Alumni Profiles
ALUMNI NEWS
Jobs, published work and other updates from our alumni
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Specialized Journalism
Wendy Carillo '09 (Power 106 FM)
Salvador Duran '10 (Univision Network)
Jason Ma '10 (Investor's Business Daily)
Evan Pondel '11 (PondelWilkinson)
Cater Lee Swartzlander '10 (Scripps Media; USC Annenberg)
Jennifer Maytorena Taylor '11 (Documentary Filmmaker)
Specialized Journalism (The Arts)
Rebecca Haithcoat '10 (LA Weekly)
Rebecca Kinskey '11 (Film Producer)
Edward Lifson '09 (NPR; USC Architecture)
Evelyn McDonnell '10 (Loyola Marymount University)
Alan Scherstuhl '11 (SF Weekly)
Meghan Stettler '10 (KCET)
WENDY CARILLO '09
Host/Producer, Power 106 FM
Communications Manager, SEIU-ULTCW
I began my grad school adventure in the summer of 2008 as part of the inaugural class of the Specialized Journalism program; it was an exciting, historic time. At Annenberg, I was challenged to think outside my comfort zone, to think critically and to look at the world through a very different lens than what I was used to. The Director’s Forums were incredible and introduced me to some of the world’s leading experts in the field. While the current media landscape is complicated, since graduating, I have taken on the role of Communications Manager for SEIU-ULTCW, the largest union in the state and have grown as a political analyst and columnist. The Specialized Journalism program made me realized my value as a journalist and as a communicator. It has been an invaluable experience, and the warmth I feel when I visit, let’s me know I have a family that cares about my future.
SALVADOR DURAN '10
West Coast National Correspondent, Univision Network
It's not a secret that journalism is going through a revolution. Technology has impacted this field in such a way that we're not going back to the old paradigms. So as a working journalist educated in the "old fashion" way, I know I had to learn the new skills, frankly to be able to compete with the new super smart generation of journalists. I had it clear from day one. The answer for me was the Annenberg School of Communication & Journalism at USC. I was accepted in the graduate Specialized Journalism program. And I'm telling you now, going back to school for a Master's degree was the smartest/best decision I've made. As a national correspondent for Spanish language Univision Network, everything I learned, from the best way to use social media to learning fast and accurate research methods, I'm applying all of it daily out in the field, to be the best I can be. It's the only way to survive in our beloved profession.
REBECCA HAITHCOAT '10
Assistant Music Editor, LA Weekly
A couple of months into the Specialized Journalism program, a student from France stopped a friend of mine outside Annenberg to photograph her outfit for a project. During their chat, my friend grabbed me. "Rebecca writes about hip hop," she told the French girl, Marguerite de Bourgoing. "And Marguerite has a hip-hop blog." We exchanged cards. Two years later, we are finishing a short documentary on rappers and social media. That "chance" meeting at USC led to my interviewing numerous rappers, which led to cultivating my reputation as a hip-hop journalist, which led to yet another USC student recommending me to the LA Weekly music editor, which led to my current job as Assistant Music Editor at LA Weekly.
REBECCA KINSKEY '11
Regular Contributor, LA Weekly and LA Stage Times
Film Producer
I sought out the Specialized Journalism program because I knew I wanted the space, time and support to focus on myself as a writer, and thinker, about the fields I was already working in - TV, music videos and advertising, as well as theater and visual arts. Even before graduating I had gained what I needed most of all - the confidence in myself that my voice could and should be adding something to the world. I published my first piece in the third month of my first semester, and became a regular contributor to LA Weekly in the third month of my second, all directly from contacts I made at Annenberg. I became friends with writers and editors on both coasts who I had been reading for years, and am working on revising my thesis into a short book, which received a publication offer the same day I got my diploma in the mail.
EDWARD LIFSON '09
Architecture Critic and Regular Contributor to NPR radio
USC Architecture School Professor
From day one, the Specialized Journalism program grabbed me by the shoulders, immersed me in the latest innovations and best practices of arts and journalism, held me under for as long as I could take it, threw at me life-changing professors and USC’s boundless resources; and when I emerged I deeply inhaled the joys of my career and captured greater success.
JASON MA '10
Reporter, Investor's Business Daily
Having mainly worked at more traditional news outlets, I didn't know how much I needed a reality check until USC introduced me to the most creative line-up of entrepreneurs and projects I've ever seen. The most valuable lessons came from people like tinkering wizard Mister Jalopy and author Robert Niles, who showed us how they built their ideas, brands and followings. Tom O'Malia is as much of an evangelist as he is a business professor. His message may have been obvious, but it was necessary for someone more accustomed to a newsroom environment: always look for needs that can be filled AND be the one to fill them. I finished the program feeling that even though the old business model is unraveling, individual journalists have never had more opportunities.
EVELYN MCDONNELL '10
Assistant Professor of Journalism & New Media, Loyola Marymount University
Author of Mamarama: A Memoir of Sex, Kids, and Rock 'n' Roll
Talk about convergence: A ridiculous assortment of writers, scholars, teachers, thinkers, and doers come together at Annenberg. The Specialized Journalism program not only allowed me to develop a book project with a Pulitzer-Prize-winning critic (Tim Page); connect with leading editors and journalists whose work I had long admired (Josh Kun, Karen Tongson); study artists outside my pop-culture comfort zone; and dabble in script writing. I also got my mind opened by the Harry Potter-loving Socrates of new media studies. Henry Jenkins exposed me to ideas of participatory culture and civic ecologies, to ARGs and memes and gift economies. He and others helped me find a place in academia that had long eluded me (and by place, a mean a tenure-track job), and sparked ideas for the next book, and the next, and the next.
EVAN PONDEL '11
Vice President, PondelWilkinson
It’s common to hear professionals rationalize their career paths with the following: “I’m a recovering lawyer,” or “I’m a recovering accountant.” And even closer to home, “I’m a recovering print journalist.” But several years ago I decided that I didn’t want to recover from a profession that I loved. Yes, I had left my full-time post as a business reporter to join an investor relations firm. However, I was still drawn to journalism and wanted to enhance my ability to tell stories. That’s why I enrolled in the M.A. in Specialized Journalism program at Annenberg. The program provided an opportunity to immerse myself in media that I was always interested in but lacked the time to focus on, including documentary film, digital publishing, and subject matter, such as religion and immigration. Today, I still work in investor relations, but I’m also developing documentary projects and am in the process of launching a digital column about religion and business. Recovering print journalist? I prefer evolved.
ALAN SCHERSTUHL '11
Managing Editor, SF Weekly
Emphasizing sharp critical skills, full-immersion multi-media training, innovative reporting strategies, and all the issues shaping the bleeding-edge of-the-moment media landscape, the Specialized Journalism program offers journalists the opportunity not just to hone their skills and practice new techniques -- it gives them the chance to do great work.
MEGHAN STETTLER '10
Manager of Publicity and Advertising, KCET
My ten months on-campus opened me up to a world of innovation and entrepreneurship from a variety of industry-leaders across the nation including Jim Gaines (FLYP Media), Juan Devis (KCET Departures), and Jeff Jarvis ("What Would Google Do?") to name only a few. I built interactive media projects with Craig Dietrich and Holly Willis in the IML, landed a role in USC's fall musical "I See What I Wanna See," wrote a David-Sedaris-style essay for Luis Alfaro's Solo Performance class, built a business strategy in Entrepreneurism for New Media, and coordinated PR for Ume and various non-profits—all which lead to my current employment and freelance opportunities.
CATER LEE SWARTZLANDER '10
Television Programming Development Consultant, Scripps Media
Broadcast Journalism Adunct Professor, USC Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism
When I came to USC Annenberg for the Specialized Journalism program, I hoped to broaden my horizons as a multimedia journalist, after 20+ years of broadcast news experience. Annenberg's faculty and coursework helped reshape my views of the future of journalism and prepared me to be able to teach, inspire and mentor both my peers and my students. I am really enjoying this next chapter of my career.
JENNIFER MAYTORENA TAYLOR '11
Research Fellow, USC Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism
Documentary Filmmaker
After working for over a decade as a producer and director of documentary films for national and international broadcast, I entered the Specialized Journalism program in search of a collaborative, interdisciplinary community of mentors and scholars. I found that community at the Annenberg School and across USC in the different schools where I did coursework in sociology, education, and new media theory and practice. I developed deeper expertise in reporting on youth and urban issues and expanded my conceptual frameworks for working in the ever-evolving transmedia environment. I also got to strengthen my hard skills in both new and traditional forms, simultaneously learning how to design an interactive news feature while learning how to write a better “nut graph” (after I learned the definition of “nut graph”). My professors helped me build on the work I had done prior coming to USC, leading me to try new tools and practices but honoring my overall approach and goals. Throughout the entire program they encouraged me to maintain a point of view, to experiment with different ways of collaborating with members of the community where I was reporting, to value form as much as content, and to make work in the public interest. I finished the Specialized Journalism program feeling as if I’d had a highly personalized work tune-up. It is an extraordinary opportunity for mid-career journalists in a swiftly changing field.