communicator, summer 2014

Special Section

“Champions”

INSIDE: Hardin named dean of College ... Faculty honored for excellence ... Students earn numerous awards

CONTENTS4 CARNEGIE NEWSCloseup: Anderson’s transformational tenureNew dean named for College of Communications On-campus events showcase diversity guests

16 FACULTY/STAFF NEWSFaculty members recognized for excellenceUniversity-wide awards honor teaching, serviceFaculty members produce feature-length film

28 DEVELOPMENT NEWSCollege surpasses goal as campaign closes

32 STUDENT NEWSCloseup: ‘CCR’ succeeds with strong supportUniversity-wide awards honor service, successSix selected as student marshals

50 ALUMNI NEWSCloseup: Achievement Award for Gifford LockwoodAlumna advances to national competitionProlific author working on his 19th book

DEPARTMENTSFrom the Dean, 3 / Alumni Notes, 57College Calendar, 59 / Contact the College, 59

ON THE COVERDean Doug Anderson, who led the College of Com-munications from July 1, 1999, to July 1, 2014, guided the program through a period of significant growth and success. Story, pages 4-6. (Photo by John Beale)

THE COMMUNICATORThe Communicator is published twice a year by the College of Communications at Penn State.

Dean: Douglas AndersonEditor: Steve SampsellPublication Policies: All items relating to the College and its faculty, staff, students and alumni will be considered for publication.

Correspondence:The CommunicatorPenn State College of Communications302 James BuildingUniversity Park, PA 16802

Penn State is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer, and is committed to providing employment op-portunities to minorities, women, veterans, individuals with disabilities, and other protected groups. Nondiscrimination: http://guru.psu.edu/policies/AD85.html U.Ed. COM 14-100

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THE COMMUNICATOR 3 SUMMER 2014

It hardly seems possible that nearly 15 years have passed since I wrote my first Communicator column. Now, as I write my last one, I recall how that 1999 column began:

“Challenges and opportunities stretch across the horizon for the College of Communications as it embarks on the 1999-2000 academic year.

“The challenges facing the College are substantial: the time-devouring preparation of a well-written, candid, crisp and forward-looking multi-volume study for the Fall 2000 national accreditation review; efforts to bring into instructional harmony and efficiency the burgeoning number of students with our faculty, staff and financial resources; the continued quest to integrate teaching, research and service in ways that make our sum far greater than our individual parts; the constant pursuit of enhancing the academic-professional balance of our faculty with concomitant recognition of and respect for people who contribute in different ways to the collective whole; the movement to elevate trust among colleagues; the never-ending work to prepare students to the greatest extent possible for life and work after school; and the vigorous, systematic search for private funding to provide the wherewithal to make this truly a top-tier program.”

After noting several positives about the College, I concluded:

“The best accredited programs in our field share certain characteristics: they never lose sight of their primary reason for being (teaching students — graduate and undergraduate); they are student-centered, always doing things for the benefit of the students, not merely for the convenience of the faculty and administration; they produce outstanding scholarship — using a variety of methodologies — that is of value to the discipline and their constituents; they are driven by the quest for quality and improvement; they contribute to the central missions of their universities by being fully

engaged in the intellectual life of the campus; they integrate teaching, research and service in ways that maximize the effectiveness of their undergraduate and graduate programs; they covet and cultivate relationships with their professional constituents; they strive to diversify their faculties, student bodies and curricular offerings; and they keep pace with

technological changes — using them to full pedagogical and instructional advantage — but do not let them consume the unit. Most of all, they value students — while they are on campus and after they become alumni.

“We seek to become the embodiment of those characteristics.”

Nearly a decade and a half after that column was published, I would not change a word.

In large part, we have indeed come to embody those characteristics.

We are — as I am fond of saying — the best-balanced, most comprehensive, student-centered, nationally accredited mass

communication program in the country. Over the past 15 years, it has been a pure joy to

watch the College’s needle point ever northward. For that I thank our dedicated faculty and staff; our strong student body; our supportive central administration; our loyal advisory boards and alumni; and our generous private financial supporters. I take great satisfaction in the marvelous accomplishments of our faculty, staff, students and alumni.

Penn State truly is a special place. It has been a privilege to serve this extraordinary university.

I look forward in the years ahead to watching its continued ascension — and that of the College of Communications.

FROM THE DEAN

Transformational Dean Anderson’s tenure elevated College in all measures

From his first day on the job to his last, and certainly every day in

between, it was all about the people — and also about the numbers — for Dean Doug Anderson.

Anderson, who has guided the Col-lege of Communications since 1999, retired effective July 1. “After 37 years in the academy and 27 in university administration, it’s time,” Anderson said.

During Anderson’s transformation-al 15-year tenure, the College became the country’s largest nationally accred-ited mass communications program

and enjoyed unprecedented success.Anderson’s collaborative approach,

leadership and vision guided the Penn State communications program to improvements in every measurable category. That includes significant increases during his tenure in the number of undergraduate students, the annual number of for-credit internships, the annual number of undergraduate degrees conferred, the annual number of scholarships award-ed, and the value of the College’s permanent endowment. (See box, Page 6.)

Still, Anderson, 66, has appropri-ately maintained an emphasis on undergraduate education. He takes pride in the program’s four-year gradu-ation rate, among the highest of any of Penn State’s academic colleges, and he team-taught an in-depth reporting class each fall.

His collaborative manner has made the College a popular place for faculty, staff and students. The collegiality of the program has played an important part in all that growth and success.

“I feel blessed to have had the


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After delivering his remarks, Doug Anderson is applauded by colleagues at his retirement ceremony April 30. (Photo by John Beale)

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opportunity to work with so many tal-ented faculty members, staff members and students during my tenure here,” Anderson said. “Their combined efforts have made us what we have become. And it has truly been a priv-ilege to get to know so many extraor-dinary graduates of our program and so many exceptionally supportive and loyal constituents and friends.”

On July 1, 1999, Anderson’s first day of work, some staff mem-bers in Carnegie Building were naturally unsure what to think of their new boss. Will Norton, then the dean of the College of Journalism and Mass Commu-nications at the University of Nebraska, phoned and asked to speak with Anderson. When a staff assistant inquired about the nature of the call, Norton, who had not revealed his identity, didn’t miss a beat. He said he was trying to collect a gambling debt.

That bit of humor from a longtime Anderson friend raised some eye-brows, but those who worked with him quickly discovered that the dean was all about the numbers — none of them gambling-related.

Anderson constantly emphasized measurable success, insisting on ways to quantify the accomplishments and growth of the College. Ander-son admits now that his preferred description of the College — “the best-balanced, most comprehensive, student-centered nationally accredited program in America” — was initially just a statement of his aspirations. He wanted to give everyone a goal. By the final years of his tenure, though, his aspirations were a reality.

In 2014, the College won its third consecutive national championship in the William Randolph Hearst Foun-dation’s Journalism Awards Program, which is often called “the Pulitzers of college journalism.”

In 2012 and 2013, “Centre County Report,” a weekly 30-minute newscast, was named the best student newscast in America by the Broadcast Educa-tion Association.

In addition, the College consis-

tently crafted strong performances in competitions sponsored by the Amer-ican Advertising Federation, earned regular praise for work produced by students and faculty in the film-video program, and received accolades for work across all four of its depart-ments.

Penn State President Rodney Erick-son said Anderson has been a stellar dean. During the past 15 years, Erick-

son said, “he has led the development of the College of Communications into one of the most highly regarded and successful academic units of its kind in the nation. He has done so with strategic vision, a great blend of academic and professional talent, and a spirit of collaboration he has helped to instill.”

During Anderson’s tenure, the full-time faculty grew significantly and the number of tenured communications faculty members doubled. Anderson also presided over these develop-ments:

l The College was reorganized into four departments: advertising/public relations, film-video and media studies, journalism, and telecommu-nications.

l The Office of Internships and Career Placement was established.

l State-of-the-art broadcast studios and newsrooms were built at Inno-vation Park as the College’s space increased by more than 40 percent, and student showcases ComMedia, ComRadio and “Centre County Report” were launched.

l The John Curley Center for Sports Journalism, the Jim Jimirro Center for the Study of Media Influ-ence, the Arthur W. Page Center for Integrity in Public Communication,

and the Don Davis Program for Ethi-cal Leadership were created.

The College’s graduate students and faculty members have become fixtures at major academic confer-ences, and the faculty has expanded its wingspan with ever-increasing and nationally ranked scholarly produc-tivity.

The College has become more diverse, with the number of mi-

nority-group students nearly doubling from 380 to 752. In 2013, the College received the Equity and Diversity Award from the Association for Edu-cation in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC). The award is given to the one mass communication program that has attained outstanding increases in racial, gender and

ethnic equity and diversity.The down-to-earth Anderson pro-

vided an unflappable model for his colleagues across campus and in the College. Each year, he concluded his start-of-the-academic year retreat with his executive team with a reminder to “be unselfish.”

Anderson led the College through three successful national accreditation reviews. The most recent accreditation site-visit team, in fall 2012, concluded: “Although the college is the largest nationally accredited communication program in the country, the level of personal attention and support pro-vided to students rivals that of much smaller institutions. ... With a highly talented and dedicated staff ... focused on advising, internships and career placement, and multicultural affairs, this self-proclaimed ‘student-centered’ college lives up to this promise.”

Anderson has made an impression on fellow faculty members, students and alumni.

One of those who particularly remembers his thoughtfulness is Ryan Hockensmith, who was the first Penn State student to represent the University at the Hearst Journalism Awards Program in 32 years when he reached the individual championships in 2001.

“I feel blessed to have had the op-portunity to work with so many tal-ented faculty members, staff mem-bers and students. Their combined efforts have made us what we have become.”

— Dean Doug Anderson

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Still, his trip to San Francisco for the competi-tion was hardly easy. A bout with bacterial meningitis in 1999, just months after Anderson arrived at Penn State, nearly cost him his life. As it was, he lost most of his toes to the disease and was out of school for a year. His family and friends provided constant support, and so did the dean.

“It was my interaction and rela-tionship with him that I will always cherish,” said Hockensmith (’01 Journ), an editor at ESPN. “He cares. He genuinely cares.”

Anderson is the author or co-au-thor of six books, two of which have gone into subsequent editions: “Contemporary Sports Reporting” and “News Writing and Reporting for Today’s Media.” The news writing text is now in its seventh edition and, through the years, has been adopted by more than 200 colleges and univer-sities. Anderson also has written more than 75 academic articles, papers, book chapters and workbooks.

In 2013 Anderson received the AEJMC Presidential Award for “outstanding service to journalism and mass communication education” during the annual AEJMC Confer-ence in Washington, D.C.

Before coming to Penn State, he was the Cronkite Endowment Board of Trustees Professor and director of the Walter Cronkite School of Jour-nalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State.

In 1996, The Freedom Forum, a nonpartisan foundation dedicated to free press, free speech and free spirit for all people, named Anderson Journalism Administrator of the Year. He remains the youngest person ever to receive the award. In 1997, he was the inaugural fellow at the Freedom Forum Pacific Coast Center in San Francisco, where he conducted a study on the state of journalism-mass

communications education.He also is a past president of the

Association of Schools of Journalism and Mass Communication and the Southwest Education Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communication. He is the former three-term chair of the national Ac-crediting Committee of the Accredit-ing Council on Education in Journal-ism and Mass Communications.

A former daily newspaper reporter, sports editor and managing editor, Anderson is a past president of the Nebraska Associated Press Managing Editors Association.

Anderson’s wife, Claudia, retired as an instructor in the College of Educa-tion at Penn State in 2012. He plans to retire with her to Arizona, where their two daughters and twin grand-daughters make their home. l

Donors’ gifts worth $2.6Ma fitting honor

More than 100 College of Communications alumni and friends made gifts to honor Dean Doug Anderson upon his retirement, providing a fitting tribute to his 15-year tenure with support that will make an ongoing impact for students.

A total of $1,392,453 was gifted or pledged in Anderson’s honor and, thanks to the impact of the Trustee Matching Scholarship Program, the value of the gifts reaches $2,674,403.

“The support was appropriate because of Dean Anderson’s commitment to undergraduate education and his own record of giving to the College,” said Kevin Musick, director of development for the College. “The level of support in his honor reflects the level of respect our alumni, faculty, staff and friends have for him.”

The support is additionally appropriate because the gifts were largely made as Trustee Scholarship endowments. The College has created 51 of the endowments since the program was created in 2002. Anderson and his wife, Claudia, created the first Trustee Scholarship in the College — and later added two more: another in their names and one in the names of their daughters, Laura and Mary. Ten other Trustee Scholarships, through the years, have been created in his honor.

Through the program, the University annually provides a percentatge match of the total pledge or gift at the time a Trustee Scholarship is created, making the funds available for student awards as soon as possible — even before a donor’s pledge is fulfilled. The matching funds continue every year thereafter, along with a percentage of the endowment’s market value. Trustee Scholarships created before March 1, 2013, receive a 5 percent match each year of the total pledge; Trustee Scholarships created between March 1, 2013, and June 30, 2014, receive a 10 percent match. l

Year 1999 2014Undergraduate Students 2,825 3,153Annual For-Credit Internships 275 588Annual Degrees Conferred 618 918Annual Scholarships and Awards $192,000 $816,939Permanent Endowment Value $8.9 million $34 million

THE ANDERSON YEARS

Doug and Claudia Anderson

CARNEGIE NEWS


Marie Hardin, associate dean

for undergraduate and graduate education and professor of journalism in the College of Communications, was appointed dean of the College, following a national search.

Her appointment was confirmed by the University’s Board of Trustees at its July 11 meeting.

She succeeds Doug Anderson, who retired July 1 after 15 years as the College’s dean.

“I’m deeply honored to lead the College of Communications, which has been so supportive of my scholarly interests and administrative growth,” said Hardin, who has also directed of the Arthur W. Page Center for Integrity in Public Communication and served as associate director of the John Curley Center for Sports Journalism. “I look forward to working with our outstanding students and my faculty colleagues as the College pursues even greater levels of achievement.”

The College of Communications is the nation’s largest nationally accredited mass communications program. In recent years it has seen unprecedented growth and success, most recently when winning its third consecutive national collegiate championship in the William R. Hearst Foundation’s Journalism Awards Program, the first school to achieve such an honor.

“Marie’s wealth of scholarship and student engagement experience, academic and industry service and record of administrative leadership complement wholly her deep knowledge of the College of Communications and its capabilities. During the interview process that included many qualified applicants

from around the country, she convincingly emerged as the leading candidate,” said Nick Jones, Penn State executive vice president and provost. “Most important to note, though, is her investment in and passion for preparing our students to be communications professionals and scholars in a rapidly evolving field. Marie is the ideal candidate to build upon the outstanding growth and level of achievement for which the College of Communications and its graduates have become renowned nationwide.”

Hardin joined Penn State’s faculty in 2003 after teaching at Florida Southern College and the State University of West Georgia, respectively. In 2009 she was one of four Penn State faculty recipients University-wide of the George W. Atherton Award for Excellence in Teaching, and also was appointed the College of Communications’ associate dean for administration. Hardin was promoted to associate dean for graduate studies and research in 2010, and that same year she was named a finalist for the Scripps Howard

Foundation Journalism and Mass Communication Teacher of the Year. During the 2010-2011 academic year Hardin was appointed an academic leadership fellow with the Committee on Institutional Cooperation, the academic counterpart to the Big Ten Conference. In 2011 she was elevated to the College’s associate dean for undergraduate and graduate education.

Hardin received her doctoral degree in 1998 from the University of Georgia and previously worked as a newspaper reporter and editor and as a freelance magazine writer. She is a member of the national committee for the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications.

Hardin’s research focuses on issues of diversity, ethics and professionalism in sports journalism. She is author of more than 80 journal articles and book chapters and is co-editor of a new book on sports and digital media. In 2013 The University of Georgia Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication named her a distinguished alumni scholar. l

Marie Hardin, a Penn State faculty member since 2003, has built a strong reputation for col-laboration and excellence within the College of Communications, the University and across the country during her tenure. (Photo by Steve Manuel)

University taps Marie Hardin as dean of College


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‘Beat the Press’ earns coveted Bart Richards Award A weekly television show that covers media issues in

Boston and across the nation was selected as the 2013 recipient of the Bart Richards Award for Media Criticism, presented annually by the College of Communications.

“Beat the Press,” which airs Fridays on WGBH-TV, drew praise from judges for the national award because of its balance, diversity and timeliness. The show, part of the station’s nightly “Greater Boston” news and pubic affairs program, provided eight episodes as part of its compelling and complete entry for the award.

The Bart Richards Award recognizes outstanding contributions to print and broadcast journalism through responsible analysis or critical evaluation. The award was presented in late May at the National Press Club in Wash-ington, D.C.

The award is named after the longtime editor of the New Castle (Pa.) News, who was one of the founders and the second president of the Pennsylvania Society of Newspaper Editors. In addition, Bart Richards served as president of the United Press International Editors of Pennsylvania, director of the Reporters Institute of the Pennsylvania Newspaper Publishers Association and was a recipient of the Distinguished Service Award of the Pennsylvania News-paper Publishers Association. Richards served three terms as a representative in the Pennsylvania General Assembly, representing the city of New Castle.

Each weekly episode of “Beat the Press” presents three reports drawn from broadcast, online, print or social media. Creator, moderator and executive editor Emily Rooney leads a panel that regularly includes television producer and radio host Callie Crossley, Dan Kennedy of Northeastern University and guest analysts from news orga-nizations in Boston and beyond.

Judges for the Bart Richards Award cited numerous reasons for selecting “Beat the Press” for the honor. This year’s external judges were: Carole Feldman, director of

news operations and finance for The Associated Press in Washington, D.C.; Steve Geimann, an editor for Bloomberg News and president of the SDX Foundation, which supports the educational mission of the Society of Professional Journalists; and Diane McFarlin, dean of the College of Journalism and Communications at the Univer-sity of Florida.

The judges reviewed finalists after dozens of entries from across the country were screened by faculty members from the College of Communications.

“The show provided kudos before criticism, with a well-informed moderator and a strong panel,” McFarlin said. “They were thoughtful and they really seemed to take great pains to be fair to those they were criticizing.”

The judges were unanimous in the support of “Beat the Press.”

“They were so fair and thoughtful, and in one show went back to correct a mistake they had made in an earlier show,” Geimann said. “It was engaging and watchable. Em-ily Rooney did a great job as host and the subject matter kept me interested right down to the last episode in their submission.”

Subject matter for the shows ranged from media cov-erage of the Boston Marathon bombings to ownership changes at The Boston Globe and The Washington Post. Other topics included coverage of the mayoral race in Boston — specifically how the media focused differently on the only female candidate in the race — and how the high-profile coverage of murder charges against a New England Patriots tight end was handled differently than charges against other accused Boston murderers.

“Best of all, the show was accessible to the general pub-lic,” Feldman said. “It was not just for journalists or some insider program, and it was not beating up the media. It was fair, honest and accessible. Add in the timeliness, and it’s an impressive effort.” l

MICHAEL’S MOMENT

Michael Elavsky (second from right), an associate professor in

the Department of Film-Video and Media Studies talks with

students before a class in Carnegie Building.

(Photo by Will Yurman)

CARNEGIE NEWS


AWARD APPLAUSEAssistant Dean for Multicultural Affairs Joseph Selden (center) accepts the AEJMC Equity and Diversity Award from Paula Poindexter, president of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication. The award recognizes journalism and mass communication academic units that have attained measurable success with approaches to increasing racial, gender and ethnic equity and diversity. Members of the College’s diversity committee on hand for the April presentation on campus included (left to right): Steve Bien-Aime, Carmen Frost, Katie Kennedy and BB Muré. The award was initially presented at the summer 2013 AEJMC Conference in Washington, D.C.(Photo by John Beale)

A leading media scholar presented the spring 2014 Robert M. Pock-rass Memorial Lecture, focusing on journalism and the public memory of violent events.

The free public lecture by Carolyn L. Kitch — titled “What Story Sur-vives? The Intersections of Journalism, Place and Vernacular Culture in Public Memory of Violent Events” — was co-sponsored by the Penn State College of Communications and University Libraries.

Kitch is a professor of journalism at Temple University’s School of Media and Communications. She also teaches in the school’s mass media and communication doctoral program

and has been faculty director for the school’s study-abroad programs in London and Dublin. Her research and teaching areas include memory studies, media history, journalism theory, magazines, gender studies and visual communication.

In addition to numerous journal articles, she has published four books: “Pennsylvania in Public Memory: Reclaiming the Industrial Past” (Penn State University Press, 2012); “Jour-nalism in a Culture of Grief,” co-au-thored with Janice Hume (Routledge, 2008); “Pages from the Past: History and Memory in American Magazines” (University of North Carolina Press, 2005); and “The Girl on the Mag-

azine Cover: The Origins of Visual Stereotypes in American Mass Media” (University of North Carolina Press, 2001). Kitch serves on the editorial board of nine scholarly journals and is an associate editor of Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly. She is a former writer and editor for Reader’s Digest, McCall’s and Good Housekeeping magazines.

The Pockrass Lecture was named after the late professor Robert M. Pockrass, a member of Penn State’s journalism faculty from 1948 to 1977. Pockrass, who specialized in public opinion and popular culture, served as the graduate officer and taught radio news writing. l

Pockrass Lecture examines memory of violent events


CARNEGIE NEWS

Two award-winning and talented journalists shared the secret of their success during the Foster-Foreman Conference of Distinguished Writers — and they said what they did was the farthest thing possible from a secret.

Speaking in separate sessions on campus in early April, Pulitzer Prize-winner Daniel Gilbert of The Wall Street Journal and Samanth Subramanian of The New Yorker told students success was in large measure hard work and persistence. They agreed that a successful journalist needs an inquisitive nature and a passion.

Gilbert earned the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service in 2010. While a staff writer at the Bristol Herald Courier in Bristol, Va., he spent more than a year investigating why millions of dollars in natural-gas royalties were being held in escrow by an obscure Virginia regulatory agency instead of being paid to land owners who badly needed the money.

Gilbert acknowledged the year-long effort took time, but said it was often a matter of “making an extra call” about the topic while he was wait-ing for something to happen with another story. The story kept him intrigued, too.

“I feel myself honored to have gotten to dig into that story whether it won a Pulitzer or not,” he said. “If you’re going to tackle something hard, make sure it’s something you think is really interesting.”

Gilbert, who covers the energy beat while based in Houston for The Wall Street Journal, said dedication needs to go beyond reporting basics. He said data should be a valuable tool for any journalist and that reporting alone cannot guarantee the impact of a story. “It has to be written well enough,” he said.

Likewise, Subramanian stressed preparation and quality as a route to professional success. For him, that preparation began at Penn State,

where he earned his bachelor’s degree in 2001. He said students should embrace the opportunities a communications and liberal arts-based education provides.

“At a university like this, with so many options, it’s just a great excuse to go out there and take classes on anything,” he said, pointing to his electives that ranged from astrophys-ics to skiing. “It gives you the flexibil-ity and knowledge base to be able to go out there and write anything, or almost anything.”

Additionally, he said the repeti-tive nature of journalism — and the opportunities provided by repetition — were important ways in which journalists can improve.

He said people who read and enjoy something should keep it and re-read it later. Then, going beyond what’s fresh or newsy about a piece, it’s possible to dissect the piece to gain a deeper understanding of its positives. “Figure out what makes it tick,” he said. “What is the mechanism that

gives it color and a narrative impe-tus.”

He said that’s something that can happen every day. Day after day.

“That’s the great thing about journalism, our textbook is out there every day in newspapers and maga-zines, and it’s getting rewritten every day,” he said.

In 1997, Larry Foster, a 1948 Penn State graduate, and his wife, Ellen Miller Foster, a 1949 graduate, gave $500,000 to endow the Foster Professorship in Writing and Editing in the College of Communications. The program was designed to sup-port new strategies for improving students’ writing skills and enables the University to host the annual Foster-Foreman Conference of Dis-tinguished Writers. l

Conference visitors challenge, encourage students

Foster-Foreman Conference visitors Dan Gilbert (above with moderator Lori Shontz) and Samanth Subrama-nian respond to questions during the event. (Photo by Dan Griswold)


CARNEGIE NEWS

News “gatekeepers” of old — those who controlled what got published and what did not in the top-down structure of traditional journalism — have been replaced by algorithms and thousands more sources and voices for information exist than ever before.

Still, an ethics expert told an audience of mostly College of Com-munications students during the spring semester that an abundance of information creates even more ethical challenges for those who call them-selves journalists — especially with an ever-more-cynical audience of news consumers.

“We live in a very skeptical age now,” said Kelly McBride, head of the faculty at the Poynter Institute during the annual Oweida Lecture in Jour-nalism Ethics. “In addition to being more transparent, we have to tell the audience why they have to believe us, and that’s a huge leap many profession-al journalists are having trouble doing. You have to give the audience a reason to believe it, because they don’t believe it just because they see it anymore.”

McBride, one of the country’s leading voices on news media ethics, leads the Ethics Department and

the Reporting, Writing and Editing Department at the Poynter Institute, a nonprofit school for journalism. The world’s largest newsrooms, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN, NPR and the BBC, frequently seek her advice for internal decisions and quote her in their stories.

McBride said more information does not mean better information, and she said taking the human ele-ment out of decision making does not make what news the audience gets any less biased or more relevant.

“Now there is this myth that every idea has an equal chance in the mar-ketplace of ideas,” she said. “But the reality is you have too much informa-tion to search yourself. There’s this myth that the algorithms are neutral because they’re mathematical, but the reality is they’re programmed in ways that are not neutral. There’s always a way to ‘game’ the algorithm.”

McBride described how journalism has changed and what news consum-ers can do to help ensure they receive better information. She challenged both journalists and news consumers, saying journalists have an obligation

to know their audience better and that news consumers need to be more engaged in how they consume news.

Along with her many other duties, McBride is also the director of the Poynter Institute’s Sense-Making Project, a Ford Foundation initiative examining the transformation of journalism from a profession for a few to a civic obligation of many, the values of the Fifth Estate and the effects of technology on democracy. She is the co-editor, along with Tom Rosenstiel, of “The New Ethics of Journalism: Principles for the 21st Century,” which features essays by thought leaders and practitioners, as well as a new code of ethics for journalists and people who care about journalism.

McBride also served as the lead writer for the Poynter Review Project, when the Poynter Institute produced 40 columns over an 18-month period reviewing ESPN content across all platforms in 2011-12.

The Dr. N.N. Oweida Lecture in Journalism Ethics is supported by an endowment from Margaret L. Oweida in memory of her husband, the late Dr. N.N. Oweida, a surgeon from New Kensington, Pa. l

SMITH’S SESSIONThe Rev. Al Smith, a longtime civil rights leader and former executive director of the NAACP, was one of three visitors to the College of Communications for separate Heritage Month celebrations coordinated by the Office of Multicultural Affairs during the spring semester. (Photo by Dan Griswold)

Oweida Lecture focuses on audience changes, ethics


CARNEGIE NEWS

Peter King discusses his behind-the-scenes series about NFL officials during his campus visit.

Award-winning sports writer Peter King of Sports Illustrat-ed told Penn State students that ingenuity and versatility are important, and that writing is the most vital building block as they prepare for careers in sports communications and sports journalism.

“Writing is the core of it all,” King said during a campus visit. “If you can’t write, you can’t communicate.”

King, who has been named Sports Writer of the Year three times in the past four years by the National Sports-writers and Sportscasters Association, visited a regularly scheduled session of COMM 170 Introduction to the Sports Industry in Carnegie Building. Students from the two sections of COMM 476 Sports Writing also sat in on the session. Three other members of the team that creates King’s Sports Illustrated microsite, The MMQB, also visit-ed, including alumna Emily Kaplan (’13 Journ).

King started his information-packed session by reviewing two of his favorite projects from The MMQB — a multi-part series when he was embedded with an NFL officiating crew and Austen Lane’s first-person account of what it’s like to get cut from an NFL team. Since its launch last summer under King’s direction, The MMQB has been driven by King’s passion for telling good stories and for telling stories others do not.

“We want to do things every week that no one else does,” King said. With all the media attention focused on the NFL, he knows it’s difficult for any outlet to differenti-ate itself, but that’s his goal for The MMQB. “We all do a lot of the same stories, but there’s still a way to be innova-tive, to be unique.”

As part of a question-and-answer session after his opening remarks, King addressed topics ranging from the NFL Scouting Combine and Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman (a contributor to The MMQB) to his opinion about the use of profanity in sports journalism (he does not think it’s necessary) and the impact of NFL Films and its late president Steve Sabol.

King used the Scouting Combine — an event that has grown from 15 credentialed media members to more than

900 in the past decade and a half — as an example of how sports journalism has changed. He said gaining access and finding stories can be more difficult in such settings, but not impossible.

Many times success in such endeavors comes down to relationships, and that was the case with The MMQB’s publication of a column by Sherman after his emotional post-game interview after the NFC Championship Game in late January. One of the site’s editors contacted Sher-man less than 90 minutes after his ouburst and he agreed to write for the next day. The column drew 3.9 million unique page views. “I would be surprised if anything else in sports this year got that many unique page views,” King said.

King has focused more on storytelling than analytics with The MMQB, though. “Everybody is happy with how things are going. Nobody has sat down and told me you have to have this many uniques,” he said.

Those good stories have made The MMQB a popular destination for people who follow the NFL. Similarly, King did not start building a presence on Twitter until 2009, but he has been a success there (with 1.26 million follow-ers and counting) as well. l

Session addressesdoping, media work

A respected sports journalist and a spokesperson for the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) were part of a free public session titled “Breaking the Code of Silence: USADA, the Media and Lessons Learned

from the Lance Armstrong Case” during the spring semester.

Journalist Bonnie Ford of ESPN.com and Annie Skinner, USADA’s media relations manager, participated in the session moderated by John Affleck, the Knight Chair in Sports Journalism and Society and director of the John Curley Center for Sports Journalism, housed in the College

of Communications. The session looked at how the media did their job, as well as how USADA did its job, during the ongoing, high-profile case that continually provided challenges for journalists.

“There were so many nuances that a discussion about what happened was an important resource for our students,” said Affleck. l

Sports Illustrated visitorstresses value of writing


CARNEGIE NEWS

‘Varsity Blues’ earns coveted Curley Center awardA five-part series address-

ing issues impacting high school sports that focused on topics ranging from budget shortfalls to sports specialization was selected as the winner of the Award for Excellence in Coverage of Youth Sports.

The award for “Varsity Blues,” compiled by the Tampa Bay Times, was presented by the John Curley Center for Sports Journalism during a free public event at the Nittany Lion Inn.

One member of the team of reporters and editors who compiled the series that earned the award start-ed his acceptance speech with a joke, but said he was a little bit overwhelmed by the honor.

“I’m here to accept an award where two of the previous four winners have Pulit-zers,” said Matt Baker of the Tampa Bay Times. “It’s humbling and mind boggling. I’m truly grateful and appre-ciative.”

Baker said the series was a matter of determination and passion for staff members, with several beat writers working on daily assignments and deadlines while compiling informa-tion for “Varsity Blues” simultaneous-ly. Their legwork for the series was exhaustive.

Reporters talked to administrators, coaches, parents, student-athletes and many others. They enhanced their work with research

External judges for the award were unanimous in their support for the se-ries among three finalists. The overall field of entries included submissions from news organizations coast to coast, large and small.

“The Tampa Bay Times produced an ambitious and wide-ranging series, earning the respect of readers and our

judges alike,” said John Affleck, the Knight Chair in Sports Journalism and Society and director of the Curley Center.

The Award for Excellence in Coverage of Youth Sports recognizes creative, in-depth and innovative coverage of youth and high school sports by broadcast, print and online journalists. The award was created in 2009 to recognize work by daily and weekly newspapers, multimedia and online news outlets, local and national television news broadcasts, and national news organizations.

Previous winners were: John Branch, The New York Times, 2012; Rob Rossi, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, 2011; George Dohrmann, “Play Their Hearts Out,” 2010; and Bob Hohler, The Boston Globe, 2009.

The John Curley Center for Sports Journalism, housed in the College of Communications, explores issues and trends in sports journalism through instruction, outreach, pro-gramming and research. The Center

was established in 2003 with Distin-guished Professional in Residence and Professor John Curley and Dean Doug Anderson serving as founding co-directors.

It was named the John Curley Center for Sports Journalism in Sep-tember 2006, honoring Curley, whose more than five decades of newspaper experience includes work as a report-er, editor, publisher and, ultimately, president, CEO and chairman of the Gannett Co. He was the first editor of USA Today.

The Center’s undergraduate curricu-lar emphasis includes courses in sports writing, sports broadcasting, sports information, sports, media and society, and sports and public policy, which is cross-listed with the Penn State Dickinson School of Law. The Center emphasizes internships with newspa-pers, magazines and electronic media, and on-campus co-curricular work at the student-run newspaper (The Daily Collegian), the Penn State sports infor-mation office and campus radio. l

Matt Baker of the Tampa Bay Times accepts the Award for Excellence in Coverage of Youth Sports on behalf of his paper. (Photo by Dan Griswold)


CARNEGIE NEWS

Grant supports business professorship beginning in 2015Penn State will host a visiting busi-

ness journalism professor in spring 2015 under an Arizona State Universi-ty program funded by the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation.

This is the fourth year the founda-tion has funded business journalism professors at universities to encourage development of stronger business journalism education. The $1.67 mil-lion grant is administered through the Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism at ASU’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.

The five-year program will ultimate-ly create 11 visiting professorships at 11 different schools.

The College of Communications has already started to share informa-tion about the professorship, and pro-spective professors may apply online.

“One of our goals in funding this grant was to broaden the reach of the Donald W. Reynolds National

Center for Business Journalism into other institutions across the country,” said Steve Anderson, president of the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation. “This year, another grantee will join the existing cadre of institutions that will be able to enhance and expand their ability to teach the principles and skills necessary to train the next generation of business journalists.”

In addition to teaching courses in business journalism in the spring 2015 semester, the visiting professor will help establish partnerships with local media and contribute to the BusinessJournalism.org website. Host schools, which also are eligible for funding for business journalism internships and visits by business journalists, provide space as well as technical and administrative support for the professors.

All schools in the program commit to continue teaching business journal-ism after the grants conclude.

In spring 2014, visiting professors are at California State-Fullerton and the University of Oklahoma. In 2013, visiting professors taught at Cen-tral Michigan, Elon and Louisiana State universities. The first business journalism visiting professors taught in spring 2012 at Colorado State Uni-versity, Grambling State University, the University of South Carolina and Texas Christian University.

Since 2003, more than 20,000 jour-nalists have learned to cover business better through free training from the Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism. The center also provides free regional workshops and webinars, as well as daily tips on how to cover business better on its BusinessJournalism.org website. It is funded by the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation, a national philanthropic organization founded in 1954 by the late media entrepreneur for whom it is named. l

FORSYTHE’S FORMULATom Forsythe, vice president of global communications for General Mills, discusses the rollout of Cheerios made without genetically modified ingredients during a session in Willard Building. Along with class visits and individual sessions with faculty members, Forsythe delivered a public address titled “The Trust Imperative” during his multiday campus visit for the Arthur W. Page Center Professional-in-Residence and Lecture Series. (Photo by Hannah Biondi)


CARNEGIE NEWS

NEWS, NOTESl The College’s annual undergraduate open house has been scheduled for Oct. 4 on the University Park campus. Prospec-tive students from across Pennsylvania, and from neighboring states, will be invited to the daylong event on the Saturday in early October to meet faculty, staff and students. Breakout sessions for the day will focus on educational options in the four communications departments, co-curricular activities and the importance of internships. In addition, families and prospective students are able to tour campus, including College of Com-munications facilities in Carnegie Building and at Innovation Park, which serves as home for the state-of-the-art TV studios used by communica-tions students.

l Emmy Award-nominated multimedia journal-ist Masise Crow presented a free public lecture and shared a screening of her latest documentary, “The Last Clinic,” when she visited campus during the spring semester. The 50-min-ute documentary examines the fight between Mississippi’s only remaining abortion clinic and a state law that threatens to close the facility. “She is one of the best multimedia journalists in the world,” said Curt Chandler, a senior lecturer in the Department of Journalism. “She’s an exceptional storyteller. She’s very good with video.” Crow plans to expand the documentary to a feature-length film and make it available for festivals in 2015.

l Alumna Dana O’Neil (’90 Journ), who covers college basketball for ESPN, visited with students and members of the student chapter of the Association for Women in Sports Media at Penn State as part of a busy, one-day campus visit during the spring semester.

Visiting journalist works closely with students, faculty during campus visit

A respected journalist with more than 30 years of experience spent three days visiting the College of Communications and serving as the inaugural Norman Eberly Vis-iting Professional in Business Jour-nalism during the spring semester.

Len LaCara, business editor of the Rochester (N.Y.) Democrat and Chronicle, worked closely with faculty members and students while visiting reporting methods and editing classes in mid-April.

A native of Rochester, LaCara previously worked as the paper’s enterprise editor. He first worked for the Democrat and Chronicle from 1989-95 and has worked for news organizations in Huntington, W.Va., and central Ohio during his career. He returned to his home-town paper in April 2013.

The opportunity for a visiting professional focusing on business journalism was made possible through a first-of-its-kind com-munications professorship — the Norman Eberly Professorship in Journalism. The support, which en-dows a faculty position and related programming, was created through the University’s ongoing Faculty Endowment Challenge.

A major gift by Joseph Eberly and his wife, Shirley, endowed the professorship in the name of Norman Eberly, who graduated

from Dickinson College in 1924 and then worked as a newspaper journalist for more than 20 years — first as an undergraduate — be-fore joining the Penn State staff as a writer-editor in the College of Agricultural Sciences. He helped publicize agricultural extension and outreach efforts across the state of Pennsylvania and worked closely with student writers.

Norman Eberly retired from Penn State to continue his writing career with the Pennsylvania De-partment of Agriculture, where he coordinated public relations efforts for the secretary of agriculture and made an impact across the Com-monwealth, but he always stayed connected to Penn State.

Joseph Eberly, the Andrew Carnegie Professor of Physics at the University of Rochester, learned the importance of writing from his father and hoped the gift would keep his father connected with journalism at Penn State in perpetuity. In just three years since its inception, the endowment has proven it can do that, and do it in a practical manner.

“Having the opportunity to get top-level professionals on campus, working directly with our students, is always a good thing,” said Ford Risley, head of the Department of Journalism. l

News, eventsand more online.

http://comm.psu.edu

Four College of Communi-cations faculty members

earned annual Deans’ Excel-lence Awards that recognize teaching, integrated scholar-ship, research and service that were presented at the end of the academic year.

Those awards for full-time faculty members, as well as an award for outstanding faculty associate, were presented by Dean Doug Ander-son after consultation with Associate Dean Marie Hardin.

“Our selection process was not easy,” Anderson said. “Several faculty members were strong contenders in each category, but, ultimately, we came down to a handful. And each of our recipients symbolizes in each of his or her respective categories, the full depth of talent we have on this faculty.”

The honorees were:l Russ Eshleman, Excellence in

Teaching Award;l Michelle Rodino-Colocino, Excel-

lence in Research and Creative Activity; l Kevin Hagopian, Excellence in

Service; andl Fuyuan Shen, Excellence in Inte-

grated Scholarship.Lecturer David Norloff was named

Outstanding Faculty Associate.Eshleman, a senior lecturer and

associate head of the Department of Journalism, has taught eight different courses during his career at Penn State and has consistently put students at the center of his approach.

He has earned high ratings from students evaluations, but his impact goes beyond those numbers. He serves as a mentor in the classroom and about crafting a career.

“He is the embodiment of an effec-tive, gifted journalism professor who is both ‘old school’ and ‘new school.’ He is as strategic and comfortable reading to his depth-reporting students from the foreword of The Final Days, a book by Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein published in 1976, as he is requiring students in his reporting class to tweet


FACU

LTY/

STAF

F NEW

S Deans’ Excellence Awards honor teaching, more

FuyuanShen

DavidNorloff

RussEshleman

MichelleRodino-Colocino

KevinHagopian

when covering Election Day,” Anderson said.

During the seven years Eshleman has taught the depth-reporting class, more than two dozen of his students have captured top-10 national writing awards and scholarships in the William Ran-dolph Hearst Foundation’s Journalism Awards Program, which annually draws more than 500 entries from students across the country.

“He embodies all that is right about undergraduate teaching,” Anderson said. “He has the ability to make stu-dents better than they ever thought they could be.”

Rodino-Colocino, an associate pro-fessor in the Department of Film-Video and Media Studies, had work published in refereed journals, produced book chapters and encyclopedia entries, and was the author or co-author of refereed presentations at seminars and work-shops.

Her research focus explores relation-ships between gender, labor and media — and she continues to branch beyond that, with a book project as her focus during an upcoming sabbatical year.

She serves as an editorial board mem-ber for the discipline, and as an active mentor for graduate students at Penn State — serving on the doctoral, master’s or honors thesis committees of more than 20 students.

“She’s truly hitting full stride as a researcher and scholar,” Anderson said. “And like so many truly impressive producers of scholarly work, she also earns strong evaluations while teaching a regular load of courses.”

Hagopian, a senior lecturer in the Department of Film-Video and Media

Studies, provided yeoman service to the College and the University in the past year — most notably on the General Education Task Force, which is charged with redesigning the general education system at Penn State, across all campus-es.

“It’s a Herculean task, and extremely time consuming,” Anderson said. “This is not a committee where you just show up, spout a few words and move on.”

Hagopian also serves as his depart-ment’s representative to the Student Learning Objectives Committee and several ad-hoc committees for master’s degree thesis revision, honors theses and academic integrity.

Along with that, he teaches a full complement of courses that includes large sections of COMM 150 The Art of the Cinema. He also regularly serves as a contact for media outlets seeking experts to discuss film history, topical movie industry news and a variety of other issues.

Shen, an associate professor in the Department of Advertising/Public Relations, was one of several faculty members who combined teaching, research and service well.

In the classroom, the taught under-graduate and graduate courses, includ-ing a first-year seminar. At the same time, he co-authored articles published or accepted for publication in three dif-ferent journals and he presented papers in the United States and abroad.

He also served on more than 10 graduate committees.

“He is one of the hardest working and most dedicated members of our faculty,” Anderson said.

Norloff has developed courses that


FACULTY/STAFF NEWS

CINEMA CLASSSenior lecturer Kevin Hagopian discusses the impact of digital technology on the moviegoing experience during a class as part of his COMM 150 The Art of the Cinema course. The class meets at the State Theatre in downtown State College. (Photo by Dan Griswold)

Three graduate students were honored for their teaching — with two earning University-wide awards and another receiving the Jung Yoon Choy Award for Excellence in Teaching by a Graduate Student from the College of Communications.

Janelle Applequist and Drew Shade were among 10 graduate students from all disciplines at Penn State who received the Harold F. Martin Graduate Assistant Outstanding Teaching Award. Recipients must have served as a graduate assistant for at least two semesters within the last two years. The award is named for Harold F. Martin, who earned his doctoral degree in education in 1954 and retired as a director in the Pennsylvania Department of Education.

Separately, Steve Bien-Aimé earned the College award named for Choy, who was a doctoral student in the College of Communications from 2001 to 2005 before she died in a car accident. She was an exceptional teacher and the award was endowed in her name by her family.

Bien-Aimé puts a premium on critical thinking and skill development. Plus, as a former Penn State undergraduate himself he brings an important understanding of undergraduates to the classroom.

One faculty member who observed his teaching said: “He remains open to new ideas and asks smart, probing questions of his class and peers. His enthusiasm is contagious.” l

introduce students to cutting-edge tech-nologies by drawing on his significant professional experience in the wireless industry. After working as a senior manager or director in new product and market development for several brand-name companies, Norloff began teaching in the Department of Telecom-munications in 2009.

During that time, he has developed two new courses and earned strong ratings for his teaching from students, who consistently cite him as highly organized, enthusiastic and student-cen-tered.

Said one student: “Instead of just having a cell phone in my pocket, I now understand how and why my cell phone came to be. Instead of being a ‘wireless zombie,’ I feel like I’ve learned a great deal of information.” l

Graduate students earn teaching awards


FACULTY/STAFF NEWS

Bird makes most of second act, ready for a thirdBarbara Bird remembers her first

sight of Penn State, and it felt a bit like a scene from a movie.

She was flying into Happy Valley for a job interview and looked out the air-plane window. “You could just see this little patch of lights glimmering down there,” Bird said. “It looked small and quaint. It looked nice.”

Bird, taking a big step in her second career after 20 years as a nurse, was visiting central Pennsylvania for an in-terview for a full-time teaching position after completing her graduate work at Northwestern University.

Penn State was not the first choice for her academic career, but it turned out to be the right choice for her, hundreds of students through the years and a program that crafted a productive and respected role at the University.

“I think we’ve been successful togeth-

er,” Bird said. “We have this lovely jewel of a program that can give students a tremendous amount of personal atten-tion, and I’m so proud to have been a part of its growth.”

After 17 years at Penn State, Bird decided to retire, effective June 30. During her tenure, the Department of Film-Video and Media Studies was one of four created in the College of Communications. Bird quickly emerged as leader within the department and the College.

Along with her teaching and com-mittee work, she has served at different times as acting head of the department and as director of international pro-grams for the College.

Dean Doug Anderson arrived on campus two years after Bird and leaned on her early in his career.

“I knew back in 1999 that it was

terribly unfair to expect a tenure-track assistant professor to assume service and administrative responsibilities, but, let’s face it, anyone who had been a charge nurse in the operating room of a major hospital could handle the task,” Anderson said. “Obviously, Barbara has made an enormous contribution to the College and its film-video students over the past 17 years.”

And, as she envisions retirement Bird does not foresee herself slowing down or stopping. She’s just moving on to different challenges and opportunities. She plans on spending more time with her three grown children and five grand-children in Chicago. She also has a few projects in mind. She’s clearly looking forward — although she did entertain a few sentimental moments.

“There were times during the final semester when I thought about the last

Barbara Bird, an associate professor in the Department of Film-Video and Media Studies, accepts a round of applause from colleagues during an award ceremony when she was honored upon her retirement. (Photo by John Beale)


FACULTY/STAFF NEWStime I’d be doing this or that, and I’ll certainly miss the fall — there’s such a great energy on campus at that time of year,” Bird said. “But, it’s just time to do something different.”

Bird is not one to shy away from an opportunity — often parlaying her passion into productivity. Her career in higher education was one such opportunity. It seemed like a drastic change to some, but not Bird.

“It made perfect sense to me,” she said of the transition from nursing. “It didn’t seem the least bit odd, articularly with the background my dad gave me.”

Influenced by her father (with whom she made films that were much more than simple family narratives when she was a child) and filmmakers like Michael Moore, Bird found her voice in documentaries.

Many of her film credits, as well as those on which she advised students or collaborated with community groups, were “cause” efforts — things done to benefit and support others. She invari-ably encouraged her students as they did the same.

“I told my students that my work came from being ticked off,” Bird said. “It’s fabulous to be able to find a place to express that. I love to rock the boat. Plus, made up stories are not as interest-ing to me as real issues.”

Bird’s credits include: “No. 4 Street of Our Lady” (2009), which looks at the 60-year silence of some Holocaust survivors; “Album” (2002), which ex-plores a family’s struggles with addiction and dysfunction; and “Handmaidens” (1995), which looks at abuse and lack of power in the workplace.

The most recent film in that trio allowed Bird to help tell the personal story of another person’s family while collaborating with fellow faculty mem-bers. Her skills were vital in helping convey the story for a film that earned numerous accolades, including a Silver Telly Award and was honored at an Academy Award-qualifying festival.

Her thesis documentary, “Handmaid-ens,” was about nurses — a personal story that also earned several awards.

Bird’s varied portfolio also ranges from a film made for a suicide survivor group to a 15-minute documentary titled “Ghosts of Carnegie.” The latter was made to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Carnegie Building, which serves as the on-campus home for the College.

She approached every project with the same focus on storytelling and level of professionalism. And, while she brings a passion to all her work she also brings important perspective — an approach that works well on a busy campus and with varied audiences. That statesperson-like approach, albeit a bit vocal at times in her preferred rock-the-boat style, was important in the growth of the film program.

“We are supported and I think valued,” Bird said. “I’ve alwas felt included.”

During her final spring semester, a pair of 2001 film-video graduates (Tony Layser and Dave Leopold) with whom Bird had worked closely, were among the visitors to campus to share their expertise.

“When something comes full circle like that it’s really rewarding,” Bird said. “That’s just one of the things that made working here so special.” l

Longtime assistantMulberger ends career

Longtime College of Communications assistant to the dean Kathy Mulberger retired in March after 35 years at Penn State.

The final 11 years of Mulberger’s career were in the College, where she supported Dean Doug Anderson, provided personality and perspective in the ever-busy dean’s suite and played a big behind-the-scenes role in the success of students in national competitions in recent years.

Mulberger began her Penn State career in 1978 and worked in several units at the University before moving to the College in 2003.

“She set the tone of caring and professionalism in our office,” Anderson said. “I always admired and appreciated her for her dedication to her job, her consistency, her demeanor and her good temperament in good times and challenging times.”

As expected, Mulberger maintained Anderson’s schedule and provided top-notch office support. She also had a deft touch with an audience that ranged daily from parents of prospective students to other campus administrators and from faculty and staff to students. Additionally, Mulberger was often the final and most important person to manage the paperwork and ensure all the I’s were dotted and the T’s were crossed when the College compiled entries for national awards and contests.

During retirement Mulberger plans to enjoy time with her family and focus more on her craft projects and volunteer endeavors. l

KathyMulberger

Bird with fellow faculty member Richie Sherman. (Photo by John Beale)


FACULTY/STAFF NEWS

Feature-length comedy debuts at State College festivalWhen a group of 1960s British

pop rockers gets mistakenly launched into space and lands on a planet populated entirely by women, some groovy craziness can follow — and that’s exactly what happens in “Ripped!” the latest feature-length comedy produced by a husband-and-wife filmmaking team in the College of Communications.

The film — which made its pre-miere in mid-April at the State Theatre in State College — fol-lows Norman’s Normans, a mop-topped quartet that work at the British Space Agency. They get sent into space when a trained chimp accidentally punches in a launch code.

On the faraway planet they meet women wary of anything male, although the queen’s daughter falls in love with the band’s music and its lead singer, Norman. At the same time, officials back on Earth are working to help the band return home. The film trailer is available to watch online.

“Ripped!” — a 105-minute, come-dy sci-fi musical — provides a tip of the cap to some well-known mov-ie-and-music combinations. The film is the fourth feature-length film from writer/director Rod Bingaman and producer Maura Shea, both of whom are senior lecturers in the Department of Film-Video and Media Studies.

“It’s what they used to call a juke-box movie. It started with Bill Haley and the Comets in ‘Rock Around the Clock,’ has 31 Elvis variations, has a Herman’s Hermits version, a very trippy Monkees movie and was raised to what might be called an art form by director Richard Lester and the Beatles,” says Bingaman. “What I see in ‘A Hard Day’s Night’ and ‘Help!’ are the unscripted and charming per-sonalities of John, Paul, George and Ringo, not to mention their music. The films themselves have all the attributes of the band: spontaneity, an openness to improvisation and a feel

for the audience that neither preaches nor panders. You wish you were in the movie yourself. That’s the flavor we went for in ‘Ripped!’”

The film’s debut came on open-ing night of the College Town Film Festival.

Led by Bingaman and Shea, “Ripped!” was produced with profes-sional actors in lead roles and with dozens of Penn State alumni, students and community members playing vital roles in making the production possible.

“This cast and crew were not hard-ened, industry-connected impresarios. We were a mix of modest film/theatre professionals and young energetic newcomers,” Bingaman said. “About as regular folk as it gets with lights, boom ops and jibs. The technology has changed, but ‘Ripped!’ is still a garage movie. Its real spirit is in the people making and performing it — a groovy collection of fun-loving creative people.”

In coming months, “Ripped!” will be screened at various festivals across the region. Photos of the cast and pro-duction crew and more information

about “Ripped!” may be found at rippedthemovie.com online. In addition, Norman’s Normans have their own Facebook fan page, which includes an interview with the band about the film.

With their production compa-ny, Ma & Pa Pictures, Bingaman and Shea previously produced “Chasing Butterflies” (2009), “Hooray for Mister Touchdown” (2004) and “A Holiday Affair” (2000).

Bingaman has more than 20 years of industry experience, including work on feature films, broadcast television, commercials and corporate communications as a writer, director, cameraman and editor. Among his directing credits are various commercial spots, including a national March of Dimes campaign and an award-winning short narrative film, “Why Wilbur Bowls …”

(1994). “A Holiday Affair” (2000) earned the Audience Award at the Brooklyn Film Festival 2000 and “Chasing Butterflies” earned a na-tional distribution agreement. He is the former recipient of the Massachu-setts Cultural Council Artist Grant and has received both the College of Communications Excellence in Teaching Award (2001, 2011) and the College of Communications Alumni Association Excellence in Teaching Award (2005).

Shea boasts experience as a sound designer and editor on projects rang-ing from independent feature films to award-winning documentaries such as “Malcolm X: Make it Plain” and two segments for “Sesame Street.” She served as producer of all the Ma & Pa Pictures’ feature films. She also wrote, directed and produced the award-win-ning short drama “Under Control” (1992), which won first prize in the National Council on Family Rela-tions Media Awards Competition. She teaches non-linear editing and beginning and advanced film-video production. l


FACULTY/STAFF NEWS

Independentfilms get focusat town festival

The College Town Film Festi-val — a four-day event with guest lectures, high-profile visitors, panel discussions and nearly two dozen screenings — brought a celebration of independent film to Penn State and the State College community in mid-April.

The second-year festival included documentary, feature length and short films with screenings at the State Theatre in downtown State College as well as Carnegie Cinema and Foster Auditorium of Paterno Library on the University Park campus.

A busy day at the State Theatre began the festival, with four sepa-rate screenings that ranged from a documentary about brain drain in Iran to a series of short horror films. The first day also included the world premiere of “Ripped!” a feature-length comedy produced by a husband-and-wife production team in the College of Communi-cations.

A lecture, four screenings (including the world premiere of “First Light”), a script reading and a

concert comprised the schedule for the second day at the State The-atre. And the options and variety continued subsequent days at the downtown theater and locations on campus. The festival ended with “Speak Now,” a wedding comedy featuring the acting of alumnus Rane Jameson (’05 Film-Video), who attended the festival to talk about the film.

“We’re excited that the festival was able to return to State College,” said Matthew Jordan, an associate professor in the Department of Film-Video and Media Studies and president of the board of directors for the festival. “Students and community members had a great opportunity to see new indepen-dent films and talk about them with the people who made them.”

Most screenings during the festi-

val were accompanied by discussion and question-and-answer sessions with directors, producers or actors involved in the productions, as well as Penn State faculty members who work on topics touched on by the films. The list of guests included: actor James Denton, a festival board member and champion of indepen-dent film who has appeared in film, on stage and in television shows such as “Desperate Housewives”; editor Julian Doyle, who edited the acclaimed and controversial “Brazil,” as well as three Monty Py-thon films; and Rod Bingaman and Maura Shea, the senior lecturers in the College of Communications who wrote, directed and produced “Ripped!”

Several colleges and units across campus provided support for the festival. l

A Penn State faculty member has co-edited a book that examines how media intersect with the social lives of people in three broad areas: media and the self, media and relationships, and social life in emerging media.

“Media and Social Life” (2014, Routledge) highlights cutting-edge scholarship from preeminent scholars in media psychology. The 240-page book — co-edited by Distinguished Professor Mary Beth Oliver, a member of the Department of Film-Video and Media Studies and co-director of the Media Effects Research Laboratory, and Arthur A. Raney of Florida State University — examines how media touch on all aspects of people’s social lives.

Because of the pervasive nature of media, how people understand themselves and others is largely dependent on how they perceive themselves and others in media.

That includes how they interact with one another through medi-ated channels, and how they share, construct and understand social issues via their mediated lives.

The scholars provide insightful and up-to-date examinations of theories and research that inform the current understanding of the role of media in people’s social lives.

They also detail provocative and valuable roadmaps that will form that basis of future scholarship in the important and rapidly evolving media landscape.

Oliver’s research in media effects focuses on entertainment psychology and on social cognition. Her recent publications on these topics have appeared in the Journal of Communication, Human Com-munication Research and Communication Research. She is an associate editor of the Journal of Media Psychology. l

Faculty member co-edits book about media, social life


FACULTY/STAFF NEWS

Steve Sampsell, director of college relations and senior lecturer in jour-nalism in the College of Communica-tions, was named the 2014 recipient of the Barash Award for Human Service at Penn State

Created in 1975 by the family of the late Sy Barash, the award honors a full-time member of the faculty or staff or student body on the Universi-ty Park campus who, apart from his or her regular duties, has contributed the most to human causes, public service activities and organizations, or the welfare of fellow humans.

Sampsell was cited for his service to the University, community organiza-tions and his church. He has chaired the College of Communications’ United Way committee for a decade, during which time the College consis-tently has posted the highest percent-age of faculty and staff who contribute and the highest per-capita faculty-staff

contribution among academic colleges. He initiat-ed and continues to coordinate the Charity Stripe Challenge as a cam-pus-wide United Way fundraiser,

is an adviser to the Student United Way and coordinates College of Communications teams for the United Way Day of Caring.

In the community, Sampsell has been a coach and board member for the Centre Soccer Association and a coach and booster club officer for girls basketball and track at State College Area High School, including creating State High’s first Pink Zone basketball game. Although his daughters have graduated from high school, he has continued to volunteer at the After Prom All Night Senior Party.

At St. Paul’s United Methodist Church, Sampsell previously has served as a Sunday school teacher, cooked lunches for Penn State stu-dents at the church’s Wesley Center and volunteered with youth activities including the after-school program, summer Bible school and mission trips to the District of Columbia. He volunteers as a small-group leader for senior high boys and as Sunday ser-vice lighting crew member at Fairfax Community Church in Fairfax, Va.

“Steve Sampsell is a true humani-tarian,” one nominator said. “I have never worked with anyone who gives so freely, generously, efficiently and effectively of his time for good causes across the spectrum.” Another nomi-nator wrote: “He doesn’t just show up at activities and work 10 minutes; he gives his heart and soul to everything he does.” l

Matthew McAllister, professor of media studies in the College of Communications, received the 2014 Graduate Faculty Teaching Award at Penn State.

The award, established in 1992 by The Graduate School, is presented to faculty members in recognition of outstanding teaching performance and advising of gradu-ate students.

During his 10 years at Penn State, McAllister has taught a range of graduate-level courses, including core courses, colloquium and spe-cial-topics courses.

“Many of our top doctoral applicants over the past few years have been drawn to the program by Dr. McAllister’s work, and they seek to take his classes as soon as they arrive,” one nominator said. McAllister’s student ratings in graduate-level courses have aver-aged 6.34 for “quality of course” and 6.72 for “quality of instruction” on a

seven-point scale.One former student said about

McAllister, “He achieved a rare

balance: The classroom discussion was open enough to allow each student to share and develop his or her understanding of the material; however, Dr. McAllister always had that incisive knack for guiding the discussion or interjecting with expert analysis, when necessary.”

McAllister has advised or co-ad-vised seven doctoral candidates and served on doctoral committees for 16 more. In addition to official advising, he said, “All of my classes also involve a strong degree of mentorship.”

A former student said: “His unwavering support, enthusiasm and dedication to my project kept me motivated during the hardest se-mester of my graduate school career, one where I applied to 60-plus jobs (and interviewed with six schools), was prepping and teaching a new undergraduate course and simul-

taneously writing a lengthy disserta-tion.” l

McAllister receives Graduate Faculty Teaching Award

Sampsell honored with Barash Award for Human Service

Professor Matt McAllister accepts the Graduate Faculty Teaching Award from Penn State President Rodney Erickson.

SteveSampsell


FACULTY/STAFF NEWS

Dennis Davis, professor emeritus in the College of Communications, has been named the recipient of the 2014 Broadcast Education As-sociation (BEA) Lifetime Achieve-ment in Scholarship.

Davis is currently serving as a visiting professor at the University of Oklaho-ma.

He holds a bachelor’s degree from St. Olaf Col-lege (1967) and a doctorate from the University of Minnesota (1973).

He has held admin-istrative positions and served on the faculty at Cleveland State University, Southern Illinois University, the University of North Dakota and the University of Otago in New Zealand.

BEA’s Lifetime Achievement in Scholarship, formerly called the Distinguished Scholar Award, recognizes significant contribu-tions to research and scholarship involving broadcast and electronic media. Recipients are selected for their extensive publication in books and leading journals for at least 20 years.

The award was presented to Da-vis at BEA’s annual convention in Las Vegas during a ceremony and reception. He also made a formal presentation, titled “From the Black Box to the World Wide Web: A Lifetime in Media Research,” during the convention.

Davis was editor of the Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media from 1994 to 1997. He was an associate editor of the Journal of Communication, a review and crit-icism editor for Critical Studies in Mass Communication and has served on editorial boards for Journal of Communication, Journal of Broadcast-ing and Electronic Media, Political Communication and Communica-

tion Quarterly. He was a Fulbright Senior Lecturer in the Netherlands and Belgium in 1979-80.

His research and teaching inter-ests include new media, political communication, international

communication, media the-ory and research methods. Davis co-authored “Mass Communication Theory: Foundations, Ferment and Future,” with Stanley Ba-ran.” His works have won the Donald McGannon

Award for Social and Ethical Relevance in Communication Poli-cy Research from Fordham Univer-sity and the Broadcasting Preceptor Award from San Francisco State University.

In 2010, he received the Distin-guished Educator Award from the Mass Communication and Society Division of Association for Ed-ucation in Journalism and Mass Communication.

BEA’s annual convention is held in conjunction with National Asso-ciation of Broadcasters Show in Las Vegas every spring. The conven-tion attracts 1,200 educators and students with 200 sessions, events, research panels, technology work-shops and an exhibit hall, making BEA the largest conference partner of the NAB Show.

BEA is the professional asso-ciation for professors, industry professionals and graduate students interested in teaching and research related to electronic media and multimedia enterprises. There are more than 2,500 individual and in-stitutional members worldwide. l

Schejter getsrole leading regulatory committee

A faculty member in the College of Communications who also holds an appointment at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev has been appointed to lead a committee tasked with developing regulatory recommendations for the burgeoning audiovisual market in Israel.

Amit Schejter, an associate professor in the Department of Telecommunications and an associate professor in the Department of Communication Studies at Ben-Gurion University, was appointed by Israel’s communications minister, Gilad Erdan, to lead the 10-person committee that will propose the regulatory framework as Israel’s broadcast market changes as the result of fiber-optic cable and Internet broadcasts.

Along with proposing the framework, the committee has been charged with poposing the structure of oversight bodies in the audiovisual market as Israel attempts to facilitate a transition for existing broadcasters and introduce new service providers. The committee’s recommendations are due by August.

At Penn State, Schejter serves as co-director of the Institute for Information Policy. He is a founding co-editor of the Journal of Information Policy, a former director of legal affairs and international relations for the Israel Broadcasting Authority and former vice president for regulatory affairs at Cellcom Israel. l

Respected Davis earns prestigious Lifetime Achievement in Scholarship

Dennis Davis

AmitSchejter


FACULTY/STAFF NEWS

In the tech world, coolness takes more than just good looks. Technol-ogy users must consider a product attractive, original and edgy before they label those products as cool, according to researchers.

That coolness can turn tepid if the product appears to be losing its edginess, they also found.

“Everyone says they know what ‘cool’ is, but we wanted to get at the core of what ‘cool’ actually is, because there’s a different connotation to what cool actually means in the tech world,” said S. Shyam Sundar, Distinguished Professor of Communi-cations, and co-director of the Media Effects Research Laboratory.

The researchers found that a cool technology trend may move like a

wave. First, people in groups outside the mainstream begin to use a device. The people in that subculture are typically identified as those who stand out from most of the people in the mainstream and have an ability to stay a step ahead of the crowd, according to the researchers.

Once a device gains coolness in the subculture, the product becomes adopted by the mainstream.

However, any change to the prod-uct’s subculture appeal, attractiveness or originality will affect the product’s overall coolness, according to the researchers, who report their findings in the current issue of the International Journal of Human-Computer Studies. If a product becomes more widely adopt-ed by the mainstream, for example, it

becomes less cool.“It appears to be a process,” Sundar

said. “Once the product loses its subculture appeal, for example, it becomes less cool, and therein lies the challenge.”

The challenge is that most compa-nies want their products to become cool and increase sales, Sundar said. However, after sales increase, the products become less cool and sales suffer. To succeed, companies must change with the times to stay cool.

“It underscores the need to develop an innovation culture in a company,” Sundar said. “For a company to make products that remain cool, they must continually innovate.”

However, products that have fallen out of favor can have coolness

Distinguished Professor S. Shyam Sundar, co-director of the Media Effects Research Laboratory, displays some “cool” technology from the past and present. (Photo by Patrick Mansell)

Tech products can turn ‘uncool’ with rise in popularity


FACULTY/STAFF NEWSrestored if the subculture adopts the technology again. For example, record players, which were replaced in cool-ness by digital files, are beginning to increase in popularity with the subcul-ture, despite their limited usefulness. As a result, participants in a survey considered the record players as cool.

The researchers asked 315 college students to give their opinions on 14 different products based on the ele-ments of coolness taken from current literature. Previously, researchers be-lieved that coolness was largely related to a device’s design and originality.

“Historically, there’s a tendency to think that cool is some new technolo-gy that is thought of as attractive and novel,” said Sundar. “The idea is you create something innovative and there is hype — just as when Apple is releas-

ing a new iPhone or iPad — and the consumers that are standing in line to buy the product say they are buying it because it’s cool.”

A follow-up study with 835 partic-ipants from the United States and South Korea narrowed the list to four elements of coolness — subculture appeal, attractiveness, usefulness and originality — that arose from the first study. In a third study of 317 partici-pants, the researchers found that use-fulness was integrated with the other factors and did not stand on its own as a distinguishing trait of coolness.

“The utility of a product, or its usefulness, was not as much of a part of coolness as we initially thought,” said Sundar.

Such products as USB drives and GPS units, for example, were not

considered cool even though they were rated high on utility. On the other hand, game consoles like Wii and X-box Kinect were rated high on coolness, but low on utility. However, many products ranking high on cool-ness — Macbook, Air, Prezi Software, Instagram and Pandora — were also seen as quite useful, but utility was not a determining factor.

“The bottom line is that a tech product will be considered cool if it is novel, attractive and capable of building a subculture around it,” said Sundar.

Sundar worked with Daniel J. Ta-mul, assistant professor of communi-cations at Indiana University-Purdue University, and Mu Wu, agraduate student at Penn State.

— Matt Swayne

Gimmicky contest ads and flashy free-prize messages may be an instant turnoff for mobile users, according to Penn State researchers.

In a study, a tempting offer of a free prize drawing for registering on a mobile website led users to distrust the site, said S. Shyam Sundar, Distinguished Professor of Communications and co-director of the Media Effects Research Laboratory.

Sundar said that in an increasingly information-loaded world, people tend to lean on cues, such as icons and messages, for deci-sion-making shortcuts, called heuristics.

However, some cues may elicit user reaction in the opposite direction of what most marketers would anticipate.

“Even though we turn to our mobile devices for instantly gratifying our need for information, we may not be persuaded by advertising appeals for instant gratification,” said Sundar. “It’s a boomerang effect--marketers may think that they are activating the instant grat-ification heuristic when they display time-sensitive offers, but what they’re actually doing is cuing red flags about the site.”

Mobile users tend to be more knowledgeable about technology than regular users.

“It could be that an instant gratification message makes mobile users, who tend to be more tech savvy, leery about the site,” said Sundar.

Even though free-prize ads are ubiquitous on the Internet, marketers may want to seek other ways to reach mobile customers, according to the researchers.

The researchers, who presented their findings at the Association for Computing Machinery’s Conference on Human Factors in Com-puting Systems, also tested a warning cue that seemed to prompt more conflicting reactions from users, said Sundar.

When a security alert -- a caution icon with a warning message -- appeared, users became more worried about security, as expected.

However, users were willing to reveal more information about their social media accounts after viewing the security prompt.

One possible explanation for this behavior is that the security cue makes the users distinguish more carefully between public and private information.

“People may feel that the social media information is already public information, not necessarily private information, and they are not as concerned about revealing social media information,” said Sundar, who worked with Bo Zhang, Mu Wu, Hyunjin Kang and Eun Go, all doctoral students in mass communications. “The ‘privacy paradox’ of giving away information when we are most concerned about its safety may not be all that paradoxical if you consider that the information we give away is not quite private.”

The researchers recruited 220 participants to test four different mobile sites. The participants were first asked to navigate to a mobile site.

One site included a caution symbol and a security warning that the site was insecure and another site contained a gift box icon with a message that the user could win a free prize for registering. A third site showed both a warning and an instant gratification message and a fourth site, which featured neither alerts, served as the control in the study. Except for these cues, all other content in the four sites was identical.

Participants could choose how much or how little personal, professional, financial or social media information they provided in the registration form, which served as a measure of their informa-tion disclosure behaviors. After registering, they filled out an online questionnaire about their impressions of the mobile website.

— Matt Swayne

Mobile users may not buy into instant gratification cues


Two faculty members to lead sustainability initiative

FACULTY/STAFF NEWS

Penn State has created the Sustain-ability Communi-cations Initiative with the help of a $37,500 seed grant from the Universi-ty’s Sustainability Institute Reinven-tion Fund.

The Arthur W. Page Center for Integrity in Public Communication, a research unit housed in the College of Commu-nications, will be the home for the Sustainability Communications Initiative (SCI). The grant was secured by two of the Page Center’s senior research fellows — Denise Bortree, an associate professor in the Department of Advertising/Public Relations, and Lee Ahern, an associate professor in the Department of Advertising/Public Relations. They will lead the project.

“This will be a major effort for the Page Center with three key areas of emphasis,” said Bortree. “We believe it will establish Penn State as a leading institution in sustainability communi-cation research and practice.”

The three areas of emphasis are: first, that the SCI will conduct original sustainability communication

research that can be shared with communication practitioners; second, it will partner with other organizations to create databases of existing sustain-ability research that will be shared

with the media and communication practitioners; and, finally, it will work with student groups at Penn State to promote sustainability knowledge and behaviors on campus and in the State College community.

Beyond the grant provided by the Reinvention Fund, the Page Center has committed to fund the SCI for at least three years.

“We want to develop, highlight and share best practices in sustainability communication across disciplines,” said Ahern. “We hope to publish annual reports on sustainability com-munication with a focus on creating research that is useful to the practice of communication.”

It is anticipated that the SCI will partner with other organizations to maintain a “curated database of sustainability communication re-

search.” Plans are to distribute article summaries to media outlets to raise journalists’ level of interest in and knowledge of sustainability communi-cation. In addition, a second database of sustainability and corporate social responsibility reports, videos and other materials such as ads, press releases and social media content, will be maintained. This will be available to academics, communication profes-sionals, undergraduates and graduate students.

Outreach projects, with the partic-ipation of Penn State students, will act as a living laboratory in which students, faculty and staff work to-gether to implement best-practices in sustainability communication.

“This effort will leverage Penn State’s vast resources in the areas of energy, environment and green technology, making it a one-of-a-kind initiative at a major university,” Bor-tree said. “We’re excited to begin.”

In addition to Bortree and Ahern, the SCI will involve a full-time gradu-ate student and provide opportunities for participation by numerous under-graduates interested in research into sustainability communication. l

DeniseBortree

LeeAhern

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) research projects supported by the Arthur W. Page Center for Integ-rity in Public Communication took center stage during a pre-conference session of the International Commu-nications Association (ICA) annual meeting in Seattle in May.

“The research presentations addressed a broad spectrum of CSR work, including environmental sustain-ability, social responsibility, nonprof-it-corporation partnerships, employee diversity and measurement of CSR impacts,” said Denise Bortree, an asso-ciate professor in the Department of Advertising/Public Relations at Penn State and a senior research fellow in

the Page Center, a research unit of the College of Communications.

“Following a panel of prominent scholars discussing recent CSR re-search, local practitioners shared their experiences with practical application of CSR in the field,” said Bortree, who coordinated the pre-conference session.

Seven scholars from around the world whose CSR-related research was funded last year by the Page Center presented perspectives on their work. Among those making presentations was Bortree, who discussed strategies and impacts of environmental sustain-ability communication from Fortune 500 companies.

The Page Center at Penn State is

named for Arthur W. Page, longtime vice president for public relations at AT&T. Page is often regarded as the founder of the modern practice of cor-porate public relations. He was widely known for management according to the “Page Principles,” his guidelines for ethical and effective communication with key publics and for responsible corporate behavior.

The Page Center seeks to foster a modern understanding and applica-tion of the Page Principles. It supports innovative research and educational or public service projects in a variety of academic disciplines and professional fields. l

Researchers address corporate social responsibility during session


FACULTY/STAFF NEWS

NEWS, NOTESl The Pennsylvania Center for the First Amendment filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the U.S. Supreme Court, asking the justices to clarify the meaning of “true threats” in an online forum. In the case of United States v. Elonis, the defendant posted alleged threats on Facebook. His messages mimicked the style of rap music.The Center filed the brief in conjunction with the Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protec-tion of Free Expression, which is housed at the University of Virginia. “We are asking the Court to consider the context of social media messaging and the rap genre of music in framing a national standard by which to judge allegedly threatening expression,” said Robert D. Richards, the John and Ann Curley Professor of First Amendment Studies and founding director of the Pennsylvania Center for the First Amendment. “The Court has said previously that the context of true threats matters, but it has not applied that notion in the light of today’s evolving technological and cultural trends.” Established in 1992, the Pennsylvania Center for the First Amendment, housed in the College of Communications, promotes awareness and un-derstanding of the principles of free expression to the scholarly community, the media and the general public.

l Thirteen faculty members, 20 graduate students and five College of Communications alumni produced 31 papers or presentations, and faculty members served on three separate panels during the 64th annual conference of the International Communications Assocation (ICA). ICA is an academic association for scholars interested in the study, teaching and application of all aspects of human and mediated communi-cation. ICA began more than 50 years ago as a small association of U.S. researchers and now counts more than 4,800 members in 77 countries. Since 2003, ICA has been officially associated with the United Nations as a non-governmental association.

l Pamela Monk, a senior lecturer in the Department of Journalism, has written a play, “An Evening with Aphrodite,” that will be per-formed Aug. 12, Aug. 15 and Aug. 17 during the Thespis Theater Festival at the Cabrini Repertory Theater, located in New York City.

Frieden makes important contributionto ‘The Broadband Strategies Toolkit’

A Penn State faculty member rec-ognized as an international expert on telecommunications and the Internet contributed a chapter to an import-ant online resource for policy makers, regulators and other stakeholders.

Professor Rob Frieden, who holds the Pioneers Chair in the Depart-ment of Telecommunications, was one of the main contributors to “The Broadband Strategies Toolkit,” (http://broadbandtoolkit.org/en/home) an extensive online resource, with his chapter on infrastructure technology.

The toolkit addresses issues related to broadband development. It aims to help readers, particularly those in developing countries, by identifying challenges in broadband develop-ment, analyzing potential solutions to consider and providing practical examples from countries that have

addressed broadband-related matters. Frieden, a professor of telecommu-

nications and law, has written several books, most recently “Winning the Silicon Sweepstakes: Can the United States Compete in Global Telecom-munications,” published by Yale University Press. Frieden also has written more than 70 articles in aca-demic journals and provides biannu-al updates for “All About Cable and Broadband” (Law Journal Press).

Before accepting an academic ap-pointment, Frieden served as Deputy Director-International Relations for Motorola Satellite Communications Inc. Frieden also has held senior telecommunications policy making positions in the United State govern-ment. In the private sector, he prac-ticed law in Washington, D.C., and served as assistant general counsel at PTAT System Inc. l

HONORING FROSTCarmen Frost (center), multicultural affairs coordinator for the College of Communications, accepts the Rainbow Award for Outstanding Service presented by the Penn State Commission on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Equity. The award was presented by Annyce Schafft, diversity planning analyst (left), and Victoria Sanchez, assistant vice provost for educational equity. (Photo by Jim Frost)


DEVE

LOPM

ENT N

EWS Campaign closes on high note, tops $15M goal

The University’s seven-year fundrais-

ing campaign, For the Future: The Campaign for Penn State Students, came to a close June 30, with the College of Commu-nications exceeding its $15 million goal, raising $15,798,135.

The campaign started Jan. 1, 2007, and 64 percent of gifts to the College during the cam-paign were designated for endowments — criti-cal permanent funding that provides support for students in perpetuity.

In the past 15 years, the value of the perma-nent endowment in the College, counting Trust-ee Scholarship matches, has increased from $8.9 million to $34 million.

“We’re pleased with the response of our alumni and friends throughout the cam-paign,” said Kevin Musick, director of development. “The generous people who support our programs understand the impact and value of their gifts, which are truly appreciat-ed by students.”

Donors at all levels who supported different aspects or areas of interest in the College helped the program exceed its fundraising goal. Overall, 10,968 gifts from 4,067 donors were received during the campaign.

Eleven endowments in the last six months of the campaign through the Trustee Matching Scholarship Program helped close out the commu-nications portion of the University’s overall $2 billion campaign.

The recently created endowments were:

l the Michael Allen Humanitarian Memorial Trustee Scholarship;

l the Trustee Scholarship in Hon-or of Dean Douglas Anderson;

l the Donald and Vivienne Bellis-ario Trustee Scholarship;

l the Mildred Blazek Trustee Scholarship;

l the Norman Eberly Trustee Scholarship in Communications;

l the Elizabeth Fetter Trustee Scholarship;

l the Jay and Dorothy Grossman Trustee Scholarship;

l the Marie Hardin and Jerry Kammer Trustee Scholarship;

l the David and Mary Lee Jones Trustee Scholarship;

l the Eric Rabe Family Trustee Scholarship; and

l the E. Stratford Smith and Bette B. Jackson Smith Trustee Scholar-ship.

Most of the College’s fundraising success during the campaign came for scholarships that help keep a Penn State education affordable.

The College has created 51 Trustee Matching Scholarships since the program began in 2002. Recipients of the scholarships boast an average grade-point average of 3.39 and more

Alumnus Donald Bellisario endowed the $1 million Donald P. Bellisario Trustee Scholarship to help launch the just completed fundraising campaign and then he and his wife, Vivienne, endowed a $50,000 Trustee Scholarship in 2014 in honor of Dean Douglas Anderson.


DEVELOPMENT NEWS

than half are in the first generation of their family to attend college.

The matching funds continue every year thereafter, based on a percentage of the endowment’s market value.

Along with the Trustee Scholar-ships, other named funds recently created were: the Dr. W. Bradford Mellow Communication Scholarship; the Richard M. and Rayna K. Ravitz

Scholarship; the Paul L. Tsompanas Journalism Award; and the Connie and Randy Yanoshak Memorial Intern-ship. In addition to the scholarship and award commitments during the homestretch of the campaign, Warren Carmichael, president of the College’s Alumni Society Board, made a signif-icant addition to an existing endowed fund. l

CAMPAIGN COMMITTEEJohn Curley, Chair

Mark Brownstein (’81)Jack Chidester (’80)

Anne Simmons Chubb (’80)James Donna (’71)

Elizabeth Fetter (’80)Thomas Hayden III (’77)

Amanda Gifford Lockwood (’04)Chris Martin (’92)

Robert O’Leary (’71), deceasedEric Rabe (’68)

Linda Yaccarino (’85)

$10,703,087Endowed value of gifts/pledges to the College

because of Trustee Scholarship matching funds.

Equipment room coordinator Michael Zelazny (left) accepts delivery of equipment from Gywn and Tom Chobot.

A popular College of Communications student who made an impression on classmates and faculty before he died at age 26 has left a legacy for future students because of a gift by his parents.

Gywn and Tom Chobot donated the sound and studio equipment of Michael Chobot (’09 Film-Video) for the creation of the Michael T. Chobot Studio in Room 16 of Carnegie Building. Family and friends also made memorial gifts to the College in Chobot’s name.

Chobot, an Emmy Award-nominated sound engineer for DuArt Film in New York City, died Aug. 6, 2013, after a 22-month battle with leukemia. He was posthumously

awarded the Emerging Professional Award from the Col-lege of Communications in November 2013. The award is presented annually to an alumnus who has graduated in the past 10 years and recognizes professional achievement and/or distinguished community service.

“He was one of the most generous and good-hearted stu-dents that I’ve ever known, and he was a pleasure to have in the classroom and on the set,” said Richie Sherman, an associate professor in the Department of Film-Video and Media Studies.

The equipment will bolster the College’s state-of-the art offerings and technological options for students. l

Family’s equipment donation ensures Chobot’s legacy


Senior Kelly Tunney, a photojournalism major, was a member of the international reporting class that traveled to Cuba during spring break. His work on these pages represents a small piece of the overall student work

that emerged from the trip (photos, multimedia packages, stories and video) that can be found online. Also, the students’ work has been shared

with McClatchy News Service for media outlets across the United States.

Capturing Cuba


Capturing Cuba

ADVERTISING / PUBLIC RELATIONS

Marc A. Brownstein Scholarship in Advertising

Kelly Stock

Donald W. Davis Penn State Chapter of the American Advertising

FederationJordan Abramson

Kayla ArizaJennifer Brinsko

Emily BurkeElle Burkert

Adriana BrokusJieyu (Patricia) Chen

Jenny CifuentesJohn Curlett

Kelly JacksonEthan KisanKayla Kisan

Jessica KorchJanelle Klueber

Samantha MaceilLindsey Meyers

Tyler PilarskiLogan Roger

Michael SchanbacherYujun Shao

Gemma SmithCarly Wenderlich

Ali YoungYuting Zhang

Donald W. Davis Mass Communications Fund

Mariah BlakeJennifer Weintraub

Lawrence G. Foster Award

for Excellence in Public RelationsMaria Esposito

Harmelin Media Scholarship

in the College of CommunicationsChristina Cruz

Chelsea Emerson

Wayne Hilinski Advertising Scholarship

Tyron GormanJonathan Mercuri

The Interstate Advertising Managers’

Association Scholarship FundSarika Patel

Mary M. Meder Scholarship

Briana BeilMichael Schanbacher

Sharon Lynn Palaisa Jackson

Memorial ScholarshipAlyssa KaplanKristina Lintz

Sydney MartincicRebecca Welk

COMMEDIA

Randy and Maria Yanoshak Technology in Media Award

Kirsten AppletonMaria Bryant

Abigail JohnsonJessica Paholsky

THE DAILY COLLEGIAN

Damon M. Chappie Memorial Award in Investigative Journalism

Brittany Horn

Collegian Alumni Hall of Fame Scholarship

Jessica PaholskySarika Patel

Collegian AIG Scholarship

Brittany HornSarika Patel

Ostar-Hutchison Scholarship

Sarah Rafacz

Kent A. Petersen Memorial Scholarship

Farheen AshrafyEric Shultz

ETHICS Don Davis Program

in Ethical Leadership The Davis AwardEnica CastanedaJei-Laya Hassan

Katelyn MixerCheyenne Sexton

FILM-VIDEO

Samuel D. Abrams and Lillian K. Abrams Senior Film Endowment

Bryan KeithLaura KrissRyan Mills

Andri PavlenkoJohn QuerioErin Ryan

Christopher SchuckDarian Stansbury

Cody Weamer

Carmen Finestra Film ProjectEndowed Grant-in-Aid

Aliza BergerBenjamin CorrellDonald KinneyAllison Ornik

Jonathon RileyJames RohanRobert Shipley

GENERAL COMMUNICATIONS Vijaya L. Balaji

Memorial ScholarshipBrodney Nicol

Darian Stansbury

Jeanne ChapkovichCommunications Award

Melissa Conrad

College of Communications Alumni Society Scholarship

Mollie DronsonDonald Kinney

College of Communications Deans’ Excellence Award

Sheridan MarchCassandra Nissi

Blake PaduaJill Tatios


Thanks to the support of numerous contributors, the College of Commu-nications made a record 573 awards totaling a most-ever $816,939 to its students during the 2013-14 academic year.

STUDENT NEWS

College provides record support — $816,939 — for students


STUDENT NEWS

College of Communications General Scholarship

Kathryn BlitzEmily Burke

Michelle DemaioDanielle Egick

Frederick EnnetteStacy Finkelstein

Brad ImmingBryan KeithPaul Kemper

Austin LedermanKevin McLaughlinPaulina MoussaviJessica PaholskyCallie RojewskiVictoria ScialfaRobert Shipley

Torri SingerAlicia Thomas

Erin WittAlexander Yakacki

Scholarship in Memory

of Terry LeachRachel Chernaskey

Kathleen and John Collins Fellows in the Pennsylvania Center

for the First AmendmentMichael ApplemanNicholas Berault

John and Ann Curley

Scholarship in CommunicationsSamantha Allen

Courtney BarrowJoseph GarofaloEmily Grabowski

Beate LiepinaMatthew Marzzacco

Sarah PetersonSabriana Pimentel

Brittany SmithRenee SzukicsAlex Woodin

Lawrence G. and Ellen M. Foster

ScholarshipAmber Askew

Jaya DavisDaniel NortonKelly Tunney

Lawrence G. and Ellen M. Foster Scholarship in Honor of Joseph V.

and Suzanne P. PaternoMichael Crane

Eric Deberardinis

Raymond and Shirley (Gable) Galant Communications Scholarship

Amber AskewNicholas Bernitt

Lauren BlumMelissa ConradKaidian GordonKendra Hepler

Nicholas LaspinaJonathan Mercuri

Daniel ProsickConnor Whooley

Jay Grossman Award in Communications

Matthew Wilson

David and Mary Lee JonesWashington, D.C., Scholarship

Akilah Griffith

Knight Minority ScholarshipKiyana BanksAshley Vargas

PHOTO PLANSStudents complete a photo editing exercise during an introductory photojournalism class. (Photo by John Beale)


STUDENT NEWSLAMCO Communications Inc.

ScholarshipJohn Falconi

Madison Geck

William F. Simmons Memorial AwardSarah DesiderioDevan Lombardi

GRADUATE STUDIES

Douglas and Claudia Anderson Communications Scholarship

Elizabeth Brennan

Don Davis Professorship in EthicsDunja AntunovicStevie Berberick

Tanner CookLauren FlanaganRichard Kopecky

Ariel JohnsonCristina Mislan

Paulina Moussavi

Excellence in Communications Doctoral AwardJennifer Hoewe

Larry and Ellen Foster Professorship

in the College of CommunicationsBrittany Brown

Sidney and Helen Friedman Endowed Scholarship

Arienne Ferchaud

Marlowe Froke Graduate Scholarship in Education and Public Affairs in Public Broadcasting in the

College of CommunicationsXue Dong

Robert Wood Johnson Lecture Series

Kelly Chernin

Arthur W. Page Center EndowmentBrittany BrownKelly Chernin

Melanie FormentinBrandy Nonnecke

Djung Yune Tchoi Memorial

Excellence in Teaching AwardSteve Bien-Aime

HONORS SCHOLARSHIPSDaniel Hartman Honors Scholarship in the College of Communications

Nicole CheshireTracy Crouthamel

Shellie M. Roth Honors Award

in the College of CommunicationsJulia BacanskasBrittany Horn

James Wiggins and Christine

Fleming Honors Scholarship in the College of Communications

Jenny KimRachel Steinberg

INCOMING FRESHMEN

Lawrence G. and Ellen M. Foster Merit ScholarshipNicholas Ambolino

Christina EnricoMorgan Guarino

Jordyn Jagolinzer MachadoMark Marino

Kristen NelsonAlejandro Rodriguez Vanzetti

Jonas Saint PreuxBria Williams

Bryce Zielinski

Howard J. LamadeCommunications Scholarship

Andrew GreenbergMadison McGillicuddy

Richard and Victoria Mallary

Scholarship in CommunicationsArianna Dedominicis

Paul Kemper

INTERNSHIP ENDOWMENTS Patrick Boland Memorial

Internship AwardBrendan Zipfel

College of Communications Alumni Society Neal J. Friedman Internship

Emily BurkeNatasha Cooper

Tracy CrouthamelBrittany Cruickshank

Yewande Demola-SerikiMollie Dronson

Kaley EblingMichael Esse

Erica FinetCynthia Hill

Emily HockenberryAmanda Hommer

Brittany HornAnthony Iafrate

Chelsea JohnsonMikel JonesErica KasanJenny Kim

Marissa MillerMorgan NalleyJohn PattersonKaitlyn Rigney

Giovanna RoselliLindsey SmithPaul Sweeney

Samantha Tardif

College of Communications Internship Grant

Nicole ArtecaLauren BurrellMary Tetzlaff

Richard R. Evans

Memorial Internship AwardEmily BurkeElle Burkert

Carmen and Tonia Finestra

Internship AwardTyler Marchewski

Allison Ornik

Honora and William Jaffe Scholarship in Communications

Michael BoylanAshley Holgate

Nuo LiMatthew Westlake

Marvin and Josie Krasnansky

Internship GrantBrielle Adler

Samantha AgostinoTyler Ainge

Marielena BalourisMadeleine BrownYu-Ting Chang

Jessica DavidsonEric DeberardinisHannah EpsteinNicole FrankfortCaroline Goggin

Rebecca Himmelstein


STUDENT NEWSJosey JenkinsHeather Miller

Mary Kate MorrowShawn Quinn

Jonathan SemborskiZachary SlaterAlyson Stark

Bob and Marylou Martin

Internship AwardDanielle Egick

J. Gilliland

Pennsylvania Association of Broadcasters Robert K.

Zimmerman Memorial AwardTiye-Saran Mutazz

Morgan Signs/Barash Advertising Internship Award in Advertising

Jessica Korch

A. W. (Dude) McDowell Memorial Scholarship

Christina GallagherJessica Paholsky

Lindsey Smith

Gregory Michael Schiff Memorial Scholarship in Communications

Julia BacanskasTatiana FlowersStephanie Kerr

Heather McDevittJessica Schoenenberger

Robert K. Zimmerman Memorial

Internship EndowmentAlexandra Beebe

Gregory LeonAndrea NavarroAmina OgboroRoman Rogalla

Rachel Steinberg

JOURNALISM Donald E. Allen Memorial

Scholarship in CommunicationsSamantha Agostino

Julia AlexanderInci Askin

Kaitlin EckroteKelly JacksonEmily Kless

Shayna MowattAnastasia Orso

Ilana RubenJessica Tully

Caroline A. Bange Memorial Award

Jessica ReillyEric Shultz

Franklin BannerJournalism Scholarship

Abigail Johnson

Quinton E. Beauge Memorial Journalism Scholarship

Kevin Horne

Louis H. Bell Memorial Scholarship Fund

Dakota Debellis

S. W. Calkins Memorial AwardTorri Singer

Kristin StollerJonathan Wheel

Winifred Imhof Cook

Journalism ScholarshipMolly Cochran

Christina Gallagher

Stanley E. Degler Scholarship in Communications

Amanda DashKelsie Johnson

Edward S. Dubbs Jr. Scholarship

Sarah DesiderioAngelic Sinova

Evelyn Y. Davis Scholarship

Tyler AingeCheuk Wai LamBlair Patterson

Norman Eberly Professor of Practice in Journalism Awards

Alyssa ApplemanSteve Bien Aime

Kevin HorneJulia Kern

Kelly TunneyAnastasia OrsoHaley Wildeson

Rheta B. Glueck Prize

Kevin McLaughlin

Gene and Fran Goodwin Journalism Scholarship

Jasmine GodardEbony Martin

George E. Graff

Journalism ScholarshipMegan Bailey

William Randolph Hearst Foundation AwardsChristina Gallagher

Brittany HornJill Knight

Anastasia OrsoStephen PianovichSavannah Smith

Jessica Tully

International Reporting Class AwardsJon BlauveltMaria BryantVicki Cazanas

Eric DeBerardinisLiz Dennerlein

Alex EliasofCaroline Goggin

Christian HeilmanWillie JungelsNoelle MateerDan Norton

Jessica PaholskySteve PianovichLeah PolakoffTorri Singer

Alex SteinmanKelly TunneyRachel White

Reuben Jaffe Memorial Journalism Scholarship

Jaclyn SaumellEric Shultz

Ashia Tokponwey

David and Mary Lee Jones Journalism Scholarship

Victoria FacontiSarah Olah

Kelly TunneyKimberly Valarezo

The Journalism Fund

Tatiana Flowers


STUDENT NEWS Knight Chair in Sports Journalism

and SocietyAlly Ayton

Josiah BatesKatie Blitz

Hannah Leigh ByrneRobert Chen

Melissa ConradCaitlyn Cossu

Christopher DoonMegan Flood

Christelle JoasilMikel Jones

Katelyn MarmonKatie McKennaRyan McManus

McKenzie MillwardKelsie NetzerGreg PickelEric Shultz

Wyton SomervilleJolie WehrungPatrick Woo

Knight Diversity Scholarship in Sports Journalism

in the College of CommunicationsBrett JohnsonPatrick Woo

Isadore and Anna Krasnansky

Minority ScholarshipNicole Colon-Quintana

Yaa HuntNia Nicholson

Kimberly Valarezo

Marvin L. and Josie Krasnansky Undergraduate Scholarship

in CommunicationsChristopher Stratton

Kaitlyn Zurcher

Jean Ward LaptonMemorial Award in Journalism

Kaitlyn Knopp

Julia Ibbotson Martin Scholarship in Journalism

Lindsey Smith

May McNeer Women’s Journalism Award

Jessica Paholsky

Penn State Sigma Delta Chi Journalism Award

Benjamin Emminger

Theodore and Patricia Serrill Scholarship in Journalism

Rachel GarmanShannon Gethard

Steinman Foundations

and Lancaster Newspapers Inc. Scholarship Fund

Kelsey MyersDonavon Stadel

Joseph F. and Mary P. Loftus Award

for Outstanding WritingJohn McGonigal

Stephen Pianovich

Charles M. Meredith Sr. ScholarshipCameron Harrison

Antoinette Manigoult

John R. Jr., John R. III and Jayne E. Miller Minority

Journalism ScholarshipShantelle Johnson

Norman C. and Mollie Miller

Journalism ScholarshipAshley Smalls

Linda Martelli Memorial

Scholarship in JournalismMichael Appleman

Taylor ShellyStephen Shiflett

Harold E. Newlin

Memorial Award FundAustin Lederman

Bernie Newman

Scholarship in JournalismNicole BarrosSarah Bruce

Rachel Nagpal

George E. Paterno Memorial Scholarship

Mikel JonesJessica Reilly

Kimberly Tyborowski

Salters Family Memorial Scholarship

Kaley Ebling

Richard and Arlene Small Journalism Scholarship for Sports Writing in Memory of Ridge Riley

Alexandra BeebeNicholas Coppola

Michael EsseAmanda Hommer

Mikel JonesKacie Lazor

Steven LeechRyan Noone

Vincent WeltzJames Werner

Jerome Weinstein

Journalism ScholarshipMegan Flood

Daniel Griswold

Jeanne Stiles Williamson ScholarshipLeo Dillinger

Hayley Wildeson

STUDY ABROADHelene Eckstein

Study Abroad Scholarship in the College of Communications

Kelsey TamborrinoAlicia Thomas

Philip Radcliffe

International Student AwardBrad Imming

TELECOMMUNICATIONS-RADIO Bradford Brian

Communications ScholarshipAlexandra Menosky

Jessica Schoenenberger

Warren and Carole Maurer Radio Scholarship

Brendan McCulloughGarrett Shawley

Lou H. Murray Scholarship

Kelly BoydTyler Wentz


STUDENT NEWSTRUSTEE

AT&T Trustee Scholarship in the College of Communications

Alyssa CurnowPier Lopez

Vincent TranRonald Weidman

Michael Sherman Allen

Humanitarian Memorial Trustee Scholarship in the College

of CommunicationsDonavon StadelMichael Wargon

Douglas and Claudia Anderson

Trustee Scholarship in the College of Communications

Austin LedermanEmily MalnikZoe Walker

Douglas and Claudia Anderson

Trustee Scholarship in Journalism in the College of Communications

Aaron CarrRachelle Gaynor

Laura and Mary Anderson Trustee

Scholarship in the College of Communications

Kaitlin EckroteSarah Emeigh

Marianna Saucier

Marty and John Aronoff Trustee Scholarship in the College

of CommunicationsBrooke Rightnour

Amy RossJason ShawleyAlexis Shelton

Eric Sion

Barash Family Trustee Scholarship in the College of Communications

Madeleine ArchambaultMollie DronsonAshley Vargas

Donald P. Bellisario Trustee Scholarship

Brittany AdamsAshley Beatty

Briana BeilMariah Blake

Joaquin BreedloveAlssya BroomeAndrea CarneySheila Castillo

Janelle CourtneyLena Cox

Brittany CruickshankJohn Curlett

Nicholas DietrichJacqueline Dinarte

Kaleigh FloydHeather FreitagRobert Hopkins

Michael JohnsonDonald KinneyAndee Kiraly

Samantha KostenbaderShamir Lee

William LeonardLane Lohman

Corey LonbergerBrazillian Mitchell

Lydia MutonoMarlea Otis

Kaitlyn RigneyRoman Rogalla

Benjamin ShipmanConnor Simon

Margaret SinkevitchMbeta\ SokoloMegan Soltis

Samuel TavaresAlan Taylor

Bradley Welles

Brownstein Family Trustee Scholarship in Memory

of Beverly B. BrownsteinPatricia Noel

Ryan Stephen

Marc A. BrownsteinTrustee Scholarship

Brianna BabikCrissy Tang

Nile D. Coon Trustee Scholarship in the College of Communications

Tanner AkmanLaura Barbosa

Kelly JonesMara Kern

Carlmichel LaguerreAiesha Marshall

Grace Rzodkiewicz

John and Ann Curley Trustee Scholarship

in Honor of Douglas AndersonRyan Noone

Wynton Somerville

John and Ann Curley Trustee Scholarship

in the College of CommunicationsKayla Ariza

Josiah BatesBrandi CopelandSaige Marinoff

Ryan MillsNicole SalernoKristen Smith

Meghan St ClairKristen Stasik

Philip and Joan Currie Trustee

Scholarship in Honor of Douglas Anderson and John Curley

Haley KerstetterAlejandro Rodriguez Vanzetti

Fetter Family Trustee Scholarship

Kylee OrrissBrooke Robinson

Gene Foreman

Trustee Matching ScholarshipTamara Hall

Daniel IsenbergMadeline Klebe

Samantha Lowe-Wilson

Lawrence G. and Ellen M. Foster Trustee Scholarship

Kiyana BanksDanae Blasso

Amira ColemanBenjamin Emminger

Ejiro EnaohwoFrederick Ennette

Niccia Griffin-McKinneyAkilah GriffithJoyann Jeffrey

Caitlin KellyJason Kohlers

Katelynne KulakowskiDylan Nelson

Catherine PearceHilori RzotkiewiczFrank Savastano

Jack SmallOmayra Soto

Cassandra Wiggins-Dowdell


STUDENT NEWS

Marjorie Mousely French, Class of ’48, Trustee Scholarship

Scott AndersonAaron BakerMary CallasLauren Ertl

Samantha KingLaura McCarthy

Kalleen McLaughlinJessica PaholskyFaith Rodriguez

Kellie Yekel

Friend of the College of Communications Trustee Scholarship

Michael EsseJohn Patterson

Tom Gibb Memorial Trustee Scholarship

Alexandra OteroCristina Recino

Hayden Family Trustee Scholarship

Timothy MadoreAshley Sprain

Freda Azen Jaffe Memorial

Trustee Scholarship in the College of Communications

Yaaasantewaa FarajiDaniel Spevak

Kasselman Kohn Family

Trustee ScholarshipJenna AbateLeah Blasko

Wendy Lichtenstein Trustee Scholarship

Jeremy BrattonJohn Pergosky

Joseph M. Marchand Memorial Trustee Scholarship

Victoria BurdoMarissa Silverman

Christopher J. & Patricia S. Martin

Trustee Scholarship Sarah Caskie

Demetria WebbAna Zelada

Maralyn Davis Mazza Trustee Scholarship

Natasha BaileyChandler McCauley

Warren L. and Carole L. Maurer

Trustee Scholarship Bernard Bennett-Green

Brianna Blair

John S. Nichols Trustee ScholarshipJunessa Dello Russo

Theresa HuynhKatherine Perkins

Robert J. O’Leary Trustee Scholarship

Clifton GravesBrooke Weidenfeld

Penn State Alumni Association Trustee Scholarship

Donovan Quinn

Eric W. Rabe Trustee ScholarshipNatasha CooperVictoria GlaudeBryan McSorley

William Y. E. and Ethel L. Rambo

Trustee ScholarshipDanielle Gallo

Eric Webb

Brad and Virginia Remmey Trustee Scholarship

Marquitta DavisKelsea McSparron

Nicholas Veres

Remmey Family Trustee Scholarship Renee Fisher

Alexandra Stewart

Robert L. and Mary Lee Schneider Trustee Scholarship Briana Gilbert-Brown

Raneika White

Andrew and Beatrice Schultz Trustee Scholarship

Devin BurkeJosey JenkinsAsharae’ Jones

Nyshiria RobinsonStephanie Wain

Steinman Foundations

Trustee Scholarship Jeremy NoltKyle Young

Trustee Scholarship Fund

Casey ChappelTerrence Edison

Gabrielle Mannino

Christopher C. Wheeler Trustee Scholarship

Sara Hernandez FrancisKeyla MedranoDillon Smith

Yaccarino-Madrazo Family

Trustee ScholarshipJesse Steinberg

Tayler Ward

CAPPING COMMENCEMENTA senior film major put an artistic touch on her cap during commencement exercises at the Bryce Jordan Center in May. (Photo by Steve Manuel)


STUDENT NEWS

Penn State earned an unprecedented sweep of the first three spots in the

individual national writing champion-ship conducted by the William Ran-dolph Hearst Foundation’s Journalism Awards Program in Washington, D.C., in early June.

Students advanced to the champi-onship based on results of monthly competitions during the academic year. Through those competitions, the Col-lege of Communications had already secured a third consecutive overall national championship in the program often referred to as “the Pulitzers of college journalism.”

(See complete results, other College successes in “Champions” pullout section.)

Still, Anna Orso, Christina Gal-lagher and Jessica Tully capped the University’s most successful year ever in the 54-year-old program by finishing first, second and third, respectively, in the on-site competition. Students were challenged to write a personality profile, a news story and an on-the-spot human-interest story.

More than 1,100 students from 105 accredited communications programs across the nation submitted entries for monthly contests in writing, photojour-nalism, radio, television and multime-dia during the year. Just 29 students qualified for the on-site championships — eight in writing, six in photojour-nalism and five each in radio, TV and multimedia.

Winners were announced late June 5 during an award ceremony and dinner at the Newseum.

“When they named all of the run-ners up and none of us were on the list, I knew something good was going to happen and I think they had to proba-bly pick my jaw up off the floor,” Orso said. “Jess Tully and I were sitting at the table together. It was a great feeling.

“They told us over and over again during the week that we’re winners for just being here, and when they tell you that so much you do start to believe it. Still, it’s a competition and we all came

here to win. I was telling Professor Ford Risley before the announcement that I was trying really hard not to worry about where we’d finish.”

All students in the on-site compe-tition wrote about the same person, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), for the profile, and a news conference with Murphy provided the topic for the news story, which was Medicaid ex-pansion. After that, they were on their own to find a human-interest story at a memorial in the nation’s capital.

At the Vietnam War Memorial, Orso found people who had family members die on a Navy ship during the war, but because the ship was not in a desig-nated combat zone at the time it went down the names of those 74 people were never included on the memorial.

Orso was pleased with the hu-man-interest story she wrote, and with her story about Medicaid expansion. “I thought my profile was horrible, though,” she said. “Thankfully, stories like that are subjective and the judges liked it.”

With her first-place finish, Orso earned a $5,000 scholarship. Gallagher and Tully earned $4,000 and $3,000, respectively. Orso, Gallagher and Tully earned their journalism degrees in May.

Gallagher worked all week during the competition in the nation’s capital but was not able to attend the final

award presentation. She had scheduled a backpacking trip to Europe three months ago that was set to leave June 2. She pushed back the flight four days to compete, and found out about the Penn State sweep via text message at Dulles International Airport.

“Her flight took off at 10:15 and we found out we’d won at 10:05,” Orso said. “We texted her and she texted back ‘I don’t believe it.’ So we called her and put her on speaker phone with everyone.”

In addition to leading the Penn State sweep, Orso’s sports story about college football recruits who de-commit sub-mitted as part of one of the monthly competitions was cited as Article of the Year in the overall competition. She was proud of Penn State’s performance for several reasons.

“Without Professor Risley and (senior lecturer) Russ Eshlemen, and es-pecially without Dean Doug Anderson, none of us would be in this position,” Orso said. “Plus, I’m so happy that we were able to do this in the dean’s last year.”

Anderson had previously announced he would resign as dean of the College of Communications, effective July 1. He has guided the Penn State commu-nications program since July 1, 1999. l

College sweeps writing spots at championships

Anna Orso calls her mother to share news of her success during the on-site championships in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Curt Chandler)


STUD

ENT C

LOSE

UP

Silence spreads through the busy newsroom as Rachel White, exec-

utive producer, begins the 10-second countdown to the week’s one and only trial run of the “Centre County Report” — the award-winning student newscast of the College of Communi-cations. The reporters and technical crew quiet themselves as the seconds on the clock tick away, but the pause is fleeting.

On stage, the show’s anchors, Kacie Lazor and Kiyana Banks, take deep breaths, look to the camera, smile and kick off the rehearsal. Reading from a teleprompter, Lazor delivers the first story of the day with ease, even as the producer whispers directives in her earpiece.

Behind the scenes, students in the control room are communicating well above a whisper.

The crew has little more than an hour before the start of the live news-cast and almost too much to cover.

The story docket is packed, and so is the control room; chairs hold the technical director, audio specialist, teleprompter operator and other crew-members. Meanwhile, reporters spread out at computers in the newsroom are making final edits to their scripts and promoting media packages on Facebook and Twitter.

In less than an hour, the students will broadcast live on Penn State Cam-pus Cable, and the pre-recorded show will air in a primetime slot on WPSU in 29 counties, potentially reaching more than half a million households.

In a time of declining news view-ership across the country (major networks and their affiliates lost nearly 6 percent of their TV viewers in 2012,

according to the latest “State of the News Media” report), the “Centre County Report” (CCR) uses a variety of information technologies to keep people tuning in week after week.

“As the IT used to consume and produce news transforms yearly, news professionals are forced to keep pace with the rapid rate of innovation,” said Steve Kraycik, director of student television and online operations in the College of Communications.

“We have better equipment here than in half the television stations I’ve worked during my 27-year career in news,” he added.

Penn State is training future news professionals before they graduate, with such industry tools as robotic cameras operated by joysticks and equipment that uses cellular signals to instantly transmit live footage back to

Technology helps drive ‘CCR’ success, impact Production team members communicate with on-air anchors for “Centre County Report.” (Photo by Lauren Ingram)


STUDENT CLOSEUPthe “CCR” studio.

And it’s paying off.For two years in a row, “CCR” has

won the Best of Festival award in the student newscast category at the Broad-cast Education Association Festival of Media Arts, a nationwide competition that recognizes student-produced media.

“‘Centre County Report’ is literally the gateway to our students’ first jobs in TV. We try to operate it as not just a campus newscast, but as a newscast for all of Centre County — we treat it like a real job in TV news,” Kraycik said. “We’re uniquely positioned to pre-pare our students for what they’re really going to need to know in the real world.”

Lazor is one those stu-dents. A broadcast journal-ism major, Lazor has wanted to be a reporter since she was a little girl growing up in Indiana, Pa. While her friends chose pop culture icons and athletes as role models, Lazor found her heroes on the evening news.

And nearly 10 years later she’s learning how to do the job herself — reporting, anchoring and directing — in three-week rotations at “CCR.” Like every student involved with the show, Lazor has the opportu-nity to work each job in the newsroom and develop multiple skills to use behind and in front of the camera.

“I have a lot of experience behind the camera, and I think that makes me versatile, but I like going out and listening to peoples’ stories and putting segments together for families across the state,” Lazor said before the show. “I grew up watching Pittsburgh journal-ists Sally Wiggin and Marcie Cipriani on TV. I used to pretend I was doing the news report along with them, and now I get to be the one in front of the camera.”

The students’ professionalism and dedication is the heart of the newscast, but the show wouldn’t be possible — or as fun to produce — without the technology.

Bill Gardner, a “CCR” alumnus who is now employed by Penn State as the show’s multimedia specialist, helped build the studio in 2010 to prepare students for the digitization of modern news studios. The newsroom features a classroom with 20 computers for editing, a secondary editing room, sound booth, control room and stage.

But tools like the XSAN server, ro-botic cameras and portable live camera units are what set Penn State apart from other college newscasts and even

some professional studios, Gardner said.

“When our students get into the industry, there’s going to be a lot of au-tomation. The eight technical positions we have at CCR will be performed by only two people in a real control room,” he added. “We want these guys to experience the technology now so they don’t run into bumps when the stakes are higher.”

The SAN, as the crew refers to the XSAN, is a massive server with 43 tera-bytes of fiber optic storage for archived video interviews, photos, audio clips and more. Every computer in the stu-dio connects with the SAN and has in-stantaneous access to everything on it. In a breaking news situation, live video shot on location can be brought back to the studio, edited in the newsroom, exported to the SAN and immediately made available in the control room for placement in the story lineup.

“Newsrooms in the field don’t even have equipment or workflows like this,” Gardner said. “Just five years ago, Penn State students would have had to shoot on tape, ingest it into the computer in real time and physically carry a hard drive to the control room, and now there’s no wait time.”

As the students wrap up the morn-ing rehearsal, breaking news of a fire in State College comes to the attention of a producer via Twitter. In less than five

minutes, two reporters are sent to the scene to investi-gate and collect footage.

Shooting live video became a lot easier for the crew last year when “CCR” invested in a set of Teradek portable live units — camera equipment that stations around the country are now starting to use — to feature communities like Bellefonte, Altoona and even Hershey. The technology makes it possible for the team to “go live” anywhere they can get a Verizon cell phone signal and instantly transmit

high-definition video back to the con-trol room for editing in the studio.

“‘CCR’ mimics our first job in local news, and we’re competing with other local markets, not other col-lege stations,” said Erin Ryan, a film student and the show’s lab technician. “Because our show encompasses all of Centre County, not just Penn State, we have to appeal to a wide audience to stay in the game.”

As the fire continues to burn at a downtown motel, the episode’s producer decides to feature it in the top block of the show, knocking the mystery of Flight 370 off the roster. With only seconds to spare, co-anchor Lazor sneaks a momentary peek at the new script as the camera pans her way, the lights fade and the director counts them down.

— Lauren Ingram

Erin Ryan prepares equipment before reporters leave the newsroom to cover a story. (Photo by Lauren Ingram)


STUDENT NEWS

Eight Penn State students have been selected to comprise a news bureau coordinated by the John Curley Center for Sports Journalism that will serve media organizations throughout Penn-sylvania by providing coverage of the Croke Park Classic in late August.

The Croke Park Classic, a sea-son-opening matchup between Penn State and the University of Central Florida on Aug. 30, represents the first international football game for either program, and the first at Croke Park since 1996. In addition, Penn State will be the first Big Ten Conference team to play internationally since Michigan State and Wisconsin met in Tokyo for the 1993 regular season finale.

Through a partnership with the Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association (PNA), the Curley Center contingent will provide both coverage of the game and stories related to the unusual setting, including pieces on Irish sport

and culture. Highlights of the students’ coverage also will be made available at the Curley Center site (http://comm.psu.edu/sports) online.

The nine-day working trip will serve as the core of a for-credit class, with the students functioning as a professional team of journalists, developing their own stories and contacts and meeting tight deadlines. In addition to the Cur-ley Center site, the students’ best work will be featured on ComMedia (http://commedia.psu.edu), the showcase site for work by Penn State communica-tions students, and form the foun-dation for an edition of “The Lion’s Roar,” a College of Communications publication featuring top undergradu-ate journalism.

“We’re truly excited to provide this experience for our students. It rep-resents a major opportunity for them to develop their professional skills,” said John Affleck, the Knight Chair

in Sports Journalism and Society and director of the Curley Center. “At the same time, it’s gratifying to be able to help the commonwealth’s media indus-try through our partnership with the PNA. This kind of collaboration is key, I believe, to keeping journalism vibrant in the future.”

Students selected for the effort were:l Hannah Bressi, from York, Pa.,l Bobby Chen, from Wayne, Pa.,l Melissa Conrad, from Hamburg, Pa.,l C.J. Doon, from West Sayville, N.Y.,l Kelsie Netzer, from Bakersfield, Calif.,l Greg Pickel, from Middletown, Pa.,l Eric Shultz, from Shamokin, Pa.; and,l Jake Somerville, from Philadelphia.

The news bureau effort provides the latest example of the Curley Center’s student-centered commitment to sports journalism education. In the

Students ready for Ireland trip, opportunity

Students who will travel to Dublin to cover the Croke Park Classic are (left to right): Melissa Conrad, Hannah Bressi, Kelsie Netzer, Jake Somerville, Bobby Chen, Greg Pickel, Eric Shultz and C.J. Doon. (Photo by John Beale)


STUDENT NEWSpast, Curley Center students have cov-ered the Summer Olympics in London, the Bowl Championship Series title game and the Final Four.

The trip to Ireland, however, ranks as the most ambitious endeavor of its kind for the Curley Center both in terms of the size of the group and its professional media partnership. Affleck will be joined by Lori Shontz, a senior editor for The Penn Stater as well as a Curley Center board member and adjunct lecturer in the College of Communications, and John Beale, a senior lecturer in the Department of Journalism and former chief photogra-pher for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Affleck, who coordinated numerous special assignments for The Associated Press during his two decades with that news organization before he joined Penn State last year, conceived the news bureau approach and has worked closely with PNA to develop a plan to provide complete and timely coverage of the game and activities that sur-round it.

Teri Henning, president of PNA, said that the organization is excited to work with the University and share the students’ work with its newspaper and digital members across Pennsylvania and beyond. “We are always looking for high-quality, original content to share with our news media members, and welcome any opportunity to part-ner with Penn State to promote both the present and future of journalism,” Henning said.

The game will kick off at 1:30 p.m. Aug. 30 in Dublin (8:30 a.m. ET), and will air on ESPN2, ComRadio and the Penn State Sports Network.

Established in 2003 as a first-of-its-kind emphasis in higher education, the Curley Center, housed in the College of Communications at Penn State, explores issues and trends in sports journalism through instruction, outreach, programming and research. Along with hands-on, real-life sports reporting experiences for students, Curley Center programming regularly attracts top-notch sports journalists to campus. l

A 22-year-old Penn State student earned an internship with the Acad-emy of Television, Arts, and Sciences Foundation in Hollywood, Calif., this summer.

Donghee Lee will be working at ATAS for six to eight weeks. Her host network is Warner Bros, and she will be helping produce television and on-line research reports to support inter-nal clients, provide rating analyses on television programs, write newsletters, create and maintain social media sites, and attend focus group sessions.

“I am indescribably excited to work there. Not only is Warner Bros one of the most prestigious and renown production companies in the world, but also some of my favorite shows, in-cluding ‘The Middle’ and ‘The Ellen DeGeneres Show,’ are in partnership with it,” said Lee.

Lee first learned about the intern-ship through College of Communica-tions Career Adviser’s internship and job postings in January.

“I was initially planning on apply-ing for a public relations internship because that was my major. But my professor suggested I apply for the

media research cate-gory because I had a lot of research ex-perience,” said Lee. “It just made sense. Fortunately, re-writ-ing my professional statement wasn’t hard or time-con-suming because I had a lot to say for

research. Having research experience and professors to really encourage me and believe in me truly helped me get this position.”

California will be full of many new experiences for Lee.

“I’ve never been to California before. My friends and family are worried because Los Angeles is a big city, but I’m originally from Seoul, South Korea, which I think is bigger and more crowded than NYC. So, I will be careful, but I’m not worried,” said Lee.

Lee is set to graduate next spring with a bachelor’s degree in public rela-tions and a master’s in media studies through the Integrated Undergradu-ate/Graduate program. l

DongheeLee

Support helps for Hollywood intern

MAYMESTER MOMENTStudents completing the Maymester session of COMM 497B International Documentary Production take a break from working in Ireland for a group meal before their return to campus to complete their film projects.


STUDENT NEWS

Six graduating Penn State seniors from the College of Communications served as student marshals during spring commencement exercises at the Bryce Jordan Center.

These six students, one from each major plus an overall marshal, were chosen because of their outstand-ing achievements in academics and extra-curricular activities.

Jessica Paholsky, from Littlestown, Pa., served as the overall marshal. Paholsky graduated with degrees in journalism and in visual arts. She completed internships with Naked Nutrition LLC, The Carroll County Times and Voices of Central Pennsyl-vania.

On campus, she interned with WPSU and the College of Agricul-tural Sciences. Paholsky was part of the National Press Photographers Association, Triathlon Club, Cross Country Club, Kappa Tau Alpha national honor society, Golden Key international honor society, Phi Eta Sigma national honor society and The Daily Collegian.

Kelly Jackson, from Hershey, Pa., served as the student marshal for advertising and public relations. She’s also a member of the Schreyer Honors College. She has complet-ed internships with the Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Abel Communications, and Allen and Gerritsen.

On campus, Jackson was part of the Advertising Club, American Advertis-ing Federation, Valley Magazine, and a member of Phi Kappa Phi and Kappa Tau Alpha.

Lauren Murphy, from Philipsburg, Pa., served as the student marshal for film-video. Murphy graduated with a double major in film-video and mechanical engineering. She was involved with the Engineering Ambas-sadors, Phroth and TEDxPSU. She also worked for the Department of

Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering creating profile videos. Murphy was a counselor for the College of Commu-nications Film Camp, a Fresh START team leader and studied abroad in England.

Samantha Agostino, from New City, N.Y., served as the student mar-shal for journalism. Agostino worked on the “Centre County Report” and completed internships for Rubenstein Public Relations, Picture Shack Enter-tainment and Pennsylvania Business Central.

Agostino was also both a morale and public relations captain for the Penn State Dance Marathon and a peer mentor for the College of Com-munications.

Jianghanhan Li, from Shangrao, Jiangxi, China, served as the student marshal for media studies. During her time on campus, Li was part of the National Association of Multi-Ethnic-ity in Communications, Penn State International Dance Ensemble, Penn State Statistics Club, Innoblue and PSNtv.

She was also a tutor in the Mor-gan Academic Support Center for Student Athletes and conducted undergraduate research for Ubiqui-tous Computing Project and for the ICT4D Project. She also completed an advertising and media internship at The Townsend Group.

Victoria Grice, from Lancaster, Pa., served as the student marshal for telecommunications. She completed internships with Penn State Public Broadcasting, Surge Business Develop-ment Communications/Film, CNBC and was team video producer for the Penn State men’s varsity soccer team. Grice was heavily involved in THON, was a peer mentor for the College of Communications, and was involved with PSNtv and PSNsports. l

Paholsky receivesKopp Award

Jessica Paholsky, a senior majoring in visual journalism in the College of Communications and photography in the College of Arts and Architecture, was awarded the 2014 W. LaMarr Kopp International Achievement Award for undergraduate students.

The award recognizes undergraduate students who have contributed significantly to the advancement of the international mission of the University. It is named in honor of the late deputy vice president for international programs.

As a Schreyer Honors College freshman, Paholsky told her professors of her intent to become a photographer for the National Geographic Society. Since then, she has photographed laborers in Mexico and an olive harvest in Italy, and this spring traveled to Cuba as part of an international reporting class. “Her roots are in small-town Pennsylvania, but Ms. Paholsky is developing a sophisticated worldview by taking advantage of opportunities to study and report overseas,” one nominator said.

Paholsky said she seeks subjects that “when viewed through the common Western lens, are not seen with widespread acceptance. However, through my photography, I aspire to capture the human nature that is locally and internationally shared but too often overlooked due to some form of cultural bias.”

Another nominator said, “Through her choice of programs, her photographic projects and her independent travel, she immersed herself in ways that brought her far closer to the people and the nuances of the culture than the standard tourist thoroughfares or the more popular study-abroad destinations would have ever permitted.” l

Six students serve as marshalsduring commencement exercises


STUDENT NEWS

Hundreds of students in the College of Communications

participate in internships every year, but there are very few like Marissa Miller.

A senior majoring in public relations, Miller used her recent internship with the American Red Cross as a vehicle to raise scholar-ship money — not for her, but for her fellow students.

Talk about paying it forward.“I created an entire social media

campaign from start to finish called #CrossMyHeartRED,” said Miller, who is originally from Johnstown, Pa. “It gave students the chance to create a video to share on Twitter. The video that received the most retweets won a scholarship that I was able to secure sponsors for.”

Those two scholarships totaled $6,000. And the entire experience was made possible by a little help from the College of Communi-cations Alumni Society Neal J. Friedman Internship Fund.

Students who participate in internships often need help in filling the gaps created by cost-of-living expenses that aren’t covered by their employer or student loans.

In Miller’s case, the Friedman Fund literally made it possible for her to get to her internship.

“You spend hundreds of hours working for free, and that doesn’t pay for food or gas,” said Miller. “Gas prices hit the wallet hard, and it was nice to know I could get to my internship every day because I had the money for gas.”

Along with easing the strain of gas prices, Miller has seen the Friedman Fund fulfill other aspects of her “pay it forward” mantra.

The support saved her money she could then use to pay tuition. “This really helped me to cut down on the amount of interest I’m going to have to pay back for all the loans I’m taking,” she said.

Miller believes it could actually save her an entire year’s worth of tuition.

“I saw myself grow into a true professional during my internship,” said Miller. “There is no amount of

money that could be placed on an opportunity like that, but the scholarship award makes it so much easier for a student to worry less about the cost of things and instead focus on their experience.”

Miller’s evolution into a public relations professional may have started before she even arrived at Penn State. True to her “pay it forward” philosophy, it was her involvement with a non-profit group in high school that led her down her chosen career path.

“I actually love to bake, and I was deeply involved with a non-profit organization called Cookies for Kids Cancer,” said Miller, adding that the urging of her parents led her to start thinking about public relations. “I aspire to be the marketing or communications director for a major food company that has excellent corporate or social re-sponsibility, a fun organizational culture, and one that’s true to its values.”

Supported by the College of Communications Alumni Society Board of Directors, the Friedman Fund continues to provide the necessary funds for dozens of stu-dents to comfortably participate

in their internships every year. It’s easier than ever to contribute, with online do-

nations accepted at www.psu.edu/give (with “College of Communications Alumni Society Internship Fund” selected in the drop-down menu).

Miller figures to be the next in a long line of com-munications professionals whose career was launched, at least in part, by the Friedman Fund.

“I could absolutely see myself with a career at the American Red Cross,” said Miller. “But, this summer, I have an internship with a food giant, and I am so looking forward to that, since it’s really where my heart lies.”

— Mike Conti

Internship fund helps student pursue her dreams

Marissa Miller worked for the American Red Cross last summer and crafted a social media campaign to raise money for scholarships that support other students.


STUDENT NEWS

A Penn State student earned a scholarship from the Philadelphia Ad-vertising Club as part of the organiza-tion’s annual competition for college students from Pennsylvania.

Emily Burke, a junior advertis-ing major from West Chester, Pa., became the second Penn State student honored by the program in the past three years. After an application and interview process during which she competed against 15 other students from across the state, Burke earned a $2,500 scholarship.

“It was pretty exciting news. I feel honored to represent Penn State,” Burke said. During an interview with five members of the Philadelphia Advertising Club, she discussed her future plans in advertising and her experiences during her time at Penn State.

Burke serves as president of the AdClub, Penn State’s Donald W. Davis Chapter of the American Ad-vertising Federation (AAF). She has been a member of the group since her freshman year. In addition, she was a member of the AAF competition team, which created an ad campaign for Mary Kay Cosmetics as part of the national competition this spring. Burke also serves as a peer mentor in the College of Communications and is a member of the Trilogy, a special interest group that supports the Penn State Dance Marathon.

The Philadelphia Advertising Club is the largest professional advertising organization in Philadelphia and a member of the American Advertising Federation. The group awarded a total of $42,000 in scholarship money this year. l

Three receivescholarships

Three College of Communications students who performed well during recent media-related and multimedia internships received scholarships from the T. Howard Foundation.

Support from the fund managed by the T. Howard Foundation (THF) went to just 11 students from across the nation, including the three Penn State seniors: Tamara Hall, from Philadelphia; Cristina Recino, from St. James, N.Y.; and Kristen Smith, from Marietta, Ga.

THF scholarships are awarded on the basis of academic merit, internship performance and a demonstrated commitment to pursuing a career in the multimedia and entertainment industry. This year, the foundation awarded $15,000 in scholarships. l

Student gets Philly Ad Club support

FILM FESTIVALStudent filmmakers respond to questions after a screening at the annual Blue and White Film Festival, conducted at the end of the spring semester at the State Theatre in State College. The festival featured more than a dozen student films in a variety of production styles. Students across majors were able to submit work for consideration and a panel of alumni and faculty judges made festival selections. (Photo by Dan Griswold)


STUDENT NEWS

Four students recognized for commitment to ethics, integrityFour Penn State students earned

awards honoring ethics, integrity, and professional and social responsibility that are presented annually under the auspices of the Don Davis Professor-ship in Ethics.

The Davis Award recognizes College of Communications students who distinguish themselves in the classroom, in their activities around campus and in the community. Facul-ty members nominate students who have displayed an above-and-beyond commitment to service and integrity, and who deserved to be recognized as ethical leaders or role for the next generation.

This year’s honorees were: Enica Castaneda, Jei-laya Hassan, Katelyn Mixer and Cheyenne Sexton.

“All of our honorees clearly repre-sent the highest standards in ethics, integrity and service,” said Patrick Parsons, the Don Davis Professor of Ethics.

Castaneda, a first-year doctoral student whose dissertation will focus on mediated interventions for at-risk youth, was honored for her commit-

ment to social justice. Along with her work in the classroom, she is working on recommendations for removal of barriers to study-abroad opportuni-ties for low-income students and she has been an active voice as graduate students address increasing insurance premiums.

Hassan, who’s completing a double major in public relations and sociol-ogy with a specialization in race rela-tions, has organized fundraisers for the Alzheimer’s Association, been an undergraduate teaching assistant, and worked on research about the political beliefs and behaviors of millenials. She’s also a member and public rela-tions manager for an a capalla group on campus.

Mixer, an advertising/public relations major, was nominated for her work ethic, leadership and strong commitment to public relations that can “do good.” She has worked on promotions for Northwestern Penn-sylvania’s 4-H youth camps, served as the public relations chair for the Penn State Blue Band and worked as an intern with Collegiate Wind Com-

petition Team, based at Penn State, promoting “green” technology and sustainability.

Sexton, an adverting/public relations major with a passion for the environment and sustainability issues, led the communications team for the EcoCAR2 effort at Penn State this year. Sexton also presented a paper about mainstream news coverage of under-represented and under-served communities at the 2013 Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication convention in Washington, D.C. She also completed an internship with the Children’s Miracle Network.

The Don Davis Professorship was created by Don Davis Jr. in honor of his father, Don Davis Sr., who estab-lished the advertising curriculum at Penn State in 1936 and taught most of his 37 years as a college educator at Penn State. The younger Davis, a Penn State Distinguished Alumnus, was the longtime CEO of Stanley Works who spent his life emphasizing the importance of “doing the right thing.” Both men are deceased. l

ACADEMIC, ATHLETIC

Gymnast Adrian Evans, an advertising major from

Boulder, Colo., was the male recipient of the McCoy Award,

presented annually to one male and one female Penn State student-athlete who

have combined academic and athletic excellence. Evans’

many accolades include being named Academic All-

Big Ten and earning College Gymnastics Associaiton

All-America Scholar-Athlete honors. The McCoy Award is named for Penn State’s

longtime dean of the College of Physical Education who served as the University’s

athletic director. (Photo by Mark Selders)

She had just five minutes to share her message but Janelle Applequist knows much can happen in a lot less time, so she was excited about the op-portunity to address attendees at the fourth annual TEDxPSU Conference at Penn State.

Applequist, who earned her bach-elor’s and master’s degrees from the College of Communications, needs only to complete her dissertation to earn her Ph.D. She’s been a member of the campus community for eight years.

Her time at the University and some serious health experiences have helped shape her personally and professionally — and she talked about that during her portion of the on-campus conference in early March.

“I encourage my students to learn by listening to others and I know if they do that they can do amazing things,” Applequist said. “Learning to listen to other people is really important.”

Conference attendees got the chance to heed the advice Applequist gives her students when she stepped to the podium for her brief speech.

It took much less than five minutes — just seconds really — for Applequist, then a 13-year-old junior high school cheerleader, to fall off a trampoline during a summer workout and sustain a serious head injury. A slow recov-ery from what was thought to be a concussion revealed something even more serious.

The fall literally had shaken her brain, revealing and worsening a preexisting Chiari malformation — a structural defect in the cerebellum when the brain stem does not fit into its intended place in the skull.

“When it happened, I had all kinds of problems and I guess I just expected it to eventually go back to normal. It never did,” Applequist said. Symptoms included an inability to eat or even swallow. There were

constant headaches and a limit on physical activity.

Her surgery was at age 14. That came after a first day of school, just days after the fall, when Applequist gave a speech to incoming seventh graders. As the student council pres-ident, she stood in front of her peers in a neck brace and braces — because the fall had required some dental adjustments as well.

“You can picture that, right?” said Applequist, who could no longer par-ticipate on the cheerleading team be-cause of the injury. Eventually friends started referring to her as “Aspen,” the manufacturer of the neck brace whose label was visible on the device. In addition, almost everyone knew who she was. “Especially the teachers. Everybody knew I could not bump my head, so everybody was always watch-ing out for me,” she said.

Still, Applequist thrived at Seneca Valley High School, about 32 miles north of Pittsburgh. She was always a strong student, but the head injury, complications and surgery made school harder. She still got As, but it required more effort than before. She was home-schooled for half a year while enduring numerous spinal

taps as part of her treatment and only attended half-days of school as a high school senior.

“I had to learn how to learn again,” she said. “I think I was less optimistic about the future at that time. It’s not really the kind of condition they can fix. They can’t really prop your cerebellum up in your head. Maybe someday there’ll be new technology.”

Surgeries have left Applequist, 27, without approximately six inch-es of bone at the base of her skull in the back of her head. As a result, certain physical activities remain off limits and she has to be careful about anything she does — even a sneeze. Headaches are fairly constant, but she has complet-ed pain management programs to deal with them. Plus, when she does have children it can only be by Cesarean section, in order to prevent her from pushing and enduring the

accompanying pressure.She’s not about to complain,

though.“It was scary at times, for me and

my entire family, but I cannot stress enough how much my mom, dad and two older brothers taught me during the experience,” she said. “They were a daily example of how to be there for someone, to provide a support system. And that’s something I carry into the classroom with me. I want my stu-dents to know they have a person they can come to, should they ever feel overwhelmed, pressured or scared. That’s important to me.”

Family members believe Applequist has supported them just as much in return, and they know how she con-nects with her students. She has two older brothers, Chad and Bret. Bret earned his degree in elementary ed-ucation from Penn State and teaches third grade in the Northern Lebanon School District. He has learned a cou-ple of key things from his sister.

“Perseverence and toughness. That’s Janelle,” he said. “She’s not


“I had to learn how to learn again. I think I was less optimistic about the future at that time. It’s not really the kind of condition they can fix. They can’t really prop your cerebellum up in your head.”

— Janelle Applequist

STUDENT NEWS

Personal story shapes graduate student’s TEDx presentation

Watch Applequist’s

TEDx talk online.


STUDENT NEWS

NEWS, NOTESl Jessica Tully, a senior majoring in jour-nalism and political science from Wexford, Pa., was one of five Penn State students honored for leadership in their respective areas with the 2014 John W. Oswald Award. The award, estab-lished in 1983, annually recognizes graduating seniors who have provided outstanding leader-ship in at least one of several areas of activity. The award consists of a medallion honoring John W. Oswald, president of the University from 1970 to 1983. Tully was a writer/editor for Onward State’s Facebook page and Twitter feed, and opinions editor, campus news editor and crime reporter for The Daily Collegian. She served as a freelance reporter and news intern at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and USA Today, covering breaking news and writing investigative pieces. She was also one of eight students selected for the College’s depth reporting class and one of 17 chosen for the international reporting class.

l After conducting a telephone survey that found most Centre County residents were happy and satisfied, a group of Penn State public relations students conducted a “Happy in Happy Valley” event at the end of the spring semester. The free, family-friendly event included activities and entertainment for all ages, and aimed to celebrate happiness and help residents who are not as happy. Students conducted the telephone survey in February as part of their public relations campaign class. Calls to a random sample of 412 county residents presented questions about satisfac-tion with things such as affordable housing, community involvement, finances, health, local government and work life.

l Thirty-four College of Communications students were inducted into the Douglas A. Anderson Penn State Chapter of Kappa Tau Alpha, the national honor society for journalism and mass communication, during a ceremony at the end of the spring semester.

l Two episodes of “In the Game,” the sports magazine TV show produced by College of Communications students, aired on WPSU in May. The complete episodes may be found at http:commedia.psu.edu online.

l ComRadio covered the NFL Draft in May for the sixth year in a row. It remains the only student outlet to cover the draft in its entirety.

one to complain and while other people might worry about her health, she finds ways to be a part of what happens rather than simply not attempting it. Plus, she’s genuine and passionate. That sincerity helps her connect with students becuase they know she cares. As I reflect back on what she’s been through, I think I’m learning more from her now than before.”

Applequist has grown from an undergraduate student, getting motivated in a COMM 410 Interna-tional Mass Communications class taught by C. Michael Elavsky, an associate professor in the Department of Film-Video and Media Studies, to teaching that very same course herself as a graduate student.

“Although it’s unusual for a stu-dent to earn an undergraduate degree and then two graduate degrees at the same institution, it’s not unheard of,” said Marie Hardin. “When an exceptional student, such as Janelle, is interested in continuing with us, we’ll look at the case and decide whether it’s in the best interest of everyone involved. Janelle’s inter-disciplinary work, her fit with our

faculty’s research and her strong academic record made the decision an easy one.

“She is one of the most balanced, collegial and accomplished graduate students I’ve seen come through our graduate program,” Hardin said. “She brings energy and a deep level of care to any task she encounters. She’s goal-driven, but people-oriented. That’s a rare combination.”

That people-oriented approach shows in Applequist’s love of teach-ing. In addition, she has focused her health care-related research on people and qualitative measures, the words that doctors and patients use with each other, and how patients report what they feel. In a health-care world concerned mostly with hard num-bers and quantitative research, her approach is slightly different — but no less important, and potentially impactful.

“I don’t think it’s so much over-coming adversity as dealing with what you have to deal with,” she said. “The experience 100 percent led me to where I am, to the researcher I am and to the chance to teach, which I love to do.” l

DESK DUTYShahkila Daniels, a senior veterinary and biomedical sciences major, started working at the White Building gym during the spring semester. (Photo by Shawn Vengoechea)


ALUM

NI NE

WS

Amanda Gifford Lockwood, the College’s 2014 recipient of the university-wide Alum-

ni Achievement Award, knows how to deliver.The award, given annually to no more than

10 Penn State graduates, recognizes alumni who are 35 years of age or younger who have shown extraordinary professional accomplishment.

It was delivered to Amanda in ceremonies April 25 at the Nittany Lion Inn.

Lockwood (’04 Journ, Edu) has delivered at ESPN for more than a decade, working on several national radio programs and events. These days, she is a program director with ESPN Radio, overseeing sports talk programming to millions of sports fans nationwide. Under her purview are the nationally syndicated “Mike & Mike in the Morning” on ESPN2 and ESPN Radio, and “The Dan LeBatard Show” on ESPN Radio. “Mike & Mike” is heard on more than 350 affiliates, including the ESPN Radio app and Sirius/XM.

For nearly a decade at ESPN, Lockwood has produced national radio shows such as “Col-lege GameDay” and “The Herd with Colin Cowherd.” She began at ESPN as an intern and was a production assistant, associate producer and producer prior to her role as program director. She played a key role in organizing ESPN Radio’s annual “Don’t Ever Give Up V Foundation Auction,” which has raised more than $6.5 million in nine years.

Lockwood has delivered as a leader, too. She was named a “Rising Leader” by Women in Cable Telecommunica-tions. And for five years, she coached high school basket-ball and softball in Connecticut, where her teams had a combined record of 100-21.

She has delivered as a Penn State undergraduate and as an alumni volunteer. She earned two bachelor’s degrees and was the student marshal for both the College of Communications and the College of Education. She is a member of the College of Communications’ Board of Visitors, a regular guest lecturer on campus, and a mentor at events on and off campus. She has served as a modera-tor for on-campus events featuring high-profile speakers, including Bob Costas, Jim Jimirro, Gerry Abrams and Carmen Finestra.

And, after visiting campus in late April to receive the award and meet with faculty and students, Lockwood

delivered again — just three weeks after returning home to her husband Mike (’05 Engr) and daughter Abigail in Connecticut. On May 16, Lockwood made a very special delivery. That’s when, at 6:16 a.m., she gave birth to her son, Ryan Michael Lockwood.

It was a very special delivery, indeed.

Achievement Award recognizesGifford Lockwood

Previous Alumni Achievement Award winners from the College.

2013: Dan Victor (’06 Journ), The New York Times

2012: Ellyn Fisher (’99 Journ), The Advertising Council

2011: Ryan Hockensmith (’01 Journ), ESPN

2010: Christopher Krewson (’98 Journ), Variety

2009: Riva Marker (’00 Film-Video), Rosemark Pictures

2008: Jessica Stuart (’96 Brcab), ABC News

2007: Michael Signora (’96 Journ), NFL

2006: Jarred Romesburg (’98 Telecom), Romesburg Media

2005: Jill Cordes (’92 Journ), Food Network

ACHIEVEMENT AWARDAmanda Gifford Lockwood delivers her acceptance speech.


ALUMNI NEWS

A College of Communications graduate has turned her internship into a full-time job.

Megan Ruffe was hired as an ap-prentice editor for Florentine Films, the documentary production compa-ny owned by award-winning director and producer Ken Burns. Ruffe has been working on the company’s series about the Vietnam War — a 10- to 12-hour TV series that will debut on PBS in 2016 — as an intern, and she will continue her work on the project in her new role.

As an apprentice editor, Ruffe will be preparing media — making the editing process easier because footage, music and photos are organized for other editors. Most of Ruffe’s responsibilities have involved media management, logging footage and editing scripts.

“The best part has been working with the amazing people here,” said Ruffe. “I’m really excited. The stories being told in this series are important, and I’m happy to be a part of it.”

Ruffe had the opportunity to be part of a rough-cut screening of the series a few months ago. Interns were also invited to sit in on meetings with the staff members to discuss poten-tial changes. A

series of question-and-answer lunches with staff members helped interns get more information about editing, producing and writing films, too.

Ruffe, from New Hope, Pa., served as the student marshal for College of Communications commencement exercises in August 2013. She earned a bachelor’s degree in film-video and a bachelor’s degree in geography. While at Penn State, Ruffe was the co-creator and editor of two short documenta-ries. She also directed “Stories at Sea,” an oral history project documenting the stories of people aboard the Se-mester at Sea MV Explorer.

Ruffe completed a multitude of internships during her time at Penn State and studied abroad on four sep-arate occasions. Along with Semester at Sea, she traveled to Egypt, India and London. She achieved dean’s list status every semester and was a part of Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society.

Burns, known for his use of past footage and photographs, has produced numerous award-winning documentaries for PBS, including: “The Civil War” (1990); “Baseball” (1994), which earned an Emmy Award for Outstanding Informational Series; “The War” (2007); and “The National Parks: America’s Best Idea” (2009), which earned an Emmy Award for Outstanding Non-Fiction Series. His documentaries “Brooklyn Bridge” and “The Statue of Liberty” earned Acad-emy Award nominations in 1981 and 1985, respectively. Burns provided the commencement address for the Col-lege of Communications and received an honorary degree from Penn State in 2010. l

A College of Communications alum-na was one of two Penn Staters who accepted positions as English educa-tion volunteers in the first Peace Corps group traveling to Kosovo.

The group left June 6 for their assignment in the Peace Corps’ 140th country of service and its first entry into a new county since 2007.

Vera Greene, who completed bachelor’s degrees in journalism and political science in 2013, and Lauren Matakas, who earned her bache-lor’s degree in English in May, were accepted as two of the 25 volunteers in the inaugural group to the eastern European country.

“Pioneering a new program takes a lot of patience and acceptance to change,” said Greene, whose parents met in the Peace Corps. “I’m excited to help forge this new trail with my fellow volunteers.”

While at Penn State, Greene was a reporter and editor at The Daily Collegian. She also was a member of an international reporting class in the College of Communications that traveled to

China and she completed an intern-ship at China Daily in Beijing. Matakas served as the director of community relations for TEDxPSU, Phi Mu-Beta Mu sisterhood development chair and the Out of the Darkness community walk captain.

Both consider Penn State instru-mental in their decision to serve in the Peace Corps.

“Penn State and the students I met there guided me in the direction of the

Peace Corps,” said Greene, who grew up in Nashua, N.H. “The atmosphere there is an example of how dedicated individuals can change the world. I came into my own during college and am forever in debt to my university for everything it has provided me.”

Penn State ranks 18th among large schools whose alumni commit to the Peace Corps with 42 undergraduate alumni volunteering worldwide. Since the first days of the Peace Corps, 1,013 Penn State alumni have traveled abroad to serve others.

“When I applied, I had said I want-ed ‘greatest need.’ Receiving an invite to Kosovo was absolutely incredible,” Greene said. “It’s the second youngest country in the world (only six years old), with a sometimes tumultuous past. I hope to go into international relations later on, so places like this fascinate me.” l

MeganRuffe

Alumna earns job with respected production company

VeraGreene

Alum among 25-member Peace Corps team in Kosovo


ALUMNI NEWS

After he had proven adept at writing engaging books about public policy, a U.S. senator called. And after that it was the president.

By then, everybody knew Will Nothdurft could write.

He knew long before that, though.

When his eighth grade En-glish teacher, Mrs. D’Ascoli, known for her high standards and tough grades, returned students’ critical essays of the epic poem “Evangeline,” Nothdurft was the last to receive his paper. Along with it came an explanation — to the entire class.

“As you know, I always give grades for both style and con-tent,” she said. “I have here a paper to which I have awarded not two, but three A’s: one for style, one for content and one for something I cannot begin to explain to you.”

Initially embarrassed, Nothdurft (’77 MA Journ) embraced the certainty he could write. At Penn State, he bolstered his skill set with guidance from a savvy professor.

“Bob Pockrass was my adviser, and a wonderful man. Also patient. I took the thesis option — no one did, then — and it took me a few years to come up with a subject I cared about,” Nothdurft said. “Bob trusted me and waited.”

Nothdurft worked for the Institute for Land at Water Resources at Penn State and that experience, combined with his proven writing skills, helped him secure a White House policy post under president Jimmy Carter. Later ousted because of an administration change, Nothdurft spent a decade writing policy books that proved readable and prompted action. A call from vice president Al Gore meant a

ghostwriting job on his book, “Com-mon Sense Government,” and that prompted a call from President Bill Clinton to help write “Between Hope and History.”

“I met with him almost weekly in the Oval Office and in three months we’d completed the book that was his vision for the country’s future,” Nothdurft said.

Still, while Nothdurft was engaged with his work he realized his heart was not.

He moved to Seattle and was asked to write a book about the first explorer of Mount Everest (English-man George Malloy who disappeared in 1924). The result, “Ghosts of Everest,” earned widespread critical acclaim and two international awards. It was labeled “a book of historic importance that reads like a detective mystery” by Publishers Weekly.

SPENCER’S SPOTAlumna Lara Spencer (’91 Journ) was named co-host of “Good Morning America” in April. She’s also a best-selling author — with another book on the way — and the creator and executive producer of “Flea Market Flip” on HGTV. Spencer was honored with the Outstanding Alumni Award from the College of Communications in 2012.

Author’s career consistently moves northward — from crafting accessible policy books to well-received fiction

William Nothdurft has written everything from public policy books to a presidential biography, and his move into fiction was a hit when his debut novel earned a hefty advance from a division of Random House.

A successful move into fiction writ-ing followed. Under the pen name Will North, he proved he could write no matter the format.

“I’d never written a sentence of fiction, didn’t think I had it in me despite people saying for years how vivid and creative my nonfiction books were,” he said. “But, something happened in my life which led to my first novel.”

He wrote that first book in 90 days, secured a $200,000 advance from Random House and has never looked back. He’s working on his fifth novel, which would be the 19th book in his 35-year career. l


ALUMNI NEWS

King: Audience change drives media Rob King discusses the future of communications on various platforms during his campus visit. (Photos by John Beale)

As vice president of news at ESPN, Penn Stater Rob King leads all news gathering operations for the all-sports network and “SportsCenter,” arguably the biggest brand-name show in sports television.

With a strong journalism background, including gradu-ate studies in the College of Communications, he knows about the business of journalism, good journalism and sports.

He also knows what he wants for “SportsCenter” and ESPN’s news gathering efforts does not matter nearly as much as what sports fans and viewers want.

“We’re really focused on what the audience is doing and what they want,” King said during a campus visit in March when he talked with students. “You don’t expect to wait for information, and you don’t expect to pay for it, either. Most of the time you’re watching on the smallest screen you own, not the biggest. It’s not a generational thing, either. It’s a behavioral thing, and in the end everything we do is targeted toward serving fans.”

King, a former staff member at The Daily Collegian, has been editor-in-chief of ESPN.com and served as a senior coordinating producer for studio production during his time at ESPN. He began his career in the newspaper business, working for the Commercial-News in Danville, Ill., the Courier-Journal in Louisville, Ky., and The Philadelphia Inquirer.

“My job I have now has nothing to do with what I knew I was going to do when I was 22 years old,” King said. “You have to embrace the age you are. It’s hard to hear that, but

if you want to get to the highest level of the business you have to start small and make mistakes. In order to make great stuff, you have to make a lot of really bad stuff first. And that’s OK.”

Along with career advice, King addressed tropics ranging from the measurements ESPN values beyond TV ratings (specifically online behaviors such as “ad starts” and navigation behavior, and even which teams and athletes make a ratings impact) and the proliferation of sports TV networks in general.

“We welcome competition. We were thrilled, really thrilled, to see Fox Sports 1 launch, because we geared up for a massive competition,” King said. “We’re in sports. We love competition. I don’t think anybody at ESPN would feel good if there were no competition. Everybody who has ever worked in a news organization knows what it’s like to get something before someone else and deliver it to an audience.” l


ALUMNI NEWS

Wilkins works — and networks — as he crafts his careerIt’s not an easy road for an

aspiring network-level sports play-by-play personality, but not much deters Jacob Wilkins.

He only knows one way to pursue his dream job — with passion and persistence.

Wilkins, who earned his broadcast journalism degree from Penn State in 2010, works as a sports update anchor for WFAN-AM (the nation’s first all-sports station), CBS Sports Radio and Sirius XM Radio. Based in New York City, he also handles play-by-play duties for Stony Brook University women’s basketball.

Just four years after leaving the College of Communications, where he stayed busy in a variety of roles with ComRadio, Wilkins has already handled play-by-play duties for a short-season Class A baseball team and completed assignments for mlb.com, the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, MSG Varsity, CBS Sports and YES Network.

“There are just so many opportunities out there,” Wilkins said. “So far, New York has been a great place. It’s where I’m from, not that I’m tied to the city, but I’ve been able to stay busy.”

As if balancing several jobs was not enough, Wilkins created more work for himself last fall, launching a regular podcast titled “Let’s Talk” that recently welcomed College Football Playoff executive director Bill Hancock. Pre-vious guests include New York Giants running back Tiki Barber, Fox Sports play-by-play man Kenny Albert and YES Network host Bob Lorenz.

Wilkins has also interviewed Penn Staters for the show, including Carmen Finestra (’71), the co-creator of “Home Improvement” and former supervising producer for “The Cosby Show,” and Mitch Lukevics (’76), director of minor league operations for the Tampa Bay Rays.

Wilkins, 26, had pitched an interview-style show to a few outlets but found limited interest. After brainstorming with a family friend, he decided to do the show himself, hop-ing the podcast would eventually draw interest and wider distribution because of its quality.

“The toughest part was getting the first guests. It was sort of streaky,” Wilkins said. “Fortunately, we got a couple of good ones early and it’s found a rhythm. It’s still not easy — and I spend more time working on the podcast, just lining up guests and scheduling, than the other jobs — but it’s worth it.”

As Wilkins pursues his network dream job, his commitment to networking, with a sincere interest in getting better and getting to know people in the industry, provides an unmistakable calling card. He’s driven and sincere about meeting media and sports personalities. He’s authentic, not a schmoozer or someone simply collecting contact information.

“I’m constantly learning and networking is something you try to improve on,” Wilkins said. “It’s about developing relationships and learning how to better present myself as well as really listening to people. I’ve tried to be fairly ambitious and find people

who support that ambition.”Without any background

or connections in sports me-dia before he came to Penn State, Wilkins passion has been driven with a tinge of pragmatism. Despite strong support from his family, his father’s connections in the financial planning industry and his mother’s role as a teacher in Brooklyn did not transfer into even superficial connections in the competi-tive sports media world.

So, Wilkins has gladly shouldered the necessary networking duties. He’s leaned heavily, and success-

fully, on College of Communications and Penn State connections, and he said those networks have contributed greatly to his success. At the same time, he embraces the work associated with networking.

“My approach is I’ll talk to anybody and even if they’re not the right person they might know someone,” he said. “Once you open one door, you can open others. A lot of it is trying to be tactful and the adage that you don’t ask for the job. But, you might ask for advice that leads to a job.”

Still, he stays busy as a sports update anchor for the three outlets, balancing his schedule between WFAN and CBS Sports Radio because both are located in the same building. Also, the WFAN schedule comes every month and the CBS Sports Radio schedule every three weeks. After that, Sirius XM shifts round things out. It’s a process Wilkins compares to completing a puzzle. “My bosses deserve a lot of credit, too,” he said. “They’ve all been willing to be flexile and work with my fluctuating schedule.”

He then tracks down guests for “Let’s Talk,” and prepares for those interviews in what time remains.

“I really do love the craft,” Wilkins said. “It’s busy, but it’s sup-posed to be.” l

Jacob Wilkins already has ample experience on his way to his dream of a network job. (Photo by John Meore)


ALUMNI NEWS

For the 31,931 runners who complet-ed the 2014 Boston Marathon it was not just another race.

A year after the tragic bombing at the historic event, every participant brought additional motivation and experienced heightened emotions during the 26.2-mile race through the streets of Boston.

Twenty-six-year old Jessica Davis (’09 Adv/PR) was one of those motivated competitors. She was running for a reason, and participating even led to an unexpected professional opportunity that matches her personal passion.

Still, overcoming memories of 2013 was the first challenge.

“Last year I was on the course run-ning with my friend when the bombs went off. It was a tragic day for runners, spectators and the entire city,” Davis said. “I promised myself that day that I would run in 2014.”

The fear and shock of 2013 were in direct contrast to a typical Patriot’s Day in Boston. With the Marathon traditionally contested on that holiday Monday, which usually includes a home game for the Boston Red Sox as well, many people anticipate the activities as a positive sign of summer.

“The energy is insane. People wake up early in the morning to line 26.2 miles surrounding the city and suburbs to support strangers in the race,” Davis said. “Last year was shocking. The streets of Back Bay were like ghost towns with the exception of bits of trash and debris and lots of stoic police officers. The day was ruined. That was why it was important for me to run. I wanted to take the day back for the runners, the ones we lost or who were injured, and for the city I love.”

With a record-setting turnout, she was not alone. And she was one of many running for a charitable cause.

Davis completed her first full mara-thon in 2012. She has run a dozen half marathons. She finished at Boston in 3 hours, 51 minutes.

Davis represented Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary during the mara-thon. Mass Eye and Ear is a hospital

dedicated to the care of disorders that affect the ear, eye, nose, throat and adjacent areas of the head and neck. The hospital helped treat victims after last year’s bombing.

Davis raised $8,123. Along with the hospital’s role in last year’s recovery, Davis also had a personal motivation.

“Each person in my family suffers from vision problems at the most basic level because we wear glasses and contacts. I am 26, and most recently, my ophthalmologist told me that my eyes were maturing at a rapid rate, which is very troublesome,” Davis said. “In addition, my father had both cataracts removed from his eyes, my mom and sister suffer from vertigo, and I have struggled with sleep disorders since infancy.”

The marathon also led to a profes-

sional opportunity for Davis. After working as a sales manager for a corporate catering company in Boston for two years, she accepted a position at an organization called RaceWire shortly after the marathon. RaceWire provides electronic timing and online registra-tion for road races, triathlons, duathons and other events.

“After my experience running the marathon, it was clear to me I wanted to be in an industry that was so positive and inspiring. When the RaceWire opportunity presented itself, it was hard to turn down,” Davis said. “It is a small company, so I am sure I will be doing a lot of everything, but most of my time will be surrounding sales, expanding the business presence in New England and executing our race events.”

— Mary Elder

Marathon run for charity benefits others, boosts alum

Alumna Jessica Davis completed the Boston Marathon in 3 hours, 51 minutes.


ALUMNI NEWS

“Loyalty, pride, confidence, charity and honor. To the world you’ll face, these values are as important as anything else about you. It’s what Penn State has given you. And, I promise, that these are the values that will set you apart from everyone else.”

— Linda Yaccarino (’85 Telecom), president of advertising sales

for NBCUniversal, in her commencement address (Photos by Steve Manuel)

Joyce Venezia Suss (’80 Journ) was named editor of the BergenCounty.com, a division of North Jersey Me-dia Group. She and her family live in Ridgewood, N.J.

Thomas Judd (’89 Film) served as director of photography for the fea-ture film “Injun,” which premiered at the Central Florida Film Festival. He lives in Orlando.

John Dolan (’89 Adv, ’13 PhD Edu) is director of executive education for the School of Media and Public Affairs at George Washington Uni-versity. He lives in Washington, D.C., with his wife Teresa Sullivan (’90 Sci, Lib) and their children.

Jack Freeman (’90 Adv/PR) is the creative director and marketing director for American Program Bureau, one of the country’s largest speaker, celebrity and entertainment agencies. He and his family reside in Needham, Mass.

Brian Hunn (’93 Adv/PR) is vice president, group creative director at DigitasLBi in New York.

Suzanne Clement Libby (’97 Adv/PR) and husband Reed have sons Spencer and Nicholas “Marco,” born April 24, 2012. They live in Arlington, Va.

David Jefferis (’98 Telecom) mar-ried Trisha Boslet (’12 H&HD) on Dec. 28, 2013. They live in Kennett Square, Pa.

Rachel Litcofsky (’98 Adv/PR) is a public relations consultant for the nonprofit The Good People Fund.

Sunetra Sen Narayan (’98 Tele-com, ’02 PhD MassComm) recently published “Globalization and Tele-vision: A Study of the Indian Expe-rience, 1990-2010” (2014, Oxford University Press). She is an associate professor at the Indian Institute of Mass Communications.

Daryl Lang (’01 Journ) and Sydney Applegate were married Nov. 9, 2013, in Brooklyn, N.Y. Daryl is the copy manager for Shutterstock, the online photo and video library. Sydney is a production designer for Kate Spade New York. They live in New York.

Elizabeth (Sarcia) Johnson (’02 Adv/PR) and Gary Johnson (’02 Bus) welcomed daughter, Ella Catherine,

on Aug. 13, 2013. Big brother Luke is 3. Elizabeth is director of public relations and content development at Frost Miller Group.

Jason Bartolone (’03 Journ) is the East Manatee editor of the Braden-ton (Fla.) Herald.

Leah Benedict Krull (’03 Ad/PR, Lib) and husband Mark (’03 Bus) have children Grant, 3, and Maddox “Max” John, born May 15, 2013. They live in Hershey, Pa.


ALUMNI NOTES

What happens when a group of wealthy hunters gets tired of the usual prey of deer and bears?

They decide to hunt on “The Dead-liest Game,” and that’s the focus of the latest fictional short story — the 13th such story —by alumnus Michael Danese.

“My ideas come from many sources,” said Danese (’77 Film-Video), who lives in Allentown, Pa. “A rash of school shoot-ings led me to ‘Julie’s War.’ The TV show ‘Dexter’ inspired ‘The Lost Boy.’ Watching about 20 minutes of the second Hunger Games movie with my daughter eventually led me to ‘The Deadliest Game.’ Some-times the spark just appears in my head, and sometimes it needs to be drawn out.”

Danese manages the visual communi-cations department at Allentown-based Air Products. His unit produces photos, videos and webcasts that he directs and edits.

Even after investing all that creative en-ergy in his daily job, Danese still has plenty of ideas for his growing list of short stories.

In “The Deadliest Game” the men being hunted are death-row inmates who volun-teer to participate. If they survive, they win their freedom.

According to the rules of the game, there are five hunters and five “runners”

in the 10-square-mile area. Hunters are armed with a .22 rifle and runners have only a machete.

Part of the story focuses on a runner named Jim, who was framed for murder, has been on death row for six years and misses hs wife and two daughters.

The story also focuses on a father and son-in-law pair of hunters. The father, Jake, lives for the game, while his son-in-law, Pete, is not thrilled about killing animals and cannot bare the thought of killing humans.

The short story ends with an interesting twist.

All of Danese’s stories are available online.

— Mary Elder

Alumnus publishes 13th short story with ‘The Deadliest Game’

1980s

1990s

2000s

MichaelDanese

Jeanine (Noce) Larson (’04 Journ) earned three first-place finishes, three second-place finishes, two third-place finishes and an honor-able mention in the North Dakota Professional Communications (NDPC) contest. Larson was honored for her work on the web and with so-cial media in a variety of approaches, including website editing/manage-ment, blogs, social media campaigns and writing. She was named the 2014 Communicator of Achievement for the NDPC and will represent her state at the National Federation of Press Women national contest Sept. 4-6 in Greenville, S.C.

Monica Pryts (’04 Journ), a staff writer for Allied News in Grove City, Pa., recently earned two honors for a series of articles about local gas and oil drilling issues. They were: first place, ongoing news coverage, Keystone Press Awards; and final-ist, public service category, “Best of CNHI” awards, sponsored by Com-munity Newspaper Holdings Inc.

Alison Herget (’05 Journ) is as-sistant director of admissions at Brandeis University.

Justine Maki (’05 Journ) is a copy editor on the metro desk of The New York Times.

April Trotter (’07 Journ) was re-cently named to Editor & Publisher’s “25 Under 35” feature. She works as niche publications editor for the York Daily Record.

Maggie Shuttlesworth (’08 Journ) is employed by Commonwealth Media Services in Harrisburg, Pa., and works as a photographer and multi-media specialist for the Governor’s Office and other state agencies.

Regan Hutchins (’09 Journ) gave birth to a daughter, Rory, and a son, Connor, on Feb. 22, 2014, in Hazle-ton, Pa.

Brittany Wilson (’09 Journ) is assis-tant sports editor at the York Daily Record.

Rossilynne (Skena) Culgan (’10 Journ, Lib) accepted a job as market-

ing and communications manager at the Carnegie Science Center in Pittsburgh.

Marcus Pringle (’10 Journ) is an as-sociate attorney for Roetzel. He lives in Hudson, Ohio.

Lauren (Grimes) Selman (’10, Adv/PR) was recently named the public relations manager for AFI Docs Film Festival in Washington, D.C.

Nathan D. Waterman (’10 Tele-com) is an interactive designer with Avrett Free Ginsberg in New York City.

Andy Colwell (’11 Journ, A&A) won the 2014 Edith Hughes Emerging Journalist Award in the Pennsylvania News Media Keystone Awards.

Elizabeth Murphy (’11 Journ) is a communications manager for the League of American Bicyclists.

Ryan Staloff (’11 Journ) is a produc-tion assistant at ESPN.

Kevin Byrne (’12 Journ) is an online journalist at AccuWeather.

Justin Cortes (’12 Adv/PR) is the cor-porate communications coordinator for VillageCare and VillageCareMAX, MLTC in New York City.

Kaila DeRienzo (’12 Journ) recently accepted a new job as a reporter for

WVEC-TV in Norfolk, Va.

Tyler Sizemore (’12 Journ) is a photographer at The News-Times in Danbury, Conn. Brian Yermal (’12 Journ) is a copy editor and page designer at the Altoona (Pa.) Mirror.

Dan Yesenosky (’12 Journ) is a multimedia journalist at WCNC-TV in Charlotte, N.C.

Jared Abbott (’13 Journ) is the director of broadcasting and media relations for the Elmira Jackals.

Mike Hricik (’13 Journ) is a reporter at the Dickinson (N.D.) Press.

Emily Kaplan (’13 Journ) is a writer and reporter at Sports Illustrated.

Paige Minemyer (’13 Journ) is a reporter at the Altoona (Pa.) Mirror.

Anita Oh (’13 Journ) is a reporter at WMAZ-TV in Macon, Ga.

Allison Ornik (’13 Film) accepted a full-time position at The Gersh Agency, a talent and literary agency in Beverly Hills, Calif.

Victoria Wain (‘13 Journ) is a video producer for the Diocese of Charles-ton.

Matt Strohmier (’13 Journ) is a producer at WTAJ-TV, Altoona/John-stown, Pa.

Anna Orso (’14 Journ) is a reporter at the Patriot-News in Harrisburg, Pa.

Kristin Stoller (’14 Journ) is a reporter at the New Haven (Conn.) Register.


ALUMNI NOTES

News to share?

Engaged? Married?Honored? Promoted?

Proud Parents?

Whatever the news, just let us know and we’ll spread the word with

other College of Communications alumni.

Submit Alumni Notes onlinehttp://comm.psu.edu/alumni

2010s

HOW TO REACH USArea code is (814)Addresses are University Park, PA 16802

OFFICE OF EXTERNAL RELATIONS301 James Building ................................... 865-8801Kevin Musick, Director of DevelopmentJoel Diamond, Associate Director of DevelopmentMike Poorman, Director of Alumni RelationsSteve Sampsell, Director of College RelationsJanet Klinefelter, Development AssistantSue Beals, Administrative Assistant

DEAN’S OFFICE201 Carnegie Building .............................. 863-1484Douglas Anderson, DeanMarie Hardin, Associate Dean for Undergraduate and Graduate Education

ACADEMIC SERVICES204 Carnegie Building .............................. 865-1503Jamey Perry, Assistant Dean for Academic Services

INTERNSHIPS AND CAREER PLACEMENT208 Carnegie Building .............................. 863-4674Bob Martin, Assistant Dean for Internships and Career Placement

MULTICULTURAL AFFAIRS208 Carnegie Building .............................. 863-6081Joseph Selden, Assistant Dean for Multicultural Affairs

WEB SITEhttp://comm.psu.edu

COLLEGE CALENDAR

AUG 16

Summer Commencement(10 a.m., Bryce Jordan Center)

AUG 25

Fall SemesterClasses Begin

SEPT 12-14

Black Alumni Reunion(Various Locations)

SEPT 26-28

Homecoming Weekend

OCT 4

College of CommunicationsOpen House

OCT 7-8

Foster-Foreman Conferenceof Distinguished Writers

OCT 10-12

Parents and FamiliesWeekend

OCT 12-13

Ad/PR Alumni BoardMeeting

OCT 26-27

Alumni SocietyBoard Meeting

Connect with the CollegeJoin us on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn

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NOV 22-29

Thanksgiving Holiday

DEC12

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DEC15-19

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DEC20

Fall SemesterCommencement

JAN12

Spring SemesterClasses Begin

MAR8-14

Spring Break

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