EXPLORING NEW TERRAIN - West Virginia University
EXPLORING NEW TERRAIN - West Virginia University
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 />
politics based on impact and efficiency #jweek<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 />
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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 />
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