Alumni & Friends
Notable Alumni
Arlene Notoro Morgan, '67, is Associate Dean for Programs and Prizes at Columbia University. In that role, she oversees the administration of the school’s many prestigious prizes and professional development workshops. Morgan is the co-editor of The Authentic Voice: The Best Reporting on Race and Ethnicity, a compilation text book, DVD, and web site of award-winning stories from her program. Morgan joined Columbia in August 2000 after a 31-year career at The Philadelphia Inquirer, where she served as an assistant managing editor for readership, hiring and staff development. In 1995, Morgan was honored with the first Knight Ridder Excellence in Diversity Award for her leadership in fostering diversity issues throughout Knight Ridder newspapers. Morgan is chair of the Scattergood Behavioral Health Foundation's grant making committee.
Steve Capus, '86, is President of NBC News. He is the No. 1 News Division executive and is responsible for all aspects of America's highest-rated and most-watched network news division, as well as MSNBC and NBC News Channel. His numerous honors include four Emmy Awards, six Edward R. Murrow Awards, one Alfred I. duPont and six National Headliner Awards. He had previously served as senior vice president of NBC News and as executive producer of NBC Nightly News. He was the executive producer for much of NBC News' coverage of the terror attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, the war in Iraq and the "Decision 2002-2004" political coverage.
David Wood, '70, is the national security correspondent for The Baltimore Sun. He covers military issues, foreign affairs and combat operations, and has been a Pulitzer Prize finalist for national reporting. A journalist since 1970, he also has been a staff correspondent for Time Magazine, the Los Angeles Times and Newhouse News Service. For four years, he covered guerrilla wars and conflict in Africa as the Nairobi bureau chief for Time. He has won the Gerald R. Ford Prize for Distinguished Defense Reporting and national other awards. A Sense of Values, his account of the year with the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, including three months of ground operations in Somalia, was published in 1994.
Barry Levine, ’81, is Executive Editor of The National Enquirer, where he directs coverage of news and entertainment stories the world over. Under his leadership, the Enquirer broke the news of presidential candidate John Edwards’ affair, scooping mainstream media. Levine previously was managing editor of Fox’s “A Current Affair.” He also worked for “Inside Edition/American Journal,” and "Extra.” Levine began his career in tabloid reporting as a reporter and then as Hollywood bureau chief for Star magazine. He has also worked for the Associated Press, Reuters wire service, the Baltimore News-American, and the Syracuse (NY) Post-Standard.
Askold Buk, '79, is a guitarist and composer/producer. He has scored numerous episodes of the PBS documentary Frontline, and episodes of ABC programs 20/20, Peter Jennings: In Search of America and Primetime with Diane Sawyer. Buk wrote and produced the score to documentary feature film Obscure and the theme song for the annually-televised Telling the Truth: The Best in Broadcast Journalism. His self-produced debut record Askold Buk was featured on the PBS series P.O.V. and on the nationally-syndicated radio show The Groove Boutique. Buk has developed a series of acclaimed guitar videos, playing and interviewing great musicians such as B.B. King, John Scofield, and Albert Lee.
Tom Conti, '83, is President of G2 Interactive, the digital marketing arm of Grey Global Group, which has 80 offices in 60 countries. He came to G2 after serving as President of The Star Group. He previously held senior management positions at MRM/McCann WorldGroup, Earle Palmer Brown and Ketchum Communications. He has created integrated communications programs for many major brands and companies including the DuPont Company, Acura and Comcast.
Beverly Wettenstein, '64, is a NYC-based motivational speaker, women’s history advocate and media monitor who speaks nationally on "A Woman’s Place in the 21st Century." An award-winning journalist, she created HerStory, the first newspaper column dedicated to women in history and today, in the Dallas Morning News. She is the author of A Woman’s Book of Days, and the founder of the database Women in History and Making History Today -- 365 Days A Year. Celebrate Women Every Day! A former Public Affairs Director at American Express, Citicorp and the Federal Home Loan Bank of New York, she also is a marketing and PR consultant. She writes regularly for huffingtonpost.com.
Dr. Marilyn Lashner, '79, is the owner of Media Analysis & Communications Research. She was the first woman to earn a Ph.D. in communications at Temple. Her company provides forensic services including case evaluations, discovery assistance and testimony in trials throughout the U.S. As a specialist in English syntax and the content analysis of communications, Dr. Lashner’s expertise has applied to cases involving libel, slander, invasion of privacy, plagiarism and identification of authorship. Her publications include the book The Chilling Effect in TV News: Intimidation by the Nixon White House, which was cited in an Appeals Court review of the FCC’s Fairness Doctrine. She is a member of the American Academy of Forensic Scientists.
Jason McKie, '03, the starting fullback for the Chicago Bears, was profiled in the Sept. 12, 2008 issue of the New York Times for founding the Jason McKie Foundation of the Institute for Science and Health. The Foundation provides support for families of soldiers through scholarships, financial support and tickets to the Bears' home games. His decision to focus the foundation's work on soldiers and their families came from his father, who spent 21 years in the military. To read the Times article, click here.
Yair Stern, '70, is the former Director General of Israel Television. He has been a guiding force in the development of Israel's television programming and in the management of that country's broadcast operations. Under his leadership, the news division received the highest journalistic award in Israel, the Sokolov Prize, for coverage of the war in Lebanon. His coverage of the Gulf War in 1991 garnered the Israel Broadcasting Authority Excellence Award. He has been a member of the News Committee of the European Broadcasting Union and of the Academy of the International Emmy Awards. Stern's involvement in community affairs includes serving as the Chairman of Freedom Fighters for Israeli Heritage and as a member of the Board of Directors of the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra. Lew Klein Award Winner 2008. Lew Klein Award Winner 2008.
Suzanne Smith, '83, is director for CBS Sports coverage for The NFL On CBS. She also is director of coverage of college basketball, including the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship. The three-time Emmy Award-winner also received a Directors Guild of America Award in 1989. Smith worked on the 1992, 1994 and 1996 Olympic Winter Games. She served as replay director of CBS coverage of Super Bowl XXXV and Super Bowl XXXVIII. For the network's coverage of Super Bowl XLI, Smith produced the "Baghdad Bowl" segment for The Super Bowl Today. She is the coordinating producer for CBS Sports' coverage of skiing, mountain biking and the American Le Mans Series. Smith serves on the boards of the Empire State Pride Agenda and the Plancher Orthopedic Foundation. Lew Klein Award Winner 2008.
Al Shrier, '53, is Special Assistant to the Director of Athletics at Temple. He is also known as the dean among national college Sports Information Directors, thanks to his 55 years of service to the university. He is a member of the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), which presented him with a Silver Plate for his many years of service to the organization. He also is a member of the Halls for Fame for Temple University, Philadelphia Big 5, Pennsylvania Sports and Philadelphia Jewish Sports. He has been honored by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association, the All-American Football Foundation, the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame. Shrier is past president of the Philadelphia Sports Writers Association. Lew Klein Award Winner 2008.