While an undergrad at UW-Milwaukee, I took a brief detour as a mass communications major and wrote extensively for the campus newspaper, The UWM Post. As one of a handful of music critics, I worked exhaustively to build our relationships with music labels – a stronger repore meant more free albums and concerts to review! From the trenches (which temporarily burnt me out from college altogether), I had develped a somewhat rosy, idealistic view of media.
This view was tempered somewhat in later years. While finishing my master’s degree, I contracted as a public communications officer with the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT). My design and social media skills were instrumental in connecting with regional citizens, but I also expanded my capacity for working with the media (often through trial by fire) for on- and off-camera interviews.
‘Being a representative of a state agency taught me to have a more realistic and healthy respect for news media. I learned that having a comprehensive view of the information-at-hand is important but also being able to respond strategically to contentious questioning. Through it all, I have maintined a profound respect for the fourth estate, particularly independent media.
What follows are some examples of media work:
One of my favorite aspects of working at VDOT was conducting outreach for the ferry!
Current Media Work
The on-camera comfort I developed in Viriginia has afforded me many opportunities to share my expertise with regional media. So much so, I don’t even balk at the thought of an on-camera interview while in the middle of a run!
While at UWGB, the breadth of my media and technology expertise has been useful when sharing views on several subjects including misinformation, social media, and aritifical intelligence.
Publicity
At UWGB, we have the benefit of working with an amazing marketing and communications department. Having an insider’s view from a comms unit has made publicizing events much more effective. For the Global Game Jam, I begin drumming up attention thrrough advertising as well as press releases distributed both through our campus comms as well as directly to select journalists. The regional outreach has been invaluable in growing our site to being one of the largest in the United States!
