear for a bite<br />

to eat.<br />

“From what I understand,”<br />

said Coffman, “they came in<br />

and just really enjoyed their<br />

experience here. They<br />

thought it was a really<br />

unique and cool place<br />

to come and worthy of a<br />

mention.”<br />

Other advertising<br />

efforts have been more<br />

proactive, such as the<br />

company’s fan page on<br />

the social networking site<br />

Facebook. Colorful photos and<br />

The Black Bear image appears on a<br />

variety of items – including stickers,<br />

shirts, glasses and beer taps – to<br />

market the restaurant.<br />

<strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> musicians Mike Morningstar and Rick Roberts perform in<br />

March 2010 at Black Bear Burritos.<br />

descriptions of the restaurant’s weekly specials<br />

gain comments from fans and well-wishers from<br />

across the country.<br />

Within the first two weeks of launching the<br />

official Facebook page, Black Bear reached 1,200<br />

fans. Today, more than 1,800 people<br />

follow the restaurant’s posts.<br />

Coffman utilizes the tool<br />

for more than just getting the<br />

word out. It goes beyond free<br />

advertising, he says. It’s also<br />

about controlling their<br />

brand and messaging.<br />

Coffman often serves guests himself and encourages<br />

group and family celebrations in his restaurant.<br />

“We send the messages we want to send and<br />

represent ourselves the way we want to,” said Coffman.<br />

Whatever the strategy, Coffman is doing it right.<br />

“We have experienced continuous growth in<br />

the seven years that we’ve been open, and our sales<br />

nearly tripled in 2009 compared to 2003,” he said.<br />

With such steady growth, Coffman and<br />

Showalter are looking to expand to a second<br />

location in Morgantown.<br />

“We hope to offer Black Bear in the Evansdale<br />

[campus] area in the near future,” he said.<br />

As for advice to current SOJ students or<br />

recent graduates embarking on their professional<br />

future, Coffman encourages them to find value<br />

in all of their experiences – even those that don’t<br />

appear to directly relate to their career path.<br />

“I would say never to underestimate or<br />

discredit any life experiences,” said Coffman. “No<br />

matter how menial a job may seem while you’re in<br />

college or during the summer months, you never<br />

know where that experience could apply later on,<br />

or you never know what value it might be to you<br />

later in life.”<br />

More on the Web<br />

Watch a photo slideshow<br />

http://journalism.wvu.edu<br />

(see “Success Stories”)<br />

Visit Black Bear Burritos on the Web<br />

http://www.blackbearburritos.com/<br />

Read the National Geographic article<br />

http://www.active.com/outdoors/Articles/Mountain_Mindset.htm<br />

27 15


New book brings<br />

death penalty<br />

case to light<br />

BY CYNTHIA MCCLOUD<br />

John Temple had no axe to grind when he chose a controversial subject<br />

– the death penalty – for his second book.<br />

Temple, associate professor and associate dean of the School of<br />

Journalism, published his latest nonfiction thriller, The Last Lawyer:<br />

The Fight to Save Death Row Inmates,<br />

in November 2009.<br />

“It was never ideological,” Temple<br />

said. “I never set out to write a book<br />

against capital punishment. That’s not<br />

really what was driving me.”<br />

Pure journalistic curiosity is what<br />

interested him in the lawyers who fight<br />

for reduced sentences, new trials and<br />

overturned convictions for people on<br />

death row.<br />

“I found there have been a lot of<br />

books about people on death row and<br />

capital punishment cases, but there<br />

weren’t any other journalistic books<br />

about the lawyers who do this work,” said Temple. “There’s a very<br />

small number of lawyers out there who devote themselves exclusively to<br />

death penalty litigation. What kind of person is drawn to do this work?<br />

I wondered what their relationship would be like with the defendant.<br />

All those things drew me to it.”<br />

Ken Rose, the central figure in the book, has almost exclusively<br />

defended death row inmates for his entire career. He was the director<br />

of the Center for Death Penalty Litigation (CDPL) during the fourand-a-half<br />

years that Temple followed Rose’s representation of Levon<br />

“Bo” Jones.<br />

Jones was convicted in 1993 and sentenced to death for a 1987<br />

killing in North Carolina. The CDPL fought to have Jones’ sentence<br />

overturned, citing inadequate legal counsel, mental illness and mental<br />

16<br />

Andy Smith<br />

Main Photo: Associate Professor John Temple answers<br />

questions from C-SPAN producers about his book, The<br />

Last Lawyer: The Fight to Save Death Row Inmates.<br />

Left Inset: The Last Lawyer: The Fight to Save Death Row<br />

Inmates, published by <strong>University</strong> Press of Mississippi in 2009.<br />

Right Inset: Levon “Bo” Jones in 2008 just minutes<br />

after being released from North Carolina’s death row.<br />

WVU Photo Services<br />

retardation. Rose worked for 10 years on the case,<br />

which resulted in Jones’ release from prison in 2008.<br />

As part of a book launch event, the School of<br />

Journalism and the College of Law co-sponsored<br />

a panel discussion in November featuring Temple,<br />

Rose, <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> appellate lawyer Lonnie<br />

Simmons and sentencing mitigation expert Jay T.<br />

McCamic.<br />

During the discussion, Temple spoke about the<br />

journalistic process of reporting the story during 17 trips to the South<br />

spanning nearly five years.<br />

“I pushed myself to get to know these people on a deeper level<br />

than I have before as a journalist,” he said.<br />

By immersing himself in his subject, Temple was able to tell a true<br />

story that reads more like fiction.<br />

While the book may be a compelling read, Rose says it also sheds<br />

light on the important work being done by death penalty litigators.<br />

“I think it’s an interesting and well-rounded perspective of our<br />

work, not just through our eyes but also through the eyes of those who<br />

support the death penalty,” said Rose.<br />

Since its publication, The Last Lawyer has garnered positive<br />

reviews and recently received the Scribes 2010 Book Award from the<br />

American Society of Legal Writers.<br />

More on the Web<br />

Watch the panel discussion webcast<br />

http://law.wvu.edu/lastlawyer<br />

Watch Temple’s interview with C-SPAN<br />

http://www.c-spanarchives.org/program/ID/218130&start=0&end=392<br />

Learn more about Temple’s work<br />

http://johntemplebooks.com/<br />

59


SOJ welcomes new faculty BY CANDACE NELSON<br />

Jensen Moore<br />

Assistant Professor, Journalism<br />

Director of Undergraduate Online Programs<br />

As Director of Undergraduate Online Programs, Dr. Jensen Moore<br />

is helping to re-envision the School of Journalism’s growing minors<br />

program.<br />

In addition to online courses for its majors, the School currently<br />

offers online minors in advertising and public relations, as well as a<br />

blended minor in sport communication with WVU’s College of Physical<br />

Activity and Sport Sciences. Last year, the School filled nearly 1,000<br />

“seats” in its summer online courses and has more than doubled its online<br />

enrollment since 2004.<br />

As an academic scholar<br />

and researcher, Moore<br />

brings a strong academic<br />

presence to the online<br />

programs.<br />

Beginning in July 2009,<br />

she conducted a complete<br />

audit of all the School’s<br />

underg raduate online<br />

courses to strengthen the<br />

curriculum, update content<br />

and standardize how courses<br />

are being taught. She also<br />

worked with faculty and<br />

students at WVU’s College<br />

of Creative Arts to redesign<br />

the graphic identity of the<br />

online courses.<br />

Tasked with developing<br />

new minors, Moore has proposed a strategic health communications<br />

minor, which will prepare students for communications careers in the<br />

health care industry.<br />

In addition, she’s engaged in promoting the School’s minors and<br />

other online offerings across campus and to other nationally accredited<br />

journalism programs.<br />

“Students from other departments want journalism minors to<br />

enhance their degrees,” Moore said. “Business students might want a<br />

PR minor and others might want an advertising minor.”<br />

Moore received her doctorate degree in journalism from the<br />

<strong>University</strong> of Missouri School of Journalism. Before earning her Ph.D.,<br />

she worked in strategic communications as a public and community<br />

relations director and advertising executive for professional baseball and<br />

basketball teams and as a research consultant on a book examining the<br />

future of journalism.<br />

Dana Coester<br />

Assistant Professor, Advertising<br />

Since returning to the School of Journalism in fall 2009, Assistant<br />

Professor Dana Coester is helping students define themselves in the<br />

ever-changing field of journalism.<br />

“They are interested in and motivated to define themselves as new<br />

media professionals,” Coester said. “My goal is to ignite the passion for<br />

the future innovators.”<br />

Coester is no stranger to the evolution of journalism. A<br />

former art director for Time Inc. publications, she most recently<br />

served as the assistant vice<br />

president for branding<br />

and creative direction<br />

with WVU’s <strong>University</strong><br />

Relations division, where<br />

she helped direct several<br />

award-winning interactive<br />

social media campaigns.<br />

Coester hopes to bring<br />

her experience and insights<br />

to students in the advertising<br />

program through projects<br />

that utilize digital media and<br />

graphic design.<br />

In fall 2009, students in<br />

her Advertising Campaigns<br />

course researched and<br />

developed a campaign to<br />

rebrand journalism as an<br />

exciting, evolving major for<br />

millennial college students.<br />

In the spring semester, Coester worked with students in her Direct<br />

Marketing class and through the “<strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> Uncovered: Multimedia<br />

Journalism from the Mountains” project to help rural newspapers<br />

develop strategies to monetize their websites. As part of that effort,<br />

Coester is leading an initiative to develop a mobile application for the<br />

project.<br />

In addition, Coester has co-authored a grant with Associate<br />

Professor Joel Beeson to collect multimedia oral histories about race<br />

perceptions in <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong>.<br />

She also recently finished producing her own experimental<br />

multimedia documentary, “Pretty,” which she is currently submitting<br />

to film festivals.<br />

Coester is also an active blogger on media issues and the future<br />

of journalism.<br />

Jensen Moore Dana Coester<br />

Portraits by WVU Photo Services<br />

17


Nine-year-old Veronica carries<br />

her two-year-old sister Patricia<br />

on her back. The sisters live in<br />

Do Boro Village, Ghana. SOJ<br />

students visited the village as<br />

part of their travels to <strong>West</strong><br />

Africa in summer 2010.<br />

Lessons from <strong>West</strong> Africa<br />

Students study international media practices while traveling abroad<br />

While newspaper readership has declined in the<br />

United States, print journalism is thriving alongside<br />

new media in emerging democracies. A group<br />

of School of Journalism students learned that<br />

lesson firsthand during a spring semester course,<br />

International Media: <strong>West</strong> Africa.<br />

The course, taught by Assistant Professor Steve<br />

Urbanski focused on <strong>West</strong> African culture, history<br />

and media and culminated in a three-week study<br />

abroad trip to Ghana, Benin and Burkina Faso.<br />

According to Urbanski, the trip was significant<br />

on several levels.<br />

“Obviously, it was important for the students to<br />

see how media outlets operate on an international<br />

scope. But embedded within that notion are arguably<br />

more vital sub-issues, such as culture, politics, power<br />

and economics,” Urbanski said.<br />

Reading about and discussing these issues in<br />

class is one thing, says Urbanski, but experiencing<br />

them in person can have a stronger impact on<br />

18<br />

student journalists.<br />

“When they walk within different political<br />

systems and experience the economic inequity that<br />

is often present in sub-Saharan Africa, they have<br />

an excellent opportunity to build upon textbook<br />

readings and arguably become more empowered<br />

as individuals,” he said.<br />

While in <strong>West</strong> Africa, students toured radio<br />

and television stations, as well as several newspapers<br />

in Accra, Ghana, and Cotonou, Benin. They also<br />

visited joyonline.com, a successful dot-com company<br />

in Accra that packages news and feature stories for<br />

radio stations, and attended a journalism ethics<br />

conference at the Ghana International Press Centre.<br />

Heather Sager, an MSJ candidate, was one of<br />

the eight students who went on the trip. She says<br />

she and her peers discussed in class how politics<br />

and economics can influence journalism in other<br />

cultures. It was the conference, however, that<br />

solidified those ideas.<br />

BY CHRISTA VINCENT<br />

“In Ghana, many of the newspapers focus<br />

on a certain political party or person in power, and<br />

they are very open about that,” said Sager. “They<br />

[Ghanaian journalists] think that it is best to take<br />

someone’s side, as long as it’s morally sound and best<br />

for society. That’s very different from how the U.S.<br />

Public relations senior Erin<br />

Graziani stands high above<br />

a tropical rainforest on the<br />

canopy walkway at Kakum<br />

National Park, Ghana.<br />

Submitted photo<br />

Submitted photo


More on the Web<br />

Read the class blog<br />

http://westafricasoj.wvu.edu/<br />

Submitted photo<br />

Villagers pause and smile for photos during the<br />

students’ visit to Do Boro Village, Ghana.<br />

media tries to be objective and give both sides.”<br />

While on the trip, students also blogged<br />

about their experiences. Several of the students<br />

examined the differences between print and<br />

online journalism in their blog posts, noting that<br />

the two platforms seem to co-exist better in <strong>West</strong><br />

Africa than in the United States. Despite the<br />

success of online media, people of Africa still<br />

value the printed word.<br />

“There were at least 20 new newspapers<br />

in Ghana in the past year, which seems pretty<br />

fascinating when you think about it,” MSJ<br />

candidate Brittany Cole wrote in one of her<br />

entries.<br />

Public relations senior Erin Graziani found<br />

that geography and access also affect how <strong>West</strong><br />

Africans consume their news. Even with the<br />

proliferation of online media, print journalism<br />

continues to thrive.<br />

“We visited an African village where locals<br />

said they didn’t have access to computers, but<br />

they used them when they visited the Internet<br />

cafes in the city of Accra,” said Graziani. “So<br />

in their village, it was easier for them to get their<br />

hands on a newspaper.”<br />

Although the media study was the focus of<br />

the trip, Urbanksi said students also got a lesson<br />

in humility.<br />

“I’m confident that the trip made the<br />

students think,” said Urbanski. “When students<br />

visited the village of Do Boro, they were visibly<br />

moved. The village is so poor, yet the children<br />

were happy just to have visitors from the U.S. It<br />

was a superb example of how a trip such as this<br />

can go beyond the study of media.”<br />

The road to becoming<br />

a tweet jockey BY CHRISTA VINCENT<br />

Elizabethany Ploger, a 2009 broadcast news graduate, competed this summer for MTV’s new<br />

TJ (tweet jockey) position.<br />

When MTV launched its first music video<br />

on August 1, 1981, the term VJ (video jockey)<br />

became a buzzword in households across the<br />

country. Elizabethany Ploger (BSJ, 2009)<br />

wasn’t even born yet, but MTV icons like Nina<br />

Blackwood, Alan Hunter and Martha Quinn<br />

would later become her idols.<br />

“I’ve always said that my dream job was<br />

to be an MTV VJ, but they don’t really exist<br />

anymore,” said Ploger. “I guess a TJ (tweet<br />

jockey) is the modern day version.”<br />

The broadcast news graduate, currently<br />

a disc jockey at Candy 95.1 FM in College<br />

Station, Texas, was one of 20 people nationwide<br />

who competed to be MTV’s first TJ.<br />

MTV hand-picked Ploger based on her<br />

entertainment blog, “love, elizabethany,” which<br />

she started during her senior year at the School<br />

of Journalism.<br />

“I knew that I needed something more<br />

than just internships – everyone had those,” said<br />

Ploger. “I wanted to make myself stand out.”<br />

Ploger said it took about nine months of<br />

hard work before she developed a fan base.<br />

It was the summer after graduation, and she<br />

was living in Washington, D.C. With no luck<br />

in the job search, she began to follow the cast<br />

of the MTV reality show, “The Real World:<br />

Washington, D.C.,” with a video camera.<br />

The self-proclaimed “Real World” stalker<br />

posted a new video to her site each week and<br />

blogged about her attempts to find the cast<br />

members out on the town. She called the<br />

episodes “Finding the Real World Cast.”<br />

More established entertainment websites like<br />

Metblogs.com and Washingtonian.com began<br />

to notice her work.<br />

“All of the sudden, I realized I was being<br />

mentioned in articles, and the hits on my<br />

blog went from 200 a day to 1,500 a day,”<br />

said Ploger.<br />

Submitted photo<br />

M e t ro m i x . c o m , a n e t w o rk o f<br />

entertainment-based websites in more than 60<br />

U.S. cities, offered to pay Ploger as a freelancer<br />

for their Washington, D.C., site.<br />

“It didn’t pay much, probably enough to<br />

buy gas to get around the city,” said Ploger, “but<br />

it gave me more credibility on my resume.”<br />

By March 2010, “The Real World” had<br />

wrapped up, and Ploger found herself once<br />

again searching for a job. With the added<br />

boost to her resume, it didn’t take long for her<br />

to find one.<br />

Her current employer, Candy 95.1 FM,<br />

responded quickly to her application. They told<br />

Ploger it was her blog that caught their eye. By<br />

May, she had settled in Texas, ready to begin<br />

her new life. But two days later, her career took<br />

another exciting turn – MTV called.<br />

“I had no idea that this contest was going<br />

on, and I had no idea they were looking at me,”<br />

said Ploger. “They said they saw my tweets<br />

and my blog and they liked my commentary<br />

on pop culture.”<br />

During MTV’s TJ contest, Ploger<br />

competed against the other contestants in a<br />

series of Twitter-based challenges. Though<br />

she didn’t win the competition, Ploger gained<br />

valuable experience and has begun to build her<br />

portfolio as a pop culture journalist and critic.<br />

“So many people have asked me, ‘Did<br />

you need to go to school for four years to do<br />

what you do?’” said Ploger. “The answer is yes!<br />

My experience at the SOJ started this whole<br />

process. I’m really excited to show everyone<br />

that you can get a great education at WVU and<br />

make big things happen from it.”<br />

Ploger still hopes to someday work for a<br />

major network like MTV but feels she’s in a<br />

good place right now to further develop her<br />

professional skills.<br />

19


SOJ students<br />

tackle blogging<br />

and Web 2.0<br />

BY CHRISTA VINCENT<br />

Assistant Professor Bob Britten works with public relations<br />

senior Cambria Stubelt during the spring blogging course.<br />

Students and faculty at the School of Journalism<br />

aren’t just talking about the future of their<br />

profession – they’re helping to redefine it.<br />

A new class, “Blogging and Interactive<br />

Journalism,” offered students the opportunity<br />

to explore and experience the impact of Web<br />

2.0 and user-generated content on journalism.<br />

Using a variety of social media tools and webbased<br />

applications, students are learning to<br />

become effective online journalists, facilitating<br />

news as a two-way conversation rather than<br />

one-way transmission.<br />

“Once you write a blog post, it doesn’t<br />

end there,” said Assistant Professor Bob Britten.<br />

“Others respond, you respond to them and<br />

information grows. Students realize the work<br />

they are doing is just a starting point for that<br />

conversation. They’re learning just what it<br />

means to participate in that larger community<br />

today, both as savvy Internet users and as<br />

journalists.”<br />

During the pilot of the course in spring<br />

2010, students tweeted during Journalism Week<br />

presentations, developed interactive maps and<br />

wikis and created personal and group blogs.<br />

Public relations senior Cambria Stubelt<br />

believes that what she learned in Britten’s<br />

class will take her public relations skills to the<br />

next level.<br />

“These lessons are so invaluable,” said<br />

Stubelt. “It’s not a class where you read out<br />

of a textbook and discuss what-ifs and how-tos.<br />

This is what people are doing in real life, and<br />

we will need to know how to do this when we<br />

get a job.”<br />

20<br />

Lingbing Hang<br />

“There aren’t many<br />

journalism schools that<br />

are teaching blogging.<br />

Colleagues tell me part of<br />

the reason is that some<br />

believe blogging and social<br />

media aren’t journalism.<br />

These students are proving<br />

it can be.”<br />

—Bob Britten<br />

Britten agrees. He says blogs have become<br />

much more mainstream now that traditional<br />

media are using them to gather and share<br />

information with their audiences. As a result,<br />

blogging is a skill that students will likely need<br />

in the newsrooms of the future.<br />

“There aren’t many journalism schools<br />

that are teaching blogging,” said Britten.<br />

“Colleagues tell me part of the reason is that<br />

some believe blogging and social media aren’t<br />

journalism. These students are proving it can<br />

be.”<br />

During the course, students participated<br />

in multiple hands-on activities, including<br />

serving as “mini-newsrooms” to manage and<br />

maintain Morgantown-based blogs of local<br />

interest. In addition to planning these blogs<br />

and providing content, students used social<br />

networking tools, like Twitter, and created<br />

Facebook fan pages to promote their work.<br />

News-editorial senior Paden Wyatt<br />

believes the student-produced reporting for<br />

sites like “Masticate Morgantown,” a food<br />

blog, and “Move-in Morgantown,” a source<br />

for student housing, can be of real service to<br />

the community.<br />

“We are bringing valid news to<br />

Morgantown,” said Wyatt. “I think this class<br />

is where journalism is going. This technology<br />

is growing, and if you can stay on top of it, you<br />

can pretty much go wherever you want to.”<br />

As a final project, students produced<br />

proposals for the 2011 John S. and James<br />

L. Knight Foundation’s News Challenge<br />

competition. Part of the Knight Foundation’s<br />

Media Innovation Initiative, the competition<br />

is providing $25 million in funding over five<br />

years to select innovative projects that help to<br />

inform and transform community news and<br />

social media experiments. Next year will be<br />

the fifth year of the competition.<br />

More on the Web<br />

Visit the course website and student blogs<br />

http://interactivejournalismwvu.wordpress.com/<br />

17


Enjoying retirement, Louise and Harry Seals visit Southeast Asia in 2009, taking<br />

a week-long cruise up the Malay Peninsula from Singapore to Thailand.<br />

Giving for the future<br />

In a recent interview, 1966 School of<br />

Journalism graduate Louise Crumrine<br />

Seals shared the reasons why she<br />

decided to include the School in her<br />

estate plans.<br />

Seals ended her career at the Richmond<br />

Times-Dispatch, where she was<br />

managing editor from 1994–2006.<br />

She served as president of the <strong>Virginia</strong><br />

Professional Chapter of the Society of<br />

Professional Journalists, director of<br />

the Associated Press Managing Editors<br />

Association, director of <strong>Virginia</strong> Press<br />

Women, director of <strong>Virginia</strong> Press<br />

Association and a Pulitzer juror.<br />

Seals has been inducted into the <strong>Virginia</strong><br />

Communications Hall of Fame and has<br />

received the National Communicator of<br />

Achievement Award from the National<br />

Federation of Press Women. She also<br />

has served as an active member of<br />

the School of Journalism’s Visiting<br />

Committee since 2002.<br />

Why did you want to give back to the<br />

School of Journalism?<br />

The <strong>University</strong> and the School of Journalism<br />

were a life-changing experience for me. With<br />

instructors like Paul Atkins, you form a<br />

life-long friendship with your professors and,<br />

ultimately, the School.<br />

Submitted photo<br />

With whom did you consult to make your<br />

gift and why?<br />

My husband and I had a feeling that we needed<br />

to get our financial affairs in order. In our<br />

late 40s, we decided to visit with a legal firm<br />

specializing in wills to make sure that upon<br />

our deaths, our wishes would be followed. We<br />

wanted to make sure that what money was left<br />

was divided correctly.<br />

As a member of the Irvin Stewart Society,<br />

has your relationship with the School been<br />

enhanced?<br />

Most definitely. I like the idea that we are<br />

thanked now for our gift while we are living.<br />

I get more information from the School and<br />

contact from the <strong>University</strong>. Everybody likes to<br />

feel special.<br />

Is there any advice that you would give to<br />

someone who is thinking of including the<br />

School of Journalism in their estate plans?<br />

A gift to the School is something I wish<br />

everyone would look into as part of planning<br />

their estate. Only a small portion of the<br />

<strong>University</strong>’s budget comes from the state. Our<br />

gift combined with others will protect the<br />

future of WVU. We are not only planning<br />

for our personal future but helping the deans,<br />

professors and students for years to come.<br />

“Our gift combined<br />

with others will<br />

protect the future of<br />

WVU.”<br />

—Louise Seals<br />

About the Irvin Stewart Society<br />

Formed in 1992, the Irvin Stewart<br />

Society honors those who contribute<br />

gifts in their wills, create gifts that<br />

provide retirement income, designate<br />

retirement assets for after-death gifts,<br />

donate life insurance policies, make<br />

certain amounts “payable on death”<br />

or contribute real estate while retaining<br />

all lifetime rights to the property. The<br />

School of Journalism wishes to honor<br />

those individuals who have provided for<br />

the future of the School.<br />

Paul A. Atkins ’49<br />

Katharine Ann Stephen Campbell ’69<br />

William Robert Campbell III ’69<br />

Smoot Fahlgren<br />

Edward G. Galligan ’57<br />

Julia A. Halstead ’76<br />

Norman S. Julian ’68<br />

Maryanne Reed<br />

Gruine Robinson ’48<br />

James J. Roop ’71<br />

Louise Crumrine Seals ’66<br />

Chaplain Martha G. Smith ’70<br />

William K. Stevens ’57, ’58<br />

Susan Tewalt ’73, ’77<br />

Tim Tewalt ’73<br />

Nancy Watson<br />

How Do I Give?<br />

To explore gift options yourself, the<br />

www.wvuf.org website can open many doors.<br />

The sample language needed to assure that<br />

a gift included in a will yields the result<br />

you want is available there. Click on “Ways<br />

to Give,” then “Planned Giving” and then<br />

“Sample Bequest Language.” You can print<br />

the wording and take it with you when you<br />

meet with your attorney.<br />

To learn more about becoming a member<br />

of the Irvin Stewart Society or for more<br />

information on the types of estate planning<br />

WVU offers, please contact:<br />

Luella Gunter<br />

Director of Development<br />

WVU P.I. Reed School of Journalism<br />

Luella.Gunter@mail.wvu.edu<br />

304.293.3505 x5428<br />

21


<strong>NEW</strong> SHOTT CHAIR SHARES<br />

WORLD<br />

VIEW<br />

BY KIMBERLY BROWN & CYNTHIA MCCLOUD<br />

22<br />

PHOTOGRAPHS BY LOIS RAIMONDO<br />

Lois Raimondo’s journalism – both pictures<br />

and words – has received national and<br />

international recognition.<br />

Though her entrée into the industry did<br />

not follow a traditional path, her work has<br />

appeared in National Geographic, Time,<br />

Life, Newsweek and The New York Times, as<br />

well as publications in Hong Kong, France<br />

and Italy.<br />

Raimondo’s subjects have spanned the globe<br />

and taken her from the small villages of Asia<br />

to the Hamptons of New York. Curiosity has<br />

always been her guide – leading her through<br />

more than 20 years of international study<br />

and travel, reporting and writing, experience<br />

and learning.<br />

Now, as the new Shott Chair of Journalism,<br />

she brings that sensibility to the classroom,<br />

teaching her students to challenge their<br />

perceptions of the world and to find the<br />

common human experience.<br />

Portrait by WVU Photo Services<br />

TOP LEFT TO RIGHT<br />

• Young Tibetan monks in Dharamsala, India, join<br />

students at the Tibetan Children’s Village for play on a<br />

Buddhist Festival Day for which classes – sectarian and<br />

religious – were cancelled.<br />

• An Iraqi bride on her wedding day. The ceremony,<br />

which took place on a sunshine-filled winter day in<br />

Baghdad, was punctuated by multiple rounds of rocket<br />

blasts going off in nearby neighborhoods.<br />

• Vietnamese bodybuilders flex and strut their stuff<br />

before a panel of judges in Hanoi, Vietnam.<br />

BOTTOM LEFT TO RIGHT<br />

• Iraqi schoolchildren race across the schoolyard during<br />

recess at a Baghdad school, which was one of the first<br />

to open after the American bombs struck the city.<br />

• A 16-year-old Northern Alliance fighter, accidentally<br />

shot by his own comrades while retreating from a<br />

Taliban ambush during the Ramadan Offensive, was<br />

taken and left in a hospital in Taloqan, Afghanistan.<br />

• Residents of Southeast Washington, D.C., cool off in<br />

a spray of water after the local fire department made<br />

the decision to open fire hydrants to combat a week of<br />

excessive heat in 2007.<br />

• U.S. military personnel stand watch as hundreds<br />

of Iraqi men, all identified as members of Saddam<br />

Hussein’s Bathist Party, line up outside a U.S. military<br />

base waiting to take part in a U.S-sponsored ceremony<br />

in which the Bathists would disavow their allegiance to<br />

Hussein and pledge loyalty to the new government.


Raimondo always wanted to be a writer but not necessarily a journalist.<br />

She began her journey into storytelling through cultural studies,<br />

earning her bachelor’s degree in English literature and East Asian<br />

studies from Wittenberg <strong>University</strong> in Ohio.<br />

“I wanted to be the best storyteller that I could,” said Raimondo,<br />

“so I went about equipping myself with what I thought were the<br />

necessary ingredients. I wanted to work internationally – was drawn to<br />

Asia – so I focused on East Asian languages,<br />

literature and culture.” Raimondo intensified<br />

the learning process by spending summers<br />

at Middlebury College’s Chinese summer<br />

language institute.<br />

After graduating from Wittenberg,<br />

Raimondo enrolled as an East-<strong>West</strong> Fellow<br />

in the comparative literature program at<br />

Indiana <strong>University</strong>. She continued her<br />

Chinese and Japanese studies, while also<br />

delving into Indiana <strong>University</strong>’s literary<br />

theory and creative writing programs.<br />

In the second year of her program, Raimondo moved to Jinan,<br />

Shandong Province, China, to study folklore at Shandong <strong>University</strong>.<br />

As part of that study, she conducted folklore research in the city and<br />

surrounding villages. It was during this time that Raimondo took her<br />

first formal foray into journalism, working as a translator and sound<br />

technician for “CBS News” in Beijing, China.<br />

“I wanted to be the best<br />

storyteller that I could, so I<br />

went about equipping myself<br />

with what I thought were the<br />

necessary ingredients.”<br />

—Lois Raimondo<br />

Working on the streets of China inspired Raimondo to pursue the<br />

path, and she returned to school the following year to begin work on a<br />

second master’s degree, enrolling this time at the <strong>University</strong> of Missouri<br />

School of Journalism to study news editorial and photojournalism.<br />

Even as a student, Raimondo was an exceptionally talented journalist.<br />

While interning on New York Newsday’s investigative team,<br />

Raimondo worked on an investigative series about corruption in a New<br />

York City public housing project. In 1989,<br />

the series was named a Pulitzer Prize finalist.<br />

But her experience with the renowned<br />

Missouri Photo Workshop piqued a new<br />

hunger in Raimondo’s insatiable appetite<br />

for learning and ways of seeing.<br />

“I was a writer for the longest time and<br />

shifted to photography rather late in my<br />

career when I saw some pictures at Missouri<br />

that just blew away all the words that I<br />

had,” said Raimondo. “I thought, ‘That’s a<br />

language I don’t speak. I need to know it.’”<br />

By the early 1990s, Raimondo was spending one week every<br />

fall teaching at the Missouri Photo Workshop and working abroad to<br />

uncover intimate stories of distant people and cultures.<br />

In 1991, she was awarded the O.O. McIntyre Writers Grant<br />

administered through the <strong>University</strong> of Missouri to produce text<br />

and photos for the “Tibetan Cultural Survival Project.” Raimondo<br />

23


worked with Tibetan refugees throughout India,<br />

photographed the Dalai Lama and wrote about<br />

the Tibetan struggle against Chinese rule.<br />

From her experience, Raimondo produced<br />

a book, The Little Lama of Tibet (Scholastic,<br />

1994), which documents the training of the<br />

six-year-old Tibetan Buddhist high lama<br />

Ling Rinpoche.<br />

From 1994-1997, Raimondo worked as<br />

chief photographer of The Associated Press<br />

Bureau in Hanoi, Vietnam. She covered major news and cultural events,<br />

producing photo essays about migrant workers, rural development and<br />

Vietnamese youth culture.<br />

By 1999, Raimondo had returned to the U.S. and was hired as<br />

a full-time staff photographer for The Washington Post where she<br />

covered both domestic and international stories.<br />

On assignment as a photojournalist for The Post, Raimondo was<br />

among hundreds of foreign journalists who converged on the Northern<br />

Alliance headquarters in northern Afghanistan anticipating U.S. action<br />

just weeks after the Sept.11, 2001, attacks on the New York City World<br />

Trade Center.<br />

Her work from the front lines of the war in Afghanistan was<br />

featured in both The Post and National Geographic and earned her<br />

the Edward Weintal Prize for Diplomatic and Foreign Reporting.<br />

An Alicia Patterson Journalism Fellowship in 2005 led Raimondo<br />

to Pakistan to report on the rise of Islamic fundamentalism in the<br />

Southeast Asian country.<br />

To become fully immersed in a study of honor killing, Raimondo<br />

locked herself in a Pakistani government shelter with women who had sought<br />

refuge from attacks and potential killing committed in the name of “honor.”<br />

After 10 years with The Washington Post, Raimondo decided to<br />

embark on a new journey. In fall 2009, she joined the SOJ faculty as<br />

“Having that cultural<br />

understanding of who people<br />

are goes hand-in-hand with<br />

being a journalist.”<br />

—Lois Raimondo<br />

the Shott Chair of Journalism.<br />

R a i m o n d o i s n o t<br />

only teaching hands-on<br />

photography skills but also<br />

educating students to be<br />

adaptable, observant and open<br />

to new experiences.<br />

“I think one of the<br />

best ways to learn quickly,<br />

especially in journalism, is to<br />

have a comparative learning<br />

experience,” she said. “You<br />

learn quickly studying in a<br />

place that is foreign.”<br />

In addition to teaching<br />

introductory and advanced<br />

visual journalism courses,<br />

Raimondo is leading efforts to<br />

develop an exchange program<br />

in China.<br />

But, she says, “foreign”<br />

doesn’t always mean another<br />

country – just an environment<br />

that is unfamiliar.<br />

“If you just keep looking<br />

at what’s familiar to you, you<br />

never realize how familiar<br />

that view is,” said Raimondo.<br />

“If you are surrounded by people whose<br />

thoughts, perspectives and ways of living<br />

are very different from what you know, you<br />

realize your own experience is just one piece<br />

of the world puzzle.”<br />

And in addition to seeing the<br />

differences, students begin to identify<br />

experiences that are the same.<br />

“You’re surprised by how much<br />

commonality there is,” said Raimondo. “It’s<br />

when you find that commonality with the things that are very different<br />

from you that you can begin to build bridges of understanding.”<br />

“Having that cultural understanding of who people are goes<br />

hand-in-hand with being a journalist.”<br />

His Holiness Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet, speaks to a crowd gathered to hear his message at a cultural center in Washington, D.C.<br />

24<br />

About the Shott Chair of Journalism<br />

The Shott Chair of Journalism was created by an endowment<br />

from the Hugh I. Shott Jr. Foundation in honor of the Shott family for<br />

its more than 100-year history of leadership in <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong>’s news<br />

media. The Chair is a faculty position in journalism – print, broadcast<br />

or new media – designed to enhance the quality of journalism education<br />

in the state.<br />

More on the Web<br />

Watch Raimondo’s presentation at the fall 2009 Shott Chair reception<br />

http://journalism.wvu.edu/people/lois_raimondo/webcast<br />

The Long Road Home: A story of war and revelation in<br />

Afghanistan, by Lois Raimondo<br />

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0206/feature4/


Personal advertising<br />

takes on a whole<br />

new meaning<br />

BY CANDACE NELSON<br />

Robby Chan always knew he wanted to be an<br />

actor, but the December 2009 graduate has taken<br />

an unusual route to follow his dream.<br />

Chan started on a traditional path. In<br />

elementary school in Martinsburg, W.Va., he<br />

participated in more than 10 church plays. In high<br />

school, Chan had a role in “The Music Man” at<br />

a local music theater. During his senior year, he<br />

was scouted in Philadelphia for modeling and<br />

acting. Then, he traveled to Washington, D.C.,<br />

to appear in a commercial for Under Armour<br />

sports apparel.<br />

After high school, Chan considered pursuing<br />

acting full-time. However, he changed course<br />

when he was offered a <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> PROMISE<br />

scholarship for college. Chan decided to attend<br />

WVU and delay his acting career. But instead<br />

of majoring in theater, he chose to major in<br />

advertising at the School of Journalism.<br />

The advertising degree, Chan thought,<br />

would be versatile enough to make him<br />

marketable on multiple levels.<br />

“I chose advertising because I wanted<br />

something that would aid me in working in the<br />

entertainment industry,” said Chan. “I want to<br />

have that creative edge. If I’m not going to be<br />

in front of the camera, I want to be behind it.”<br />

His advertising courses have given him a<br />

competitive edge. Rather than just pitching a<br />

client’s product, Chan has learned to pitch himself.<br />

“I have to say that after taking my advertising<br />

classes, I think it’s helped me market myself a little<br />

better,” said Chan. “I have an idea of what it’s like<br />

on both sides of the table. I learned client needs<br />

and expectations. Advertising has given me the<br />

skills to do something that I want to do.”<br />

While maintaining a full-time course load,<br />

Chan continued to pursue his childhood dream.<br />

During the summer breaks, he traveled around<br />

the country looking for acting opportunities.<br />

Chan attended casting calls, scouting<br />

searches and acting gigs in Philadelphia,<br />

Los Angeles, Orlando and New York.<br />

He landed spots on ABC’s “Greek,”<br />

“Bones,” “Lincoln Heights” and “Make<br />

It or Break It” during the summer of<br />

2009. He also played small roles in<br />

FOX’s “Dollhouse” and NBC’s “Heroes.”<br />

Chan says that developing<br />

campaign pitches in Assistant Professor<br />

Sang Lee’s advertising capstone course<br />

helped him learn how to market himself.<br />

“When you’re giving a campaign<br />

pitch for your boss or a potential client,<br />

you have to be really confident and sell<br />

that idea,” said Chan. “You have to<br />

make them believe that what you have is going<br />

to work. I gained confidence from that and am<br />

better able to sell, not my product, but myself,”<br />

Chan said.<br />

Lee says Chan’s talent and confidence will<br />

take him far.<br />

“Robby was certainly one of the best<br />

presenters,” said Lee. “He was not shy or afraid of<br />

“Go after what you love. Just go out and<br />

give it a shot because you never know.”<br />

—Robby Chan<br />

speaking in front of people at all. It was not only<br />

because he had natural talent in public speaking<br />

but also because he was always well prepared and<br />

knew what he was talking about.”<br />

At WVU, Chan not only learned skills that<br />

will help in his acting career, but he also learned<br />

to believe in his own ability to succeed.<br />

“One of the things that has resonated with<br />

me is ‘don’t aim your sights too low because if you<br />

have a passion for doing something, you can find<br />

a way of doing it,’” said Chan. “Go after what<br />

you love. Just go out and give it a shot because<br />

you never know.”<br />

Chan is currently living in Los Angeles and<br />

pursuing his acting career.<br />

25


2 0 1 0<br />

J O U R N A L I S M W E E K _<br />

Where the Jobs Are in the Changing Media Industry<br />

Millennial journalists may be more<br />

comfortable with digital technology<br />

and social media, but veterans of<br />

the craft are giving them insight on<br />

how to utilize those skills to best<br />

position themselves in the changing<br />

media marketplace.<br />

In March, the School of Journalism invited national and regional journalists<br />

and strategic communicators to campus to help determine “Where the<br />

Jobs Are in the Changing Media Industry.”<br />

During Journalism Week 2010, media professionals like National<br />

Geographic freelance photojournalist Melissa Farlow and POLITICO<br />

editor-in-chief John Harris engaged students in conversation about current<br />

and future trends in the changing media industry.<br />

In addition to attending the various presentations, students tweeted,<br />

blogged and followed the conversation via live webcasts. Having students<br />

engaged in dialogue about the events further reinforced the importance<br />

of developing these skills as part of their professional portfolios. As the<br />

dialogue flowed, themes emerged.<br />

Thriving in an entrepreneurial age<br />

Since 2007, POLITICO, a niche publication specializing in national<br />

politics and the workings of the federal government, has become one of the<br />

country’s most trafficked news sites. Co-founder and editor-in-chief John<br />

Harris and his colleagues have drawn widespread attention for their efforts<br />

to create a new business model for newspapers in an era of radical change.<br />

According to Harris, the industry is moving away from traditional<br />

journalism to become more profitable in today’s market.<br />

“In an institutional age, a small number of news organizations had<br />

enormous power to set the agenda,” said Harris. “No one sets the filter<br />

for news anymore. In this new age of the Internet, everybody is his or<br />

her own editor.”<br />

Harris said that to be successful today, journalists have to be their<br />

own brand, to create relationships with readers and to add distinctive<br />

value to their work.<br />

“It’s not easy to succeed in the entrepreneurial age,” said Harris.<br />

“It takes a lot of ambition and a purposeful approach to your career.<br />

But, for those who are thriving, the entrepreneurial age is better than the<br />

institutional age. People can have more impact. They can have more<br />

fun as journalists – at a younger age. And, tell this to your parents when<br />

they ask, they can make more money.”<br />

26<br />

Finding your niche<br />

Many speakers emphasized that finding a niche is crucial to succeeding<br />

in today’s dynamic media industry. Just as John Harris found his niche<br />

in political journalism, Larry Powell, VP Account Director at Sanders\<br />

Wingo Advertising, found his career path in multicultural messaging.<br />

While some ad agencies try to appeal to the general market culture with<br />

their campaigns, Powell’s agency caters to urban, African American and<br />

Hispanic markets.<br />

“Advertising is very segmented, and it’s going to become more and<br />

more segmented,” said Powell. “The reason that’s important, especially<br />

these days, is because there are so many mediums that you want to communicate<br />

efficient messages to different audiences.”<br />

Powell said technology has created a global marketplace and that<br />

employers are looking for employees who can speak multiple languages<br />

“Advertising is very<br />

segmented, and it’s<br />

going to become<br />

more and more<br />

segmented.”<br />

—Larry Powell<br />

and who have insight on customs, practices and social behaviors in other<br />

cultures. Powell suggested that students use the Internet and social media<br />

to market those skills.<br />

“It’s not good these days, particularly if you’ve worked for awhile, if<br />

somebody Googles you and can’t find anything about you. That’s a red<br />

flag for employers,” said Powell. “So if you do a speaking engagement<br />

or if you volunteer, it’s good to somehow get those things listed online.”<br />

Creating your own opportunities<br />

BY CHRISTA VINCENT<br />

WVU Photo Services<br />

Melissa Farlow found her niche as a documentary freelance photographer.<br />

For the past 19 years she has “made pictures,” as she prefers to<br />

say, for National Geographic magazine. While some of her colleagues<br />

were off taking photographs in exotic locations, Farlow created her own<br />

opportunities closer to home – taking domestic assignments, such as


“Emerging media and<br />

social media have made<br />

everybody audience,<br />

source, writer, editor and<br />

aggregator.”—Chris Martin<br />

WVU Photo Services<br />

mountaintop removal mining in <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong><br />

and the wild mustangs of the American <strong>West</strong>.<br />

“A lot of the assignments that I’ve been given<br />

or proposed [to editors] have taken me to very<br />

distant lands like <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong>, Ohio, New Jersey,<br />

North Dakota and places like that,” Farlow joked.<br />

“The truth is, my subjects are so commonplace<br />

that the challenge is to make the ordinary seem<br />

interesting to people.”<br />

But students don’t have to be seasoned<br />

professionals to create their own opportunities.<br />

When Lindsey Helfer, a 2009 SOJ alumna and<br />

current IMC student, couldn’t find an internship<br />

in her hometown of Wheeling, W.Va., she created<br />

her own.<br />

A member of the Journalism Week student<br />

and alumni panel, “Getting Started: Making the<br />

Most of Your Internship and First Job,” Helfer<br />

told students she approached the owners of a<br />

local ice cream chain to inquire about a possible<br />

summer advertising internship. Not only did she<br />

get the job, but the owners asked her for advice.<br />

“This was a brand new franchise. They had<br />

never done advertising before,” said Helfer. “In<br />

fact, they didn’t know anything about advertising<br />

– they didn’t even have a budget. So, when I<br />

showed up asking for a job, they were more than<br />

happy to have me help them for the summer.”<br />

Fellow panelist and 2009 SOJ alumna Elaine<br />

McMillion agreed. “You have to convince people<br />

that they need you,” said McMillion.<br />

McMillion capitalized on her summer<br />

internship as a documentary video intern at<br />

washingtonpost.com to land a full-time, paid<br />

internship as a multimedia journalist at the<br />

Charleston Daily Mail in Charleston, W.Va. Mc-<br />

Million, who is also an independent filmmaker,<br />

will attend Emerson College in Boston, Mass.,<br />

this fall to study documentary filmmaking – a<br />

move she would not have considered had it not<br />

been for her experience at washingtonpost.com.<br />

“I’m really glad I took the year off,” said<br />

STUDENT AND ALUMNI PANEL<br />

DISCUSSION<br />

“Getting Started: Making the Most of<br />

Your Internship and First Job”<br />

SUNDAY, MARCH 21, 2010<br />

MELISSA FARLOW<br />

FREELANCE PHOTOJOURNALIST<br />

“Picture This: A Career as a<br />

Freelance Photojournalist”<br />

MONDAY, MARCH 22, 2010<br />

JOHN HARRIS<br />

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF AND CO-FOUNDER OF POLITICO<br />

“POLITICO: Revolutionizing Political<br />

Coverage and Journalism”<br />

TUESDAY, MARCH 23, 2010<br />

*Sponsored by the Ogden Newspapers Seminar Series<br />

LARRY POWELL<br />

VP ACCOUNT DIRECTOR AT SANDERS\WINGO<br />

ADVERTISING<br />

“Multicultural Messaging: Applying<br />

Your Skills in Today’s Diverse Market”<br />

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 24, 2010<br />

SARA GOO<br />

DAY EDITOR FOR THE WASHINGTON POST<br />

“Newsroom 2.0: New Skills for New<br />

Careers”<br />

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 24, 2010<br />

CHRIS MARTIN<br />

VICE PRESIDENT FOR WVU UNIVERSITY RELATIONS<br />

“Public Relations 3.0: It’s About<br />

Relationships . . . With the Public.<br />

Finally. Really.”<br />

THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2010<br />

27


“It’s not easy to succeed in the<br />

entrepreneurial age. It takes a lot of<br />

ambition and a purposeful approach<br />

to your career.”—John Harris<br />

McMillion. “Had I gone to grad school when I graduated last May,<br />

I probably would have gone for print journalism or photojournalism<br />

– which is perfectly fine – but I found a new passion at The<br />

Washington Post.”<br />

Redefining the future<br />

When Sara Goo joined The Washington Post in 2001, her<br />

current position, day editor of the Universal desk, didn’t exist. She<br />

began as a technology reporter, and she knew the Web was changing<br />

the media industry in fundamental ways. She pushed her editor to<br />

try new things like blogging and podcasting. It wasn’t long before<br />

social media and technology created new demands in the newsroom<br />

– and soon, new jobs followed.<br />

“As a journalism student, I never thought I would work for<br />

something called the Universal desk,” said Goo. “But I also never<br />

imagined that we’d be hiring new positions at The Post with new<br />

titles like ‘search engine editor,’ ‘multiplatform editor’ and ‘interactivity<br />

editor.’ I think that is a sign of all the changes that are going<br />

on in this industry.”<br />

WVU’s vice president for <strong>University</strong> Relations Chris Martin<br />

pointed out that, in the modern history of American news gathering,<br />

there has always been a clear divide between journalism and public<br />

relations, between source development and market development<br />

and between focusing a story and targeting a story – but not in the<br />

new era of journalism.<br />

“That divide, both useful and meaningless, is being bridged<br />

every day,” Martin said. “Emerging media and social media have<br />

made everybody audience, source, writer, editor and aggregator.”<br />

Using public relations to illustrate her point, Martin said that<br />

public relations professionals have become storytellers who no longer<br />

solely rely on the media to disseminate their messages. She encouraged<br />

students to stay on the cutting-edge of such changes and to<br />

create the blueprint for the future.<br />

“People have never needed to know so much and share so much,<br />

and they’ve never had so many ways to do it,” said Martin. “You<br />

can’t just sit in class and take notes and have people tell you, ‘This<br />

is how journalism works and this is how PR works’ . . . You have to<br />

reinvent it in here [the SOJ] everyday. You redefine what it means<br />

to tell the story and share the news.”<br />

28<br />

WVU Photo Services<br />

What folks are<br />

saying about<br />

Journalism Week<br />

Mareedy<br />

@mareedy Key Jweek takeaways: find your niche,<br />

be your own brand, know thy audience and help<br />

redefine the future #jweek 2:13 PM MAR 25TH VIA<br />

TWEETDECK IN REPLY TO MAREEDY<br />

Brittanylnelson<br />

Define a niche and dominate it - JH #jweek<br />

#politico 4:25 PM MAR 23RD VIA TXT<br />

ChipFontanazza<br />

Harris says optimism is a journalistic value you<br />

needed to have with the way things are today.<br />

Noted! #jweek 4:28 PM MAR 23RD VIA WEB<br />

CambriaStubelt<br />

“Optimism is a core journalistic value.”-John<br />

Harris. I agree, it’s completely necessary! #jweek<br />

3:51 PM MAR 23RD VIA TXT<br />

Brittanylnelson<br />

Politico - proudly a niche site that strictly covers<br />

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#politico 4:16 PM MAR 23RD VIA TXT<br />

P4d3n<br />

Value of stories isn’t derived from the publication<br />

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MAR 23RD VIA TXT<br />

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#jweek Farlow: With any story, trust is vital. 4:13<br />

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More on the Web<br />

Watch the J-Week webcasts and read more tweets<br />

http://journalism.wvu.edu/jweek2010


Network journalists offer<br />

advice to SOJ students<br />

BY CHRISTA VINCENT<br />

CBS’s Byron Pitts says set<br />

goals and persevere<br />

Assistant Professor Tori Arthur’s television news<br />

students weren’t sure what to expect when they<br />

heard that CBS’ Byron Pitts was visiting their<br />

class. They Googled him and viewed his Twitter<br />

account, and nowhere in cyberspace did it say<br />

“down-to-earth guy.” But that’s exactly what they<br />

encountered when they met Pitts.<br />

The chief national correspondent for<br />

“CBS Evening News with Katie Couric” and<br />

a contributing correspondent to “60 Minutes”<br />

talked to SOJ students in Martin Hall in early<br />

February. Pitts was on campus as part of WVU’s<br />

David C. Hardesty, Jr. Festival of Ideas. The<br />

public event, “Step Out on Nothing,” was<br />

Lingbing Hang<br />

co-sponsored by the School of Journalism’s<br />

Gruine Robinson Speaker Series and the WVU<br />

Center for Black Culture and Research.<br />

During his class visit prior to the evening<br />

lecture, Pitts inspired students with his life story.<br />

Growing up in a low-income neighborhood<br />

in Baltimore, Pitts faced many obstacles. He<br />

was functionally illiterate until the age of 12<br />

and a chronic stutterer until the age of 20. In<br />

grade school, Pitts was diagnosed as “mentally<br />

retarded” and placed in remedial classes.<br />

Pitts claims it was a combination of his<br />

own persistence, personal goals, family support<br />

and faith that helped him achieve his dream of<br />

becoming a reporter. He encouraged students to<br />

set realistic goals but also to aim high.<br />

“My advice to journalism students and all<br />

students is to dream big but plan small,” said Pitts.<br />

“Every dream has an address. Just like picking a<br />

road to take back to one’s dormitory, choosing a<br />

career path takes the same certainty. You can’t get<br />

to where you want to go unless you know where<br />

you’re trying to get to.”<br />

Pitts said that, as a young man, his goal was<br />

to be on “60 Minutes” by the time he was 45. He<br />

joked with students that he had “failed” because<br />

he missed that deadline by two years.<br />

In addition to sharing his personal anecdotes,<br />

Pitts gave students career advice, critiqued their<br />

class assignments and offered himself as a resource.<br />

“I love the enthusiasm I see in the eyes<br />

of young journalism students,” said Pitts.<br />

“Our world is a dangerous place, and it’s fast<br />

WVU Photo Services<br />

approaching time for the next generation of<br />

journalists to go out and explain it to the rest of<br />

us. The students I met at WVU seemed willing<br />

and just about ready to do that.”<br />

CNN’s Soledad O’Brien<br />

shares practical advice<br />

CNN anchor and special correspondent Soledad<br />

O’Brien says to be a top journalist, you have to<br />

continuously work at it.<br />

In March, O’Brien spoke with a group of<br />

SOJ students before her public presentation as<br />

part of WVU’s David C. Hardesty, Jr. Festival<br />

of Ideas.<br />

Broadcast news junior Amina McWilliams<br />

introduced O’Brien at the public event, “Diversity:<br />

On TV, Behind the Scenes and in Our Lives,”<br />

and attended the student session. Eager to find<br />

WVU Photo Services<br />

Ashton Pellom introduces Byron Pitts at the WVU<br />

Festival of Ideas event.<br />

out what it takes to break into network news,<br />

McWilliams asked O’Brien for advice.<br />

“There is no substitute for being sharp and<br />

hard-working,” O’Brien said. “When I was at<br />

MSNBC, there was a plane crash, and I was<br />

anchoring solo. I told the intern, ‘Every time<br />

there is an update on the wire, highlight the<br />

change.’ It wasn’t brain surgery, but she did a<br />

brilliant job. At the end of the 11 hours that I<br />

anchored, we hired her on the spot.”<br />

O’Brien shared stories from the field and<br />

talked to students about the reality of covering<br />

disasters, such as Hurricane Katrina and the<br />

recent earthquake in Chile.<br />

CBS’ Byron Pitts talks with a television news class in Martin Hall in February 2010. CNN’s Soledad O’Brien visits with SOJ students during a small-group session in March 2010.<br />

But what students seemed to desire most<br />

was O’Brien’s practical advice, such as how to<br />

conduct a good interview.<br />

“It’s a learnable skill . . . I wasn’t naturally<br />

good at it,” O’Brien confessed. “It’s about<br />

watching it [the interview] with someone you<br />

trust and seeing where you got off track. It’s easy<br />

to say someone is a bad interview. I think when<br />

you become a good interviewer, you realize that<br />

everybody has a story.”<br />

More on the Web<br />

Watch the Festival of Ideas webcasts<br />

http://festivalofideas.wvu.edu/pitts<br />

http://festivalofideas.wvu.edu/soledad_obrien<br />

11 29


IMC students use innovative tactics<br />

to attract Millennial generation<br />

Understanding your audience: It’s one of the first<br />

lessons students learn in the School of Journalism’s<br />

Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC)<br />

master’s degree program. It’s also the foundation<br />

of any integrated campaign, as the American Red<br />

Cross knows all too well.<br />

That’s why the Red Cross asked WVU’s<br />

IMC students to spend their final capstone course<br />

researching and developing campaigns to encourage<br />

blood donation among 18 to 24 year olds. Each<br />

IMC student was given a fictional budget of $20<br />

million to develop an integrated campaign using<br />

unique tactics to reach their audience. As part of<br />

their efforts, they were asked to identify any barriers<br />

to communicating and to create messages that<br />

resonated with this generation.<br />

According to Peggy Dyer, chief marketing<br />

officer of the Red Cross, the “Millennial” generation<br />

is an important audience. And, although these<br />

young people are sometimes active with the Red<br />

Cross in high school, their volunteerism tends to<br />

drop off during college years. Understanding the<br />

motivations of this audience gives the Red Cross<br />

important insights into how they might reengage<br />

this group.<br />

“This market is an important one,” Dyer said.<br />

“The marketing research the IMC students gave<br />

us is terrific to inform us about what’s important<br />

with this group. They used new mediums and were<br />

30<br />

16<br />

Campaign poster and iPhone app designs by IMC student Jamie Pachomski.<br />

Submitted artwork<br />

thinking in a holistic way.”<br />

For example, recent IMC graduate Kevin<br />

Beatty conducted focus groups and found that many<br />

18 to 24 year olds are anxious to volunteer but don’t<br />

consider blood donation a form of volunteerism.<br />

“This presented an opportunity for the<br />

American Red Cross to harness the energy of its<br />

target and build a message that would create an<br />

emotional connection between volunteering and<br />

blood donation,” Beatty said.<br />

Beatty’s campaign, titled “America Needs My<br />

Type,” proposed using websites, online advertising,<br />

targeted ads on Facebook and a partnership with<br />

FOX’s “American Idol” to deliver his message. In<br />

addition, he suggested distributing vehicle magnets,<br />

putting posters in fitness centers and creating a<br />

30-second public service announcement to be<br />

shown on television and in theaters.<br />

Ray Gillette, instructor for the capstone<br />

course and former president of the advertising<br />

agency DDB Chicago, praised the outcomes<br />

and unique tactics his<br />

students developed.<br />

“ T h e s t u d e n t s ’<br />

research produced some<br />

interesting insights into<br />

the young adult target<br />

and their media habits,”<br />

said Gillette. “They used<br />

the information to create<br />

very targeted, innovative<br />

ideas. The students also<br />

developed media plans<br />

that took advantage of<br />

XBOX, Facebook, YouTube, email and blogs to<br />

effectively and efficiently reach the Millennial<br />

generation.”<br />

Recent graduate Jen Wood found that<br />

although Millennials are anxious to give back to<br />

society, they are particularly averse to standing in<br />

line and doing tasks on a prescribed schedule. In<br />

addition, many of them perceive the process of<br />

blood donation as a major time investment.<br />

Wood addressed these factors by integrating<br />

her message into the XBOX Live gaming platform.<br />

Popular among the Millennial audience, XBOX<br />

Live generates 20 million new “friends” each month.<br />

Wood proposed organizing XBOX<br />

BY ANGELA LINDLEY<br />

tournaments in conjunction with blood drives on<br />

college campuses. The lure of the tournaments<br />

would bring students to the event, where they would<br />

donate blood or perform other volunteer tasks while<br />

waiting their turn to play in the tournament.<br />

Dyer said she appreciated the IMC students’<br />

unique outlooks on the target market.<br />

“It was wonderful to get a fresh perspective<br />

on this market and possible tactics,” she said.<br />

“The IMC students’ passion came through in<br />

their campaigns, and their work exceeded our<br />

expectations.”<br />

Chad Mezera, IMC program director, said the<br />

American Red Cross partnership presents a great<br />

opportunity for students to work with a respected,<br />

prominent organization.<br />

“The capstone course is designed to allow<br />

IMC students to create top-quality professional<br />

portfolios,” said Mezera. “Our partnership with<br />

the American Red Cross enabled the IMC program<br />

to offer a unique opportunity for our students to<br />

expand their skills and<br />

gain valuable career<br />

experience, while working<br />

with a high-profile client.”<br />

The students agreed.<br />

“It was amazing to<br />

be able to work for the<br />

American Red Cross as<br />

a client,” said Shalane<br />

Tharp. “The experience<br />

gave me the ability to put<br />

everything I learned in the<br />

IMC program into action<br />

for an excellent cause.”<br />

Wood credits her work for the Red Cross —<br />

along with her entire IMC education — for her<br />

career growth.<br />

“It amazed me that I could learn about a topic<br />

one evening and apply it at work the next day,” she<br />

said. “This program is the epitome of real-world<br />

knowledge and application.”<br />

More on the Web<br />

View student projects online<br />

www.imc.wvu.edu


Former Iraqi doctor learning new<br />

ways to heal his country – with words<br />

SOJ’s Fulbright Scholar prepares for career change<br />

BY CYNTHIA MCCLOUD<br />

Yassin Ismaeel found his bride and his calling<br />

because of the Iraq War.<br />

In fall 2009, Ismaeel, an Iraq native and Fulbright<br />

Scholar at the School of Journalism, enrolled in<br />

the Master of Science in Journalism program.<br />

Ismaeel wants to use his journalism degree<br />

to help create a free press in Iraq and rebuild his<br />

country. It’s a career switch for the medical doctor<br />

that grew out of his war-time experiences.<br />

In 1993, Ismaeel graduated from medical<br />

school in Iraq and went to work for the Iraqi<br />

National Olympic Committee. But he found he<br />

spent less time practicing sports medicine and more<br />

time translating for the athletes.<br />

He studied English from 1996-2000 and<br />

began teaching English part-time in private schools<br />

in Baghdad to supplement his income. Even as a<br />

physician, his government job – under Iraqi leader<br />

Saddam Hussein’s son Uday – paid a low salary<br />

and was like part-time work.<br />

Then, in 2003, the United States invaded<br />

Iraq, launching the second Gulf War. The events<br />

that followed ultimately changed Ismaeel’s destiny<br />

– both professionally and personally.<br />

His future wife, Saba, married to another<br />

man and mother to then-3-year-old Daniah, was<br />

in her kitchen when an explosion ignited her<br />

gas stove, severely burning her face and hands.<br />

Saba’s husband later divorced her because of<br />

her disfigurement.<br />

Saba sought a translator to help her write<br />

a letter to Oprah Winfrey about her experience,<br />

which is how she met Ismaeel. The story he helped<br />

to translate for Saba never made it to American<br />

television, but it brought the couple closer together.<br />

They married in 2007 and a daughter, Dimah,<br />

was born in early 2009. Saba is pregnant again<br />

and due in August.<br />

The war also impacted Ismaeel’s career when<br />

he was hired as a translator for Japanese media<br />

correspondents covering the occupation. As the<br />

war escalated in late 2004 and 2005, the reporters<br />

began asking him to do more.<br />

“It became risky for foreigners to move freely<br />

in Iraq,” Ismaeel said. “They began to send us to<br />

write articles about certain events because we were<br />

Iraqi and could move freely.”<br />

Ismaeel’s reporting helped the journalists<br />

craft news stories. More profoundly, it helped<br />

Ismaeel understand what was going on<br />

in his own war-torn country. He saw<br />

the power of information and mass<br />

communication.<br />

“This job as a translator and<br />

sometimes writer gave me contact with<br />

events, and the picture became clear for<br />

me what the situation in Iraq was socially<br />

and culturally,” he said. “The work in<br />

journalism made me able to move around<br />

[the country] and know the stories.”<br />

The work also inspired him to train<br />

as a journalist so he could help to inform<br />

his people through the media.<br />

“ M a s s c o m m u n i c a t i o n i s<br />

communication for the masses,” said<br />

Ismaeel. “This is important because<br />

someone can do something even for a<br />

simple problem. You can write a good<br />

article to get people information.”<br />

After Ismaeel applied for studyabroad<br />

opportunities for four years, the<br />

U.S. State Department finally awarded<br />

him a Fulbright Scholarship to study<br />

journalism at WVU.<br />

“Over the years, we’ve had many international<br />

students in the MSJ program,” said Dr. Steve<br />

Urbanski, the School’s director of graduate studies.<br />

“But Yassin has added an extra dimension because<br />

About the Fulbright Program<br />

Established in 1946 under legislation<br />

introduced by then-Senator J. William<br />

Fulbright of Arkansas, the Fulbright<br />

Program is designed to “increase mutual<br />

understanding between the people of the<br />

United States and the people of other<br />

countries.”<br />

Since its inception, nearly 300,000<br />

“Fulbrighters” have participated in the<br />

program to study, teach, conduct research,<br />

exchange ideas and find solutions to<br />

shared international concerns.<br />

Sponsored by the U.S. Department of<br />

State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural<br />

Affairs, the program currently operates in<br />

155 countries worldwide.<br />

Learn more about the Fulbright Program<br />

at http://fulbright.state.gov/.<br />

WVU News and Information Services<br />

Iraq native and Fulbright Scholar Yassin Ismaael is working<br />

toward his master’s degree in journalism.<br />

his home country of Iraq has been in the news for<br />

so many years. One of the vital components of the<br />

educational process is creating an environment<br />

where students can learn about cultures other than<br />

their own and discuss unseen forces, such as power,<br />

religion and politics. Yassin has helped to create<br />

this positive learning environment.”<br />

During his first year at WVU, Ismaeel studied<br />

U.S. history and political science in addition to<br />

his journalism courses. Once grounded in the<br />

fundamentals of journalism, he plans to move on<br />

to more advanced classes. Though he anticipates<br />

he will be here for at least three years, Ismaeel is<br />

already thinking of his thesis topic. He’s interested<br />

in learning about how the news media covers<br />

corruption.<br />

When he returns to Iraq, Ismaeel wants to<br />

work with the Integrity Commission media offices<br />

to fight corruption using investigative journalism.<br />

“Media can be very supportive to the<br />

government,” he said. “This is my aim.”<br />

Ultimately, Ismaeel hopes the work he does –<br />

ensuring the public is receiving consistent, accurate<br />

information – will help reunite his country.<br />

23 31


DECEMBER<br />

CONVOCATION<br />

1991 PR alumna connects with current graduates<br />

Top graduating senior Robert Chan (left) and top broadcast news graduate Kasey Hott<br />

(right) congratulate one another on their achievements and convocation awards.<br />

The launch to Jennifer (Rupinsky) Manton’s<br />

successful marketing communications career<br />

wasn’t exactly as she envisioned.<br />

Similar to the December 2009 graduating<br />

class, Manton faced a tough economy and<br />

challenging job market when she graduated<br />

from the School of Journalism’s public relations<br />

program in 1991.<br />

Now the chief marketing officer at the<br />

national law firm Loeb & Loeb and president<br />

of the Legal Marketing Association, Manton<br />

returned to her alma mater to share her story and<br />

offer words of encouragement at the School’s<br />

December 2009 Convocation.<br />

“There weren’t any entry-level jobs for PR<br />

people in Pittsburgh. Graduate school wasn’t<br />

an option for me financially<br />

and neither was taking any old<br />

job,” said Manton. “So settling<br />

back into my mom’s house and<br />

being faced with student loans,<br />

I turned to temping.”<br />

Shortly after graduating,<br />

Manton began temping at<br />

a small accounting firm in<br />

downtown Pittsburgh, Pa.,<br />

which eventually led to a fulltime<br />

position.<br />

Manton quickly moved<br />

on to become a marketing<br />

coordinator at a large regional<br />

accounting firm in Pittsburgh,<br />

32<br />

TOP GRADUATES<br />

Top Graduating Senior<br />

Robert Kane Chan<br />

Advertising<br />

Robert Kane Chan<br />

Broadcast News<br />

Kasey Jaye Hott<br />

News-Editorial<br />

Lindsay Caitlin Anderson<br />

Public Relations<br />

Brittany June Duperre<br />

WVU Photo Services<br />

BY CHRISTA VINCENT<br />

but a shake-up in management would set her on<br />

a different journey. Manton took a job as the first<br />

marketing manager at a law firm across town.<br />

Soon, she recognized the value of a marketing<br />

career in the legal industry.<br />

“I realized I was on to something here,”<br />

said Manton. “This was more than just a job.<br />

The more I read, networked and got involved<br />

with the Legal Marketing Association, the more<br />

I realized I was developing a career path.”<br />

Manton has since made her mark at two<br />

different law firms in New York City. Today,<br />

17 years after leaving WVU, Manton says<br />

she’s exactly where she dreamed she would<br />

be – living in Manhattan and enjoying her<br />

professional success.<br />

As chief marketing<br />

officer, she manages all<br />

Jennifer (Rupinsky) Manton (BSJ, 1991) delivers the keynote address at the School’s<br />

December 2009 Convocation ceremony.<br />

aspects of Loeb & Loeb’s<br />

branding and marketing<br />

strategy, including media<br />

relations, advertising and<br />

online marketing efforts, as<br />

well as internal and external<br />

communications. Manton<br />

also oversees the Legal<br />

Marketing Association’s efforts<br />

to serve as a collective voice<br />

for the professional development organization’s<br />

more than 3,000 members.<br />

December graduates found Manton’s career<br />

achievements and her message encouraging.<br />

“It is comforting to hear about how<br />

successful she’s become, despite the economic<br />

environment that she went into,” said Robert<br />

Chan, advertising major and the School’s top<br />

graduating senior for December 2009. “We<br />

are faced with the same situation, so it’s an<br />

inspiration to see that we can turn that negative<br />

into a positive.”<br />

In her speech, Manton talked about her<br />

“life conductors” – people who mentored her<br />

and guided her throughout her life and career.<br />

She ended her remarks with a touching thank<br />

you to her most prized conductor – her mother,<br />

who died of cancer in 2008.<br />

Manton encouraged students to find their<br />

own conductors and to embrace life’s challenges.<br />

“Believe in yourself, have confidence, find<br />

your champion and surround yourself with those<br />

who support and care for you,” she said. “Pay<br />

your dues, have courage and take risks. Have<br />

integrity, have a sense of humor and roll with<br />

change – it is a constant. Get connected . . .<br />

and get involved.”<br />

More on the Web<br />

Watch the webcast of the ceremony and Manton’s address<br />

http://journalism.wvu.edu/events/december_convocation_2009<br />

WVU Photo Services


MAY<br />

COMMENCEMENT<br />

Harrison challenges graduates to identify and embrace their “punctuation points”<br />

WVU Photo Services<br />

Top graduating senior Jonathan Vickers receives a<br />

Mountaineer statue as his award, as well as a plaque<br />

for being named the top news-editorial graduate of the<br />

May 2010 class.<br />

Sometimes it’s the advice that people don’t want<br />

to hear that inspires them to greatness.<br />

WVU alumnus Thomas L. Harrison told<br />

School of Journalism graduates that he was<br />

“emotionally stunned” in the early 1970s when<br />

his graduate advisor said he’d be better suited for<br />

the business world than research and academia.<br />

At the time, Harrison was working toward his<br />

Ph.D. in cell biology.<br />

Harrison, who delivered the keynote<br />

address at the School of Journalism’s 2010 May<br />

Commencement ceremony on Sunday, May 16,<br />

told students that this revelation “punctuated”<br />

his life and allowed him to capitalize on new<br />

opportunities.<br />

Harrison is now the chairman and chief<br />

executive officer of Diversified Agency Services<br />

(DAS), the world’s largest group of marketing<br />

services companies. A division of the Omnicom<br />

Group, DAS has more than 5,000 worldwide<br />

clients and annual revenues of almost $5 billion.<br />

More on the Web<br />

Watch the webcast of the ceremony and Harrison’s address<br />

http://journalism.wvu.edu/events/may_commencement_2010/<br />

Thomas L. Harrison delivers the keynote address at the School’s May 2010<br />

Commencement ceremony at the WVU Creative Arts Center.<br />

“I’m certainly not the only person who can<br />

attest to the life-changing powers of ‘punctuation<br />

points,’” Harrison said.<br />

He shared stories of people like Debbie<br />

Fields, who launched the dessert empire Mrs.<br />

Fields, and Steve Jobs, the original founder of<br />

Apple – men and women who turned humiliation<br />

and disappointment into success.<br />

“Why do I share these stories?” asked<br />

Harrison. “Because I want each of you to be<br />

open to the probability that a ‘punctuation point’<br />

or ‘punctuation person’ may present to you at any<br />

time . . . When you are confronted with one of<br />

your ‘punctuation points,’ look at it as potentially<br />

a positive sign – one that you open your eyes to,<br />

listen to, embrace, wrestle with and accept as a<br />

career-leading beacon or reject<br />

as genuinely not for you.”<br />

T h e S c h o o l ’ s t o p<br />

graduate, Jonathan Vickers,<br />

said Harrison’s words were<br />

“amazingly relevant to him”<br />

during this time of transition.<br />

“I had an opportunity<br />

that I recently took advantage<br />

of,” said Vickers. “I went to a<br />

photo workshop in Colorado.<br />

It was a little pricey, and I<br />

TOP GRADUATES<br />

Top Graduating Senior<br />

Jonathan Andrew Vickers<br />

Advertising<br />

Ashlynd Marie Bright<br />

Broadcast News<br />

Gabrielle Elizabeth Ash<br />

News-Editorial<br />

Jonathan Andrew Vickers<br />

Public Relations<br />

Kristen Alexandria Wishon<br />

WVU Photo Services<br />

BY CHRISTA VINCENT<br />

wasn’t sure if I could do it or not. But I went out<br />

there and made connections and really found a<br />

[career] focus. That was a big turning point in<br />

my journalism career and shaped who I am now.”<br />

Vickers turned the opportunity into a postgraduate<br />

internship with Rock and Ice magazine<br />

in Carbondale, Colo.<br />

Building on the importance of life-changing<br />

moments, Harrison urged students to take<br />

advantage of the change that is happening in<br />

the media industry.<br />

“Technology and innovation are changing<br />

the discipline of journalism,” said Harrison.<br />

“Not its foundation of fair, unbiased reporting<br />

of information and dialogue, but by giving us<br />

new avenues for its expression . . . You have a<br />

great opportunity to create<br />

your mark on your industry<br />

– to differentiate yourself<br />

by expressing yourself and<br />

altering older paradigms.”<br />

Harrison concluded his<br />

message by asking students<br />

to envision their role in a<br />

global conversation – asking<br />

them to make things happen,<br />

not to watch things happen<br />

or to “wonder what has<br />

happened.”<br />

33


ABOUT OUR DONORS<br />

SOJ Giving Societies<br />

In recognition of the growing importance<br />

of private giving, the School of Journalism<br />

honors its friends and supporters through a<br />

tiered system of giving levels. The School<br />

will induct new members into the giving<br />

societies each fall. Below are the current<br />

society members.<br />

MARTIN HALL SOCIETY ($250,000 +)<br />

• The Hugh I. Shott Jr. Foundation<br />

• The Nutting Foundation<br />

• Scott Widmeyer and Widmeyer Communications<br />

• Thomas L. Harrison, LH.D.<br />

FRIENDS OF MARTIN HALL ($100,000 - $249,999)<br />

• Mylan Pharmaceuticals, Inc.<br />

• John C. and Bonnie Shott<br />

• Ogden Newspapers, Inc.<br />

• Jim and Marsha Blair<br />

• Douglas and Ruth Ann Widmeyer<br />

• The Dominion Post<br />

• Catharine P. Clark<br />

P.I. REED CIRCLE OF FRIENDS ($25,000 - $99,999)<br />

• Gilbert and Margaret Love<br />

• Elizabeth and Susan Chilton<br />

• George Gianodis<br />

• Cary Foundation, Inc.<br />

• Martha E. Shott<br />

• GolinHarris<br />

• Charleston Newspapers, Inc.<br />

• Clinical and Pharm Research, Inc.<br />

• Michael and Janette Heitz<br />

• Susan Elaine Lambert<br />

• Paul A. and Mildred Atkins<br />

• Mary R. Tolbert and William F. Tolbert<br />

• Ryan-McGinn, Inc.<br />

P.I. REED SOCIETY ($10,000 - $24,999)<br />

• Harry J. Bryan<br />

• Gruine Robinson<br />

• Interstate Advertising Managers’ Association<br />

• Albert Bray Cary, Jr.<br />

• Dr. Tom and Jean Clark Family<br />

• George W. Hodel<br />

• Charles Ryan Associates<br />

• Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation<br />

• Christine and Gregory Martin<br />

• Ray Gillette<br />

• John C. Hodel<br />

• Reader’s Digest Foundation<br />

• Elizabeth H. W. Smith<br />

• United Way of the Midlands<br />

• Johnna G. Barto, John Wiley & Sons<br />

• J. Ford Huffman<br />

• Gloria Reed Byrum<br />

• <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> Press Association Foundation<br />

• Williamson Daily News<br />

• William Randolph Hearst Foundation<br />

• David Knox Cummings<br />

• Guy and Pat Stewart<br />

• Pamela D. and R. Karl Yagle<br />

• Charleston Gazette<br />

34<br />

• Linda E. Yost<br />

• Bonnie J. Bolden<br />

• Family and Friends of Matt Hassen<br />

• James A. Byrum, Jr.<br />

• Frances S. Grove<br />

• Elmer Moksay<br />

• J. Kinney Shulte<br />

• Hugh Ike Shott, Jr.<br />

• Roberta Clark Umstott<br />

• William E. Bambrick<br />

• John S. and James L. Knight Foundation<br />

• Joseph H. Kanter Family Foundation<br />

• Wheeling Hospital, Inc.<br />

• James J. Roop<br />

• Louise Crumrine Seals<br />

• WVU School of Journalism Alumni Association<br />

• The Arnold Agency<br />

• The Bell Law Firm, PLLC<br />

• Emery L. Sasser<br />

• Family of John H.S. Martin and Helen H. Martin<br />

• H. Smoot and Judith A. Fahlgren<br />

• Edward Gilbertson Galligan<br />

SOJ Donor Honor Roll<br />

The School of Journalism would like to<br />

thank our donors who have given to the<br />

2009-2010 annual fund. The annual<br />

giving list below represents cash and pledge<br />

payments received before May 31, 2010.<br />

$50,000 OR MORE<br />

• Ford Foundation<br />

• Mr. Scott D. Widmeyer, Mr. and Mrs. Douglas<br />

Widmeyer and Widmeyer Communications<br />

$15,000 – $49,999<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. Jim Blair<br />

• McCormick Foundation<br />

$5,000 – $14,999<br />

• GolinHarris<br />

• The Nutting Foundation<br />

$1,000 – $4,999<br />

• Mr. Paul A. Atkins<br />

• Ms. Rosalie M. Earle<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. C. Michael Fulton<br />

• Ms. Samme L. Gee<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. Raymond G. Gillette, Jr.<br />

• Mrs. Luella T. Gunter<br />

• Mr. Marcus Hassen<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. Ralph S. Izard<br />

• Ms. Jane M. McNeer<br />

• Ms. Maryanne Reed<br />

• Mr. James J. Roop<br />

• Mrs. Louise C. Seals<br />

• United Way of the Midlands<br />

• William Randolph Hearst Foundation<br />

$500 – $999<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. Raymond L. Betzner<br />

• Ms. Bonnie J. Bolden<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. Wendell Cochran<br />

• Mrs. Pamela M. Larrick<br />

• Mrs. J. Janet Shaffron<br />

• Dr. and Mrs. Guy H. Stewart<br />

• Mr. Michael J. Tomasky<br />

• <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> Press Association Foundation<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. R. Karl Yagle<br />

$100 – $499<br />

• Ms. Johnna G. Barto<br />

• Mr. Paul A. Binkowski<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. Walter C. Bird<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. Jerry Bowles<br />

• Col. Thomas J. Boyd<br />

• Mrs. Jacqueline K. Breeden<br />

• Bristol-Myers Squibb Company<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. Edward O. Buckbee<br />

• Ms. Cheri H. Callaghan<br />

• Chubb & Son, Inc.<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. Frank J. Clark, Jr.<br />

• Mr. David F. Cline<br />

• Mr. Giles C. Davidson II<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. Gary L. Davis<br />

• Mr. Bob Dubill<br />

• Ms. Jane E. Duffy<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. Maurice R. Fliess<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. David Foreman<br />

• Ms. Susan E. Fox<br />

• General Dynamics Corporation<br />

• General Electric Company<br />

• Grant County Press<br />

• Rev. and Mrs. Leonard S. Gross<br />

• Mr. Roger C. Hardway<br />

• The Herald-Mail<br />

• Mrs. Phyllis R. Hoffmann<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. Donald K. Hubbard<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. R. Douglas Huff<br />

• Mr. Noah C. Kady<br />

• Mrs. <strong>Virginia</strong> G. Kavage<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. Michael B. Kelley<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. Timothy J. Kelly<br />

• Mr. Harvey H. Kercheval<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. A Nicholas Komanecky<br />

• Mrs. Rebecca B. Lofstead<br />

• Mrs. Dorothy H. MacQueen<br />

• Mrs. Jacqueline Miller<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. Gary J. Mondello<br />

• Mr. Henry C. Nagel II<br />

• Mr. Jason W. Neal<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. William J. Nevin<br />

• Mr. Phillip D. Page<br />

• Mr. Thomas D. Perry<br />

• Ms. Joanne A. Robinson<br />

• Mr. Archie A. Sader<br />

• SAIC, Inc.<br />

• Mrs. Charles H. Scott<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. Craig L. Selby<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. Preston L. Shimer<br />

• Mrs. Linda Spencer<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. Joseph P. Steranka<br />

• Ms. Margery A. Swanson<br />

• Ms. Stephanie D. Taylor<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. Timothy J. Tewalt<br />

• Ms. Susan W. Tice<br />

• Mr. and Mrs. J. Richard Toren<br />

• Verizon <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong>, Inc.<br />

• Ms. Deborah Harmison White<br />

• Mr. Glenn Witherspoon, Jr.


ABOUT OUR SCHOLARSHIPS<br />

2009-2010 SOJ<br />

Scholarship Recipients<br />

Scholarship donations are the School’s<br />

top priority. More students than ever are in<br />

need due to the economic climate. Private<br />

contributions for student academic support<br />

have helped ease the financial burden many<br />

students face.<br />

GEORGE GIANODIS JOURNALISM SCHOLARSHIP<br />

• Robby Chan<br />

• Chelsey Corroto<br />

• Tiffany Doolittle<br />

• Adrienne Hendon<br />

• Paige Lavender<br />

• Jon Offredo<br />

• Lynne Perry<br />

• Elyse Petroni<br />

• Lauren Sobon<br />

• Rachel Taylor<br />

• Whitney Wetzel<br />

A Message from Professor<br />

Emeritus Paul Atkins<br />

“There are many young people –<br />

especially <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong>ns – who cannot<br />

attend college without scholarship aid,”<br />

said Atkins. “There are many students<br />

who start but will never finish because<br />

each year tuition, textbooks and living<br />

expenses increase. As I think back on<br />

the stellar careers that began at the<br />

journalism school, many of those alumni<br />

would not have had the opportunities<br />

afforded them without the support of<br />

private donations for scholarships.”<br />

“My family has gone through some<br />

hard times these past couple of<br />

years. And it’s wonderful knowing<br />

that there are people out there<br />

who can donate their funds just to<br />

help students like me who are a<br />

little less fortunate to succeed and<br />

make it through college.”<br />

GOLINHARRIS MOUNTAINEER IN DC<br />

• Nicole Fernandes<br />

• Jessica Hammond<br />

GILBERT AND MARGARET LOVE JOURNALISM<br />

SCHOLARSHIP<br />

• Rachel Borowski<br />

DON S. MARSH SCHOLARSHIP<br />

• Leann Arthur<br />

• Evan Moore<br />

OGDEN <strong>NEW</strong>SPAPERS AND NUTTING FAMILY<br />

JOURNALISM SCHOLARSHIP<br />

• Candace Nelson<br />

• Logan Venderlic<br />

THOMAS PICARSIC SCHOLARSHIP IN JOURNALISM<br />

• Ben Hancock<br />

PERLEY ISAAC REED SCHOLARSHIP<br />

• Whitney Godwin<br />

• Jon Vickers<br />

EDITH WATSON SASSER SCHOLARSHIP<br />

Katie Griffith<br />

MARTHA E. SHOTT ENDOWED SCHOLARSHIP<br />

• Hilari Barton<br />

• Lacey Beattie<br />

• Hayley Boso<br />

• Lindsay Cobb<br />

• Logan Venderlic<br />

SCHOOL OF JOURNALISM SCHOLARSHIP<br />

• Jill Adamson<br />

• Samantha Cossick<br />

• Thomas Cullen<br />

• Paul Espinosa<br />

• Stacey Herron<br />

• Alex McPherson<br />

• Sarah Michael<br />

• Amanda Moreau<br />

• Justine O’Grady<br />

• Matthew Peaslee<br />

• Tabitha Porterfield<br />

• Tim Reid<br />

• Katlin Stinespring<br />

• Whitney Wetzel<br />

• Kristen Wishon<br />

• Morgan Young<br />

PEGGY PRESTON TIERNEY SCHOLARSHIP<br />

• Stacie Aliff<br />

• Chelsey Hathaway<br />

• Shay Maunz<br />

SCOTT D. WIDMEYER FIRST GENERATION<br />

SCHOLARSHIP<br />

• Caitlyn Kish<br />

SCOTT D. WIDMEYER AFRICAN AMERICAN<br />

SCHOLARSHIP<br />

• Brandon Radcliffe<br />

DOUGLAS AND RUTH ANN WIDMEYER ENDOWED<br />

JOURNALISM SCHOLARSHIP<br />

• Samantha Cossick<br />

LINDA E. YOST SCHOLARSHIP<br />

• Robert Chan<br />

WEST VIRGINIA PRESS ASSOCIATION - GUY H.<br />

STEWART SCHOLARSHIP<br />

• Leann Arthur<br />

WEST VIRGINIA PRESS ASSOCIATION - ADAM<br />

A. KELLY PREMIER JOURNALIST MEMORIAL<br />

SCHOLARSHIP<br />

• Brittany Bolyard<br />

WEST VIRGINIA PRESS ASSOCIATION - ROY OWENS<br />

MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP<br />

• Candace Nelson<br />

WEST VIRGINIA PRESS ASSOCIATION - CECIL B.<br />

HYLAND JR. MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP<br />

• Morgan Unger<br />

“It’s wonderful knowing that the<br />

School of Journalism is more than just<br />

a school. It seems to be a family. And<br />

no matter what age or situation they’re<br />

in, as a family they stick together and<br />

help each other and are able to give<br />

back. Hopefully, when I succeed in the<br />

journalism world, I can give back and<br />

keep the cycle going.”<br />

How Do I Give?<br />

To learn more about providing scholarship<br />

funding, visit our website at<br />

http://journalism.wvu.edu/about_us/contribute<br />

or contact:<br />

Luella Gunter<br />

Director of Development<br />

WVU P.I. Reed School of Journalism<br />

Luella.Gunter@mail.wvu.edu<br />

304.293.3505 x5428<br />

35


FACULTY BRIEFS<br />

Dr. Sang Lee<br />

Dr. Sang Lee<br />

Dr. Sang (Sammy) Lee, who chairs the School<br />

of Journalism’s advertising program, was<br />

awarded tenure and promoted to the rank of<br />

associate professor this spring. Lee brings more<br />

than 10 years of professional experience to the<br />

program. He has worked as a senior account<br />

manager at Cheir Communications in South<br />

Korea, one of the world’s 15 biggest advertising<br />

agencies, and as an advertising manager at<br />

Samsung Electronics America and the New<br />

Jersey-based advertising agency CCIA. Lee’s<br />

research includes Internet advertising effects<br />

and framing related theories. His work has<br />

appeared in several publications, including<br />

Journal of Promotion Management, Journal of<br />

Marketing Communications and International<br />

Journal of Electronic Marketing and Retailing.<br />

He also co-wrote the book, To Vary or Not? The<br />

Effects of Ad Variation on the Web, published<br />

by Cambria Press in 2006. Lee, who joined<br />

the faculty in fall 2004, is a member of the<br />

American Academy of Advertising. He earned<br />

his doctorate degree in mass communication<br />

from Pennsylvania State <strong>University</strong> in 2004<br />

and his master’s degree in advertising from<br />

Michigan State <strong>University</strong> in 1986. Lee<br />

received his bachelor’s degree in advertising and<br />

public relations from Chung Ang <strong>University</strong>,<br />

Seoul, South Korea, in 1984.<br />

36<br />

WVU Photo Services<br />

n TORI ARTHUR<br />

Visiting Assistant Professor Tori Arthur’s poetry<br />

and prose, “Reflections,” was published in the<br />

anthology, Mourning Katrina: A Poetic Response<br />

to Tragedy, in summer 2009. The national writing<br />

project is aimed at helping survivors deal with the<br />

emotional trauma of their experience through writing<br />

poetry. In January 2010, Arthur presented “The<br />

21st Century African American Woman’s Guide<br />

to Public Relations and Social Media Savvy” at<br />

the Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc., <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong><br />

State Leadership Conference held in Morgantown,<br />

W.Va. In spring 2010, she participated in a<br />

panel discussion, “Do Journalists Create or Report<br />

News?” with local news professionals at the <strong>West</strong><br />

<strong>Virginia</strong> Hugh O’Brien Youth Leadership workshop<br />

held at the WVU Mountainlair. In addition,<br />

Arthur and Assistant Professor Jensen Moore<br />

were awarded a $14,630 Faculty Senate Research<br />

Grant for their research project, “What Gets Them<br />

Through the Pain: Processing Differences for Medical<br />

vs. Religious Messages Encouraging African<br />

American Women to Obtain Mammograms.”<br />

n JOEL BEESON<br />

Associate Professor Joel Beeson received a first<br />

place national award for Best Practices in Teaching<br />

of Diversity by the Association for Education in<br />

Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC).<br />

He received the award and presented his winning<br />

entry, “Civic Engagement, New Media and Journalism:<br />

A Template for the Organic Incorporation<br />

of Diversity into a New Journalism Curriculum,”<br />

at the organization’s annual meeting in Boston,<br />

Mass., in August 2009. In April 2010, Beeson<br />

presented his paper, “Multimedia Darwinism, Evolution<br />

of Narrative Form,” as part of the “Defining<br />

Multimedia” panel at the Broadcast Education<br />

Association (BEA) conference in Las Vegas, Nev.<br />

In addition, he is serving as national chair for<br />

the Interactive Media and Emerging Technology<br />

division of BEA. Also in spring 2010, Beeson was<br />

awarded a $9,800 WVU Faculty Senate Public<br />

Service Grant for his Kimball WWI African<br />

American War Memorial project in McDowell<br />

County, W.Va. He and a group of students are<br />

preparing a permanent exhibit for the memorial<br />

that will include photographs, interactive media<br />

and an exhibit of stereoscopic views from WWI.<br />

n DR. BOB BRITTEN<br />

Assistant Professor Bob Britten’s article (co-<br />

authored by C. Zoe Smith), “Acquiring Taste:<br />

Graham Nash and the Evolution of the Photography<br />

Collection,” was accepted for publication in<br />

the spring 2010 issue of Visual Communication<br />

Quarterly.<br />

n DANA COESTER<br />

Assistant Professor Dana Coester published a<br />

selection of essays in the literary journal Ocho #26<br />

in September 2009. The essays and featured cover<br />

art are excerpted from Coester’s documentary film<br />

project, “Pretty.” The film also was recognized with<br />

an Award of Excellence in Narrative in the Faculty<br />

Video Competition of the BEA Festival of Media<br />

Arts in February 2010. In April 2010, Coester<br />

presented her paper, “Visual Forms in Nonlinear<br />

Narrative,” as part of the “Defining Multimedia”<br />

panel at the BEA conference in Las Vegas, Nev.<br />

n DR. RITA COLISTRA<br />

Assistant Professor Rita Colistra presented her<br />

research, “TV Reporters’ Perceptions of Organizational<br />

Influences on News Content and Coverage<br />

Decisions,” in the Media Management &<br />

Economics (MME) Division at the August 2009<br />

national AEJMC convention in Boston, Mass. She<br />

also was appointed to serve as the MME Division’s<br />

Research Vice Chair for 2009-2010. In September<br />

2009, she led a public relations and marketing<br />

workshop for Travel Beautiful Appalachia, Inc.,<br />

to help area nonprofit organizations and entrepreneurs<br />

learn techniques to better promote their<br />

issues and ventures through effective use of public<br />

relations and social media. The workshop, held in<br />

Ashland, W.Va, was funded by the <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong><br />

Community Development Hub, the Benedum<br />

Foundation and the WV Development Office. In<br />

November 2009, WVU’s Public Relations Student<br />

Society of America (PRSSA) chapter, for which<br />

Colistra is faculty adviser, was awarded a National<br />

Teahan Chapter Award for Community Service.<br />

n GINA MARTINO DAHLIA<br />

In December 2009, Teaching Assistant Professor<br />

Gina Martino Dahlia’s award-winning documentary,<br />

“The Monongah Heroine,” was the featured<br />

film at WVU’s annual Miner’s Day Celebration.<br />

Dahlia developed, wrote and presented a<br />

workshop, “New Year, New Virtual You: Resume<br />

Development On-Line and Off,” in February 2010<br />

at the <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> State Capitol in Charleston,<br />

W.Va, for Women’s Day at the Legislature. In


FACULTY BRIEFS<br />

Mary Kay McFarland<br />

Mary Kay<br />

McFarland<br />

WVU Photo Services<br />

“<strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> Uncovered” project coordinator<br />

Mary Kay McFarland came to the School<br />

of Journalism in summer 2009. She teaches<br />

a multimedia storytelling class, coordinates<br />

the “<strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> Uncovered” project’s<br />

partnerships with 12 <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> newspapers<br />

and collaborates on the design and production<br />

of the project’s website. Before coming to WVU,<br />

McFarland worked at The Charleston (W.Va.)<br />

Gazette. During her eight years there, she was<br />

a staff photographer and multimedia editor.<br />

McFarland also worked as a photographer at<br />

the Clarksburg (W.Va.) Exponent and for the<br />

Coalition for Christian Outreach in Pittsburgh,<br />

Pa. She has a bachelor’s degree in English<br />

from Bethany College in Bethany, W.Va.,<br />

and a master’s degree in journalism from the<br />

<strong>University</strong> of Missouri-Columbia.<br />

fall 2009, Dahlia served on the “Politics and the<br />

Media” panel at WVU’s first public administration<br />

graduate conference held in the Mountainlair.<br />

The conference, “Status of America: Changing<br />

Priorities,” was held in conjunction with the <strong>West</strong><br />

<strong>Virginia</strong> Political Science Association and the<br />

<strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> Chapter of the American Society<br />

for Public Administration’s annual conference.<br />

n DR. SANG LEE<br />

Associate Professor Sang Lee’s paper, “Do Web<br />

Users Care About Banner Ads Anymore? The<br />

Effects of Frequency and Clutter in Web Advertising,”<br />

is in print at the Journal of Promotion<br />

Management. His paper, “Culture and Processing<br />

of Advertising Information,” was published in the<br />

proceedings of the June 2009 International Conference<br />

on Research in Advertising.<br />

n DR. SARA MAGEE<br />

In April 2010, Assistant Professor Sara Magee<br />

presented her first place award-winning paper,<br />

“Making History: The Creation of the Sales and<br />

Distribution Process of ‘Entertainment Tonight’<br />

That Revolutionized the Syndication Industry,” at<br />

the BEA conference in Las Vegas, Nev. In March<br />

2010, she presented her paper, “The Evolution of<br />

Entertainment News: ‘Entertainment Tonight’s’<br />

Legacy on National, Cable, and Local Television<br />

News,” at The National Popular Culture & American<br />

Culture Associations Annual Conference in St.<br />

Louis, Mo.<br />

n DR. DIANA MARTINELLI<br />

Widmeyer Professor in Public Relations and Associate<br />

Professor Diana Martinelli’s article, “The<br />

Public Relations Work of Journalism Trailblazer<br />

and First Lady Confidante Lorena Hickok, 1937-<br />

1945,” was published in the fall 2009 issue of<br />

Journalism History. Her article, “Lessons on the<br />

Big Idea and Public Relations: Reflections on the<br />

50-Year Career of Charlotte Klein,” was published<br />

in the winter 2010 edition of Public Relations<br />

Journal. In March 2010, she presented the paper<br />

co-authored with Assistant Professor Bonnie<br />

Stewart, “Ethics During Crisis: Applying Ethical<br />

Values and the Symbolic Approach to a Coal Mine<br />

Disaster,” at the 13th International Public Relations<br />

Research Conference in Miami, Fla. In June<br />

2010, Martinelli was one of 60 professors nationwide<br />

to attend the New Media Summit in New<br />

York, N.Y., sponsored by Edelman and PR Week.<br />

n DR. JENSEN MOORE<br />

Director of Undergraduate Online Programs and<br />

Assistant Professor Jensen Moore presented three<br />

papers in August 2009 at the AEJMC Conference<br />

in Boston, Mass.: “Understanding High Sensation<br />

Seekers: Perceived Persuasiveness and Emotional<br />

Response to Blame and Attack Anti-tobacco Ads<br />

With Differing Message Sensation Values,” “Are<br />

People Who Use Tobacco More Likely to Be Persuaded<br />

by Anti-tobacco Ads That Make Them the<br />

Victim?” and “Does Tobacco Use Influence Cognitive<br />

Processing of Traditional vs. Counter Antitobacco<br />

Ads?” In spring 2010, Moore and Visiting<br />

Assistant Professor Tori Arthur were awarded a<br />

$14,630 Faculty Senate Research Grant for their<br />

research project, “What Gets Them Through The<br />

Pain: Processing Differences for Medical vs. Religious<br />

Messages Encouraging African American<br />

Women to Obtain Mammograms.”<br />

n MARYANNE REED<br />

Dean and Professor Maryanne Reed’s paper,<br />

“Fighting to Hear and Be Heard: The Founding of<br />

<strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> Mountain Radio,” was accepted for<br />

publication in the spring 2011 issue of <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong><br />

History. In June 2009, Reed was named one<br />

of only 11 nationally elected members to serve on<br />

the Association of Schools of Journalism and Mass<br />

Communications (ASJMC) Executive Committee.<br />

Reed also served on the panel, “Rigor, Relevance,<br />

Resources and Revenue: The Four Rs of an Online<br />

Journalism Curriculum,” at the ASJMC 2010 winter<br />

meeting in Atlanta, Ga., in February 2010.<br />

n BONNIE STEWART<br />

Assistant Professor Bonnie Stewart and Associate<br />

Professor Diana Martinelli co-authored the paper,<br />

“Ethics During Crisis: Applying Ethical Values<br />

and the Symbolic Approach to a Coal Mine Disaster,”<br />

which was presented at the 13th International<br />

Public Relations Research Conference in Miami,<br />

Fla. In August 2009, Stewart conducted a career<br />

development session, “Experience Counts: Become<br />

a Professor Without a Ph.D.,” at the Society of<br />

Professional Journalists annual meetings in Indianapolis,<br />

Ind.<br />

n DR. STEVE URBANSKI<br />

Director of Graduate Studies and Assistant<br />

Professor Steve Urbanski presented his paper,<br />

“Forging Journalistic Otherness in Benin <strong>West</strong><br />

Africa Through Educational Praxis,” as part of<br />

the “Cultural and Critical Studies” panel at the<br />

AEJMC convention in Boston, Mass., in August<br />

2009. His review of the academic book, Between<br />

Cultures: Cultural and Social Integration of<br />

German Immigrants in Pittsburgh – 1843-1873,<br />

was published in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in<br />

September 2009.<br />

37


CLASS NOTES<br />

1950s<br />

n JOHN VEASEY (BSJ, 1959) was one of five people<br />

inducted into the Fairmont State <strong>University</strong> Athletic<br />

Association Hall of Fame in October 2009. Veasey<br />

has served as editor of the Times <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong>n<br />

since 1976.<br />

1960s<br />

n TOM BURGER (BSJ, 1968), the first graduate in<br />

broadcast journalism, retired last year after 28 years<br />

as director of communications with the WV Annual<br />

Conference of the United Methodist Church.<br />

n BILL CAMPBELL (BSJ, 1969) is a reporter for The<br />

Intermountain News in Burney, Calif. He is one<br />

of three reporters whose breaking news coverage<br />

of six simultaneous forest fires threatening private<br />

structures received the California Newspaper<br />

Publishers Association’s 2010 first place award for<br />

weekly newspapers with less than 4,300 circulation.<br />

n MARY KUYKENDALL (BSJ, 1960) is the author of a<br />

collection of short stories, River Roots (Texas Review<br />

Press, 2009), which won the 2008 George Garrett<br />

Fiction Prize awarded annually by the Texas Review<br />

Press and Sam Houston <strong>University</strong>.<br />

n JOHN ROSOL (BSJ, 1969) is the editor of Golf<br />

Divas Magazine.<br />

1970s<br />

n GEORGE BOSSO (BSJ, 1974) owns Asset Building<br />

Consultants, LLC, a home inspection company in<br />

<strong>West</strong>mont, Ill.<br />

n DARYL COCHRAN (BSJ, 1976) was awarded the<br />

State Department’s Meritorious Honor Award for<br />

his assistance to the U.S. Embassy staff in Tbilisi,<br />

Georgia, during the 2008 Russian incursion.<br />

n TOM HEATHERMAN (BSJ, 1972) is the corporate<br />

communications director for Michael Saunders &<br />

Company in Sarasota, Fla.<br />

n JIM LAISE (BSJ, 1976) is the senior writer for<br />

WVsports.com.<br />

n RICHARD (DICK) MCGRAW (BSJ, 1973) recently<br />

retired from a 45-year broadcasting career. He and<br />

his wife, Karen, owned radio and television stations in<br />

<strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> and Ohio. They are the parents of two<br />

sons and have five grandchildren. The couple resides<br />

in Elkins, W.Va., and in the Smoky Mountains of<br />

East Tennessee.<br />

n HARRY MITCHELL (BSJ, 1979) is the director<br />

of media relations at Verizon Communications in<br />

Charleston, W.Va.<br />

38<br />

FULTON RECEIVES TOP LOBBYIST RECOGNITION<br />

In July 2009, Michael Fulton (BSJ, 1979) was named one of The Hill’s “Top<br />

Lobbyists” of 2009, a program sponsored by The Hill newspaper. Selected as<br />

a result of interviews conducted with members of Congress, key Hill staff<br />

and his peers in the lobby community, Fulton was recognized at a reception<br />

on Capitol Hill. Others to be recognized included Vic Fazio, Tony Podesta,<br />

Heather Podesta, Steve McBee, Marty Russo and Gerry Cassidy. Fulton,<br />

executive vice president and head of the government relations practice at<br />

GolinHarris, joined the firm in 1988 after nearly 10 years on Capitol Hill.<br />

He has assisted local governments, companies, associations and academic<br />

institutions in achieving their government relations and communica-<br />

Michael Fulton<br />

tions goals. In his more than 22 years at GolinHarris, Fulton has utilized<br />

congressional and federal agency meetings, grassroots campaigns, creative events, videos, survey<br />

research and media relations to enhance his lobbying activities and achieve government relations<br />

results for his clients.<br />

n KEVIN SMITH (BSJ, 1979) was<br />

named president of the Society<br />

of Professional Journalists (SPJ)<br />

in August 2009 and will serve<br />

until October 2010. As assistant<br />

professor at Fairmont State<br />

<strong>University</strong>, Smith is the first SPJ<br />

president from <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> and<br />

only the fourth president from<br />

Kevin Smith<br />

academia in SPJ’s 100 years. In<br />

May 2009, Smith was named outstanding professor<br />

of the year at Pierpont Community and Technical<br />

College and received the Outstanding Faculty<br />

Achievement Award from Fairmont State <strong>University</strong>.<br />

n JOHN WALLS (BSJ, 1978) is<br />

vice president of public affairs for<br />

CTIA-The Wireless Association.<br />

n DAWN WARFIELD (BSJ, 1978)<br />

is Deputy Attorney General<br />

for the <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> Attorney<br />

General’s Office.<br />

1980s<br />

n GARY CLITES (BSJ, 1982) had<br />

his first novel, Seneca Wood,<br />

published in summer 2009 by<br />

Casperian Books. Clites is also<br />

a journalism teacher at Calvert<br />

County Public Schools in<br />

Owings, Md.<br />

John Walls<br />

n DEREK FARLEY (BSJ, 1988) is Gary Clites<br />

president of Derek Farley Public<br />

Relations, which was recently named the grand prize<br />

winner at the 2010 Bulldog Awards for Excellence<br />

in Media Relations and Publicity, as well as a winner<br />

in the categories of Best Response to Breaking<br />

News and Best PR Stunt. In addition, the agency’s<br />

“Punt Challenge” campaign for client T.G.I. Friday’s<br />

restaurants was named Best of the Best at the annual<br />

awards presentation. Earlier in the year, that same<br />

campaign was recognized by the League of American<br />

Communication Professionals as the Most Creative<br />

Communications Campaign of 2009. Derek Farley<br />

Public Relations is based in Charlotte, N.C.<br />

n LYNN (LEWELLEN) HOBBS (BSJ, 1985) is the<br />

product manager for TANDBERG Television<br />

in Duluth, Ga. TANDBERG is a member of<br />

the Ericsson group, a world-leading provider of<br />

telecommunications equipment and related services<br />

to mobile and fixed network operators globally.<br />

n PAUL B. JOHNSON (BSJ, 1985) was reappointed<br />

as a media industry advisory board member to the<br />

Media Advisory Board for the <strong>University</strong> of North<br />

Carolina at Greensboro for the 2009-2010 academic<br />

year. Johnson is a staff writer for The High Point<br />

(N.C.) Enterprise.<br />

n LARRY SHAUGHNESSY (BSJ, 1984) is the<br />

Pentagon producer at CNN in Washington, D.C.<br />

n BRUCE WAYLAND (BSJ, 1986) is a production<br />

manager for Credit One Bank.<br />

n DAVID WILKISON (BSJ, 1988) is director of major<br />

accounts at The Associated Press in New York, N.Y.<br />

n MOLLY (MARY ANNE) BANKS WILSBACHER<br />

(BSJ, 1987) is the Assistant U.S.<br />

Trustee at the U.S. Department<br />

of Justice. She supervises and<br />

monitors all bankruptcy cases filed<br />

in the Southern District of Ohio<br />

(Eastern and <strong>West</strong>ern Divisions).<br />

She also serves as an instructor<br />

at the U.S. Trustee’s National<br />

Bankruptcy Training Institute<br />

and lectures nationally on various<br />

bankruptcy and criminal issues.<br />

Molly (Mary Anne)<br />

Banks Wilsbacher


CLASS NOTES<br />

1990s<br />

n JOSHUA BARNARD (BSJ, 1997) is a health care<br />

assistant with Valley Health Care in Fairmont, W.Va.<br />

n SHANNON BLOSSER (BSJ, 1998) is a third-year<br />

student at Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore,<br />

Ky. He is continuing his studies to become an elder<br />

in the United<br />

Methodist<br />

Church. In<br />

May 2009, he<br />

married his<br />

wife, Abigail<br />

Scarborough.<br />

n SHAWN<br />

Shannon Blosser<br />

BROWN (BSJ, 1999) is a legal<br />

assistant for Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc. in<br />

Morgantown, W.Va.<br />

n WYATT BRYSON (BSJ, 1990) recently published<br />

two books – Sankofa and Onyx and Eggshell,<br />

published by CreateSpace in April and May 2010,<br />

respectively.<br />

n CECELIA CROW (BSJ, 1990) is<br />

the brand marketing manager at<br />

<strong>Virginia</strong> Polytechnic Institute and<br />

State <strong>University</strong>.<br />

n FRANK GALLO (BSJ, 1997)<br />

is the executive director of<br />

risk management at PPD in<br />

Morrisville, N.C., a leading global<br />

contract research organization.<br />

Cecelia Crow<br />

n APRIL KAULL (BSJ, 1995) is the vice president of<br />

news operations for WV Media Holdings, LLC. She<br />

also serves as the executive producer and anchor for<br />

“<strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> Tonight Live,” the company’s daily<br />

statewide newscast.<br />

n CARLA SHEETS-DUNN (BSJ,<br />

1993) is the vice president of<br />

global sales for Wyndham Hotel<br />

Group in Parsippany, N.J.<br />

n MICKEY STONE (BSJ, 1997)<br />

teaches theater at Sarasota School<br />

of Arts and Sciences in Sarasota, Fla.<br />

2000s<br />

n JACQUE BLAND (BSJ, 2001) is the features editor<br />

at The Washington Examiner in Washington, D.C.<br />

n STEPHANIE BOSTAPH (BSJ,<br />

2007) is a communications<br />

specialist for Concepts, Inc., a<br />

public relations firm in Chevy<br />

Chase, Md.<br />

n RACHEL BOYD (BSJ, 2007)<br />

is a management analyst in<br />

Morgantown, W.Va. She is<br />

Stephanie Bostaph<br />

contracted by the U.S. Department<br />

of Energy headquartered in Washington, D.C.<br />

n JAY CALLAHAN (BSJ, 2002) is the sports<br />

information director and head soccer coach at Salem<br />

College in Winston-Salem, N.C.<br />

n SCOTT CAMPBELL (BSJ, 2004) and his wife<br />

welcomed their first child into the world in 2009.<br />

Campbell is a health teacher for Berkeley County,<br />

W.Va., schools.<br />

n ERIN CUNNINGHAM (BSJ,<br />

2008) was recently engaged<br />

to Stephen Leighton, a USAF<br />

medic and Shepherd <strong>University</strong><br />

alumnus and is planning a<br />

wedding for September 2012. She<br />

is a communications and learning<br />

developer with Scitor Coporation<br />

Carla Sheets-Dunn<br />

Erin Cunningham<br />

STERANKA RECEIVES MARCH OF DIMES AWARD<br />

Joe Steranka (BSJ, 1979) was recognized in December 2009 for his outstanding<br />

achievements in the sports industry by the March of Dimes at<br />

its 26th Annual Sports Luncheon in New York. Steranka, who joined The<br />

PGA of America in 1998 and was named its chief executive officer in 2005,<br />

has directed The PGA’s expansion of events, media assets and marketing<br />

programs, including The PGA Championship, Ryder Cup and PGA.com.<br />

As an ambassador for the game, Steranka is also CEO and chairman of<br />

Golf ’s 20/20 Executive Committee, is a member of the Board of Directors<br />

for Children’s Healthcare Charity, Inc. and is an advisory council member<br />

for the Environmental Institute for Golf. Steranka received the Sports<br />

Joe Steranka<br />

Leadership Award alongside Sportsman of the Year Joe Girardi, manager of<br />

the New York Yankees; Sportswoman of the Year Venus Williams, one of the top-ranked women’s<br />

tennis players in the world; and Corporate Leadership Award recipient David Levy, Turner Broadcasting<br />

System’s president of sales, distribution and sports.<br />

in Herndon, Va., and is finishing her master’s degree<br />

in the School’s IMC program.<br />

n JOEL DANOY (BSJ, 2009) is a reporter at The<br />

Dominion Post in Morgantown, W.Va.<br />

n MEREDITH DELANEY (BSJ, 2001) is director of<br />

development at The <strong>University</strong> of Cincinnati Foundation<br />

in Ohio.<br />

n JESSE FORBES (BSJ, 2002) and his wife Lesli (Rowe)<br />

Forbes (MSJ, 2005; BSJ, 2002) recently had their first<br />

child, Will, on August 13, 2009. Jesse is an attorney for<br />

Forbes Law Offices, PLLC, in Charleston, W.Va.<br />

n BERNICE HO (BSJ, 2004) is director of marketing<br />

communications at Mercy Fitzgerald Hospital in<br />

Darby, Pa.<br />

n CHAD HYETT (BSJ, 2001) is a vice president at<br />

Widmeyer Communications in New York, N.Y.<br />

n STEFFANY IRELAND-JOHNSON (BSJ, 2008) is<br />

a seventh-grade language arts teacher at Prince<br />

William County School in Woodbridge, Va.<br />

n JONAH JABBOUR (BSJ, 2003) is a videographer<br />

for the Christian Broadcasting Network in <strong>Virginia</strong><br />

Beach, Va.<br />

n JAMA JARRETT (MS-IMC, 2009) is now the deputy<br />

communications director for Governor Joe Manchin<br />

(W.Va.) after having worked as a spokesperson for<br />

the <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> Office of Miners’ Health, Safety<br />

and Training and for WorkForce <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> for<br />

two years.<br />

n CJ JOHNSON (BSJ, 2003)<br />

is vice president of ticket sales<br />

for the Winston-Salem Dash<br />

Minor League Baseball Team in<br />

Winston-Salem, N.C.<br />

n KEVIN KINKEAD (BSJ, 2007)<br />

is a writer for KYW-TV in<br />

Philadelphia, Pa.<br />

n SAMANTHA KNAPP (BSJ, 2006) received her<br />

master’s degree in public administration from WVU<br />

in May 2009. Knapp is an education coordinator<br />

for the <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> Breast and Cervical Cancer<br />

Screening Program in Morgantown, W.Va. She was<br />

married August 1, 2009, and had her first child in<br />

2010.<br />

n BEN LAPOE (MSJ, 2008) is working toward<br />

his Ph.D. at the Manship School of Mass<br />

Communication at Louisiana State <strong>University</strong>.<br />

CJ Johnson<br />

39


CLASS NOTES<br />

n ELIZABETH MCGONIGLE (BSJ, 2004) is a<br />

teacher for the Red Clay School District in<br />

Wilmington, Del. She received her master’s<br />

degree in elementary education from Wilmington<br />

<strong>University</strong> in New Castle, Del., in 2009.<br />

n STEPHANIE OCTAVE (BSJ, 2004) is starting a<br />

chapter of the WVU Alumni Association in New<br />

Mexico. Octave works as an IT Project Manager<br />

at Los Alamos National Laboratory in Los<br />

Alamos, N.M.<br />

n RYAN PALATINI (BSJ, 2006) is an account<br />

executive for Cline Davis & Mann, an advertising<br />

agency in New York, N.Y., that specializes in<br />

health care.<br />

n MICHAEL PEHANICH (BSJ, 2001) is the<br />

director of communications for the Washington<br />

Redskins football organization located in<br />

Ashburn, Va.<br />

n JESSICA (SPINOZZI) POSEL<br />

(MS-IMC, 2006; BSJ, 1994)<br />

married Mitch Posel, Jr. on<br />

Sept. 6, 2009 at a ceremony<br />

in Plano, Texas. She is vice<br />

president of marketing for<br />

Rotobrush International LLC<br />

in Grapevine, Texas.<br />

Jessica (Spinozzi)<br />

n ERIN ROBERTSON (BSJ,<br />

Posel<br />

2006) is a senior account executive at Widmeyer<br />

Communications in Washington, D.C.<br />

n JOHN ROUSH (BSJ, 2006) is a human<br />

resources assistant at WVU.<br />

n MATT SEE (BSJ, 2004) is the marketing<br />

coordinator for Whitetail Resort in Mercersburg, Pa.<br />

n AMANDA SHANE (BSJ, 2006) is an<br />

e-commerce web marketing specialist for Chico’s<br />

FAS Headquarters in Fort Myers, Fla.<br />

Share your updates and contact information<br />

with the School of Journalism. Visit the<br />

website and click the “Stay Connected”<br />

icon to complete the online form.<br />

40<br />

n IAN SHORTS (BSJ, 2009) is a writer for the Center<br />

for New York City Affairs. He is also in the master’s<br />

degree program at Milano The New School for<br />

Management and Urban Policy in New York, N.Y.<br />

n CARA SLIDER (MSJ, 2009; BSJ, 2006) is a public<br />

relations specialist for Atria Senior Living Group in<br />

Louisville, Ky.<br />

n BERNIE SOUSA (BSJ, 2003) is<br />

a medical sales representative for<br />

Stryker, a worldwide manufacturer<br />

of medical devices and equipment<br />

in Philadelphia, Pa.<br />

n CYNTHIA STANKOS (MS-IMC,<br />

2006) is a contract administrator<br />

Bernie Sousa<br />

for the URS Corporation, a<br />

leading provider of engineering,<br />

construction and technical services for public<br />

agencies and private sector companies, in their<br />

Morgantown, W.Va., office.<br />

n NICHOLAS TAYLOR (BSJ, 2002) is the webmaster<br />

for the Allegany College of Maryland in<br />

Cumberland, Md.<br />

n NICHOLAS TOLOMEO (BSJ, 2007) is a sports writer<br />

for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in Pittsburgh, Pa.<br />

n BRIANA WARNER (MSJ, 2008) is the state press<br />

secretary for Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) in<br />

Charleston, W.Va.<br />

n EMILY WATERS (BSJ, 2006) is a representative for<br />

Pikeville Medical Center in Pikeville, Ky.<br />

n LAURA WATSON (BSJ, 2007) is a broadcast<br />

associate for CBS News’ “The Early Show” in New<br />

York, N.Y.<br />

n AMBER WOTRING (BSJ, 2008) is the events<br />

coordinator/nontraditional revenues coordinator at <strong>West</strong><br />

<strong>Virginia</strong> Radio Corporation in Morgantown, W.Va.<br />

2009 Transitions SOJ ALUMNI<br />

ASSOCIATION<br />

The School of Journalism wishes to<br />

acknowledge our alumni who have<br />

AWARDS<br />

passed away during the year.<br />

In October KATHERINE 2009, K. BURDETTE the School (BSJ, of 1942) Journalism<br />

and the MICHELE School ANN of COTTON Journalism (BSJ, 1988) Alumni<br />

Association JERE T. CRAIG hosted (BSJ, an 1960) Alumni and Donor<br />

Recognition Ceremony in Martin Hall.<br />

JULIANNE HILLOOWALA (MSJ, 1982)<br />

The Alumni Association presented its 2009<br />

JOHN HERSHEL INGRAM (BSJ, 1973)<br />

awards to the best and brightest graduates<br />

and friends ROSE R. of MARINO the School (BSJ, 1943) of Journalism.<br />

SHERRINA L. MCQUAIN (BSJ, 1988)<br />

P.I. Reed Achievement Award<br />

JAMES R. SKIDMORE (MSJ, 1968; BSJ, 1964)<br />

The highest DEANNA L. honor SORGE the (BSJ, Association 1980) bestows<br />

upon BRIAN a graduate E. STARKEY of the (BSJ, School 1974) in recognition<br />

of his or her outstanding career achievements<br />

CAROLINE SYDNOR (AB, 1936)<br />

The radio BRYAN “dean” A. THOMPSON of <strong>West</strong> (BSJ, <strong>Virginia</strong> 1987)<br />

broadcasters, HARVEY “HOPPY” KERCHEVAL<br />

LEIGHTON G. WATSON (MSJ, 1971; AB, 1938)<br />

(MSJ, 2005; BSJ, 1977) joined <strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong><br />

JAMES NEAL WAYCASTER (BSJ, 1981)<br />

Radio Corp. in 1976. Kercheval began<br />

as a news GARY A. anchor/reporter YODER (BSJ, 1972) at WAJR in<br />

Morgantown, W.Va., while attending<br />

WVU. After graduating with honors from<br />

the School In memory of Journalism, Kercheval of took<br />

over as news director and helped start the<br />

Metronews Robert broadcast Stanley network. Kercheval Earle was<br />

named vice president of operations in 1991.<br />

In 1993, Robert he Stanley created Earle Metronews (BSJ, 1940) Talkline, was in<br />

which the has first become graduating a signature class of the program School of<br />

of the Journalism network. and He served has received as editor many of The Daily<br />

honors, Athenaeum including while the a 2002 student <strong>West</strong> at WVU. <strong>Virginia</strong> Earle<br />

Broadcasters was working Association for the Grafton “Broadcaster (W.Va.) Sentinel of the<br />

Year” when award. Pearl Harbor<br />

JOHN was VEASEY bombed (BSJ, and,<br />

1959) shortly has been afterwards, with<br />

Fairmont, enlisted W.Va., in the U.S.<br />

newspapers Army. He since was a 1958<br />

when cryptographer he joined The in the<br />

Times Signal <strong>West</strong> Corps, <strong>Virginia</strong>n U.S.<br />

staff Intelligence, as sports editor. and<br />

He was obtained named the rank<br />

managing of captain editor when of<br />

the Fairmont<br />

the war ended.<br />

Times<br />

In<br />

in 1970 and editor<br />

1946, Earle began<br />

of the Times <strong>West</strong><br />

Robert Stanley Earle<br />

working as a reporter<br />

<strong>Virginia</strong>n in 1976 when the two newspapers<br />

for The <strong>West</strong>on (W.Va.) Democrat. For more<br />

merged. Veasey is a graduate of the School<br />

than 40 years, Earle served as publisher and<br />

of Journalism and is a past president of the<br />

editor of The <strong>West</strong>on Democrat, covering<br />

<strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> Sports Writers Association<br />

news and sports events of Lewis County.<br />

and the United Press International Editor’s<br />

Bureau.<br />

He also<br />

In August<br />

sold advertising,<br />

2006, he<br />

laid<br />

was<br />

out<br />

the<br />

pages<br />

recipient<br />

and<br />

of the wrote Adam all the R. Kelly editorials Premier and a weekly Journalist column,<br />

Award, “Town presented Topics.” by Earle the was <strong>West</strong> active <strong>Virginia</strong> in the Press <strong>West</strong><br />

Association. <strong>Virginia</strong> Press Association and was honored<br />

with the lifetime achievement award from the<br />

The association Friend and of the the Alumni School of the Award Year Award<br />

from the School of Journalism.


Perley Isaac Reed SCHOOL OF JOURNALISM<br />

<strong>West</strong> <strong>Virginia</strong> <strong>University</strong><br />

PO Box 6010<br />

Morgantown, WV 26506-6010<br />

(304) 293-3505<br />

journalism.wvu.edu<br />

PIREED@mail.wvu.edu<br />

Address Service Requested<br />

410013100001<br />

Non-profit Org.<br />

U.S. Postage<br />

PAID<br />

Morgantown, WV<br />

Permit No. 34

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