Award-winning memoirist Michele Weldon’s new new essay collection “Act Like You’re Having a Good Time” is written with honesty and depth and explores what it means to be a mature woman seeking a life of purpose and meaning through work, family and relationships.
In “Act Like You’re Having a Good Time,” Weldon reflects on growing up with her family, being a single mother, striving for applause and acceptance, failing expectations, forming new friendships, reconciling lost dreams and restoring one’s faith. With sincerity and humor, she dissects family traditions, painting classes, lap swimming and dress codes. Weldon also contemplates her upbringing and acknowledges that white privilege created and sustains her circumstances in life.
Looking to find connection with readers in these turbulent times, Weldon set her sights on writing a distinctive essay collection that explores the difficult parts of life, whether it be aging, facing disappointment or learning to live with insecurities. In an age of self-care and over-the-top indulgence, Weldon has found peace and clarity through gratitude, affirming that “you are already enough.” Weldon invites readers to recognize the universal experience of learning to accept oneself and asking essential questions—even if there are no easy answers.
Ed Bryant, who served on the Students Publishing Company board of directors for 48 years, died Sept. 20. He was 78.
Story by Isabelle Sarraf, (BSJ23) Campus Editor, Daily Northwestern
Serving on the board of Students Publishing Company for 48 years, Ed Bryant’s colleagues pegged his commitment and longevity to The Daily Northwestern’s “legacy of journalistic excellence” as typical of his character.
A former opinion writer at The Daily in the 1960s, the Medill and Pritzker alum joined the SPC board of directors — The Daily’s governing body — in 1972.
“To say he was the pillar of the organization would be an understatement,” John Byrne, chair of the SPC board of directors and former Daily editor in chief, said of Bryant’s legacy.
L. Edward Bryant, Jr., an “instrumental” force behind SPC’s evolution and survival, died unexpectedly of a new recurrence of cancer Sept. 20 at the age of 78. He is survived by his three daughters, Laura, Diane and Emily, as well as two grandchildren, Sydney and Miles.
Once a Wildcat, always a Wildcat
Byrne, who knew Bryant since 1989, said Bryant always cared deeply for The Daily as an institution and ensured it endured for generations to come.
Bryant was one of the driving forces of the Campaign for the Future of The Daily Northwestern in 2014 — a move to transition The Daily’s business model to a digital one that relied only on advertising revenue to pay the bills. Bryant understood early on, Byrne said, that the future of print advertising was in trouble, and his foresight helped shape what The Daily is today.
“He was terrific to work with on the board, always listening, but also providing historical perspective that literally cannot be replaced,” Byrne said. “He often had a good story or anecdote to share, pretty much given whatever subject we were discussing, but it was clear that the Wildcats were so near and dear to his heart.”
A lifelong supporter of Northwestern, Bryant had been a football season ticket holder since 1963. According to an obituary written by his daughters, he was a proud Evanston resident for 61 years and “appreciated the diversity and community spirit” — especially the annual 4th of July parades.
He also often spent weekends with his family at Rock Haven, a lakeside cottage in Wisconsin, nicknamed “The Purple Palace” due to its decor. Its walls were fully adorned in purple — a tribute “to his beloved Wildcats.”
An “indomitable spirit”
Medill Dean Charles Whitaker met Bryant in 2003 when he joined the SPC board of directors and remembers Bryant’s “thoughtful presence” throughout the years in steering the company. Bryant was the board’s “de facto” libel attorney, as well as a trustworthy counselor and advisor when it came to selecting editors in chief, Whitaker said.
Even when Whitaker stepped down from the board, he and Bryant remained close. Always a supporter of student journalism, Bryant would share stories written in The Daily with Whitaker that he would find interesting or important and engage in conversations about the publishing industry. Outside of his role on SPC, Bryant was also well-known for his dedication to a particular hobby.
Bryant’s joy of fishing never wavered, according to his colleagues, evident from the “several” trips he made every year.
“In the entire time that I knew him, he was always battling cancer of one form or another, but he was always hearty and happy,” Whitaker said. “Once after a particularly difficult bout of (chemotherapy) — he was as upbeat as he always was — I asked him how he was doing and he said he was going fishing.”
The entire time he was battling cancer, Whitaker said Bryant would “never” miss a trip and always make a point to set out on Lake Michigan. Bryant’s perseverance and unwavering morale, Whitaker said, is something he’s always admired.
A “storied” legal career
After graduating from NU, Bryant started his legal career at Gardner Carton & Douglas in 1967 and worked in the field until 2010. At the firm, he founded its Health Care Practice in 1979 and served as the chair of the Health Care Department years thereafter, also serving on the firm’s Management Committee.
Over the course of his career, he served on the faculty of Loyola University Chicago’s School of Law and the Kellogg School of Management. In 2011, the L. Edward Bryant, Jr. National Health Law Transactional Competition was established by Loyola to engage law students in dialogue with practitioners in a real-world setting about legal issues pertaining to health care providers.
In 1985, Bryant was named as one of the most outstanding health lawyers in the country by the National Law Journal, and then again in 1991 by both the Illinois Legal Times and Chicago Lawyer Magazine.
According to Edwin Getz, his partner at Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath — GCD’s successor firm — Bryant counseled clients on hundreds of health care industry restructurings, hospital and health system mergers, and more. Many of his cases in health law involved some of the largest health care providers in the country, Getz wrote.
Not only was he admired and widely respected by his clients and colleagues, but Getz added that Bryant is “widely and justifiably regarded” as having originated the discipline of health law.
“(Bryant) cared deeply about (the firm’s) people, no matter their position at the firm or station in life,” Getz told The Daily. “He always made it his highest priority, regardless of his frenetic schedule, to devote the time to mentor colleagues and friends who sought out his guidance, especially young lawyers.”
Photo: Ed Bryant, left, honors former SPC Board Chair and current Medill Dean Charles Whitaker, right, at The Daily’s 2018 Homecoming Celebration. (SeanSuPhoto | PurplePhotoCo)
Story republished with permission from The Daily 9/25/2020
Jonathan Addleton (BSJ ’79), former US Ambassador to Mongolia and a 2017 inductee into Medill’s Hall of Achievement, has been selected as the next Rector/President of Forman Christian College in Lahore, Pakistan. Founded by the Presbyterian Church in 1864, Forman offers an American-style curriculum and has an enrollment of more than 8,000. Its alumni list includes former presidents, prime ministers, governors and academics in both India and Pakistan.
In June 2018 Christina finally took the plunge and launched a website: www.Wombat-womenincombat.com to shine the spotlight on women who hold traditionally male jobs in the armed forces and in defense industries. After working as a defense and military specialist for 20 years from her home base in Paris (France), irritated that it was always the same men who were called upon by media when comment or explanations were needed, she decided it was time these remarkable women from all over the world were publicized. Their stories are inspiring and their career paths fascinating. But as Wombat earns her no money, Christina also works freelance as the military tech writer for Popular Science and as the France correspondent for Defense News.
Marissa Mitchell moves to the nation’s capital as an anchor/host for “FOX 5 Morning” and “Good Day DC” at WTTG-TV. Most recently, Mitchell worked as an anchor/reporter at WAGA-TV in Atlanta where she received a 2020 Emmy nomination for specialty reporting.
Barry Petersen was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the St. Louis Press Club, presented by Club President William Greenblatt. The award recognized Petersen’s more than four decades of work as a CBS News Correspondent, especially his story about his wife, Jan Petersen, and her struggle with Early Onset Alzheimer’s Disease that aired on the program CBS Sunday Morning. Petersen also wrote “Jan’s Story: Love Lost to the Long Goodbye of Alzheimer’s”. Jan succumbed to the disease in 2013.
Seventy-year-old Northwestern journalism professor Loren Ghiglione and two twenty-something Northwestern journalism students, Alyssa Karas and Dan Tham, climbed into a minivan and embarked on a three-month, twenty-eight state, 14,063-mile road trip in search of America’s identity. After interviewing 150 Americans about contemporary identity issues, they compiled this collection, which is part oral history, part shoe-leather reporting, part search for America’s future, part memoir, and part travel journal.
The Book of Dares is grounded both in practical parenting strategies and 20 years of A Call to Men’s work with men and boys to promote healthy manhood, authenticity, and gender equity. This collection of 100 original dares will help boys expand their worldview, inspire more respect toward girls and non-binary kids, and generally develop a healthier idea of manhood. The book features a voicey intro to draw readers in, plus an afterword that’s both a call to action and a resource for parents and educators. Inspired by A Call to Men’s tried-and-tested curriculum, this is a way of guiding boys to being their most authentic selves, and a direct answer to parents’ cries for building healthy manhood, respect, and emotional literacy in their sons.
Photo: Images (left to right) correspond with ordered listing.
Debbie Cenziper
Debbie Cenziper is a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter. She will serve as associate professor and director of investigative reporting. She will also lead the Medill Investigative Lab. Cenziper has been working at The Washington Post and as an assistant professor of journalism at The George Washington University School of Media and Public Affairs.
Helen Chun
Helen Chun is an associate professor for the IMC program. Chun’s research focuses on managing and enhancing consumer experience. Her ongoing work examines technology-driven consumer insights and explores how an evolving high-tech interface disrupts traditional marketing communications. Her research papers have been published in leading marketing and services journals. She also has a courtesy appointment at Northwestern Kellogg School of Management. Chun has a Ph.D. in marketing from the University of Southern California.
Kelly Cutler
Kelly Cutler is a lecturer and director of the IMC Part-Time and Online programs. She is also the founder and CEO of Kona Company, a digital strategy firm. Cutler has more than 20 years of experience in digital marketing. Prior to founding Kona Company, she co-founded and led a Chicago-based search engine marketing firm for 11 years. She began her career working for Classified Ventures, Cars.com and AOL.
Greg Green
Greg Green joins our faculty as a Lecturer for the IMC program. Green’s background includes leadership roles in Marketing Analytics, Research and Consumer Insights focused on Digital Media and Marketing with companies such as PwC, Publicis, and Google. He specializes in extracting the untapped value in research and corporate data, focused on creating data driven decisioning cultures at the intersection of creativity and analytics. Green has a Ph.D. in Mathematics from Claremont Graduate University in California.
Eunhee Emily Ko
Eunhee (Emily) Ko is an assistant professor of IMC. Her research interests span online marketing and user-generated content as well as applications of machine learning and econometric methods. She earned her master’s in analytics from Northwestern McCormick School of Engineering, and her Ph.D. in marketing from Emory University.
Arionne Nettles
Arionne Nettles will be responsible for Medill’s publishing platform, Medill Reports, and serve as a lecturer. Nettles has been a digital producer for WBEZ, Chicago’s NPR affiliate, as well as an adjunct lecturer at Medill. Before her work at WBEZ, Nettles was a multiplatform editor for the Associated Press and the digital editor for the Chicago Defender.
Matthew Orr
Matthew Orr joined the faculty as assistant professor in January. Based in Washington, D.C., he will support Medill’s video and broadcast productions. Orr serves as the director of multimedia and creative at STAT News and is an award-winning journalist and filmmaker with nearly 20 years of experience in the industry. Before joining STAT, he worked at The New York Times for 13 years as a senior video producer and reporter.
Steven Thrasher
Steven Thrasher is the inaugural Daniel H. Renberg Chair and an assistant professor of journalism. He will focus on social justice reporting and issues relevant to the LGBTQ community. Thrasher has worked as writer-at-large at The Guardian, staff writer at the Village Voice and facilitator for the NPR StoryCorps project. His articles are regularly published in The New York Times, BuzzFeed News, Esquire, The Nation, The Atlantic, The Guardian and The Daily Beast. He has a Ph.D. in American studies from New York University.
Yu Xu
Yu Xu is an assistant professor in IMC. He specializes in the intersection of organizational communication, networks, technology, strategy and computational social science. His current research investigates ecological and evolutionary foundations of behavioral and network change, especially in the context of digitally mediated communities. Xu has a Ph.D. in communications from the University of Southern California.
Prof. David Abrahamson Retires
The founder of Medill’s Literary Journalism seminar, Abrahamson celebrated his retirement from Medill after 26 years on the faculty at a full-house send off on Jan. 29, 2020 at the McCormick Foundation Center in Evanson. Abrahamson taught long-form writing and magazine editing and was the co-director of the graduate Magazine Publishing Project.
While at Medill, Abrahamson was the general editor of a 40-volume historical series, “Visions of the American Press,” published under the Medill imprint by the Northwestern University Press. With more than 20 years of experience as a magazine writer, editor and management consultant, Abrahamson’s background includes senior editorial positions at a number of national consumer magazines, including Car and Driver and PC/Computing. He is the author of “Magazine-Made America: The Cultural Transformation of the Postwar Periodical,” an interpretive history of the magazine profession in the last half of the 20th century, and editor and co-editor of two definitive anthologies of magazine scholarship, “The American Magazine: Research Perspectives and Prospects” and “The Routledge Handbook of Magazine Research: The Future of the Magazine Form” (forthcoming). Raised in Annapolis, Maryland, Abrahamson holds a B.A. in History from Johns Hopkins University (1969), a Master’s degree in Journalism from the University of California, Berkeley (1973) and a Ph.D. in American Civilization from New York University (1992).
NPR’s Antonia Cereijido named inaugural Cecilia Vaisman award winner by Medill, NAHJ
Audio journalist Antonia Cereijido (BSJ14) has been selected as the first recipient of the Cecilia Vaisman Award for Multimedia Reporters. The award is a partnership between Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications and the National Association of Hispanic Journalists.
Cerejido visited Medill Nov. 5, 2019 and spoke to Medill students, faculty and the NU community at Harris Hall.
Cereijido is an award-winning producer at NPR’s Latino USA where her coverage has included a profile of the Mexican-American man who became wealthy by building controversial shelters housing migrant children, a meditation on whether Latinos cry more on average, and a historical and feminist analysis of Mattel’s Frida Kahlo “Barbie.”
Members of the award selection committee, which included NAHJ Chicago and student chapter members, along with Medill representatives, selected Cereijido based on her body of work, as well as her willingness to mentor students, speak in classes and serve as a role model. The award, which will be given annually, includes a $5,000 cash prize. Cereijido will visit Medill in November to talk about her audio journalism work with students, faculty and the community.
The award is named in memory of Vaisman, a Medill associate professor who was a leader in audio journalism and a member of NAHJ. The award recognizes Latinx and Hispanic audio and video journalists who bring light to the issues that affect the Latinx and Hispanic communities in the U.S. and around the world.
Cereijido is an alumna of Medill where she had Vaisman as a professor. “Through Cecilia’s guidance, I learned of stories that rejected tropes that portray immigrants as one dimensional and showed how immigrants could make art of their lives by daring to envision new futures. She was a fierce advocate for quality and thoughtfulness,” said Cereijido. “At the editing phase of every story I produce, I wonder what she could take issue with or what other sources she would suggest … I am deeply honored to be given this award and am very grateful to both Medill and NAHJ.”
Cereijido was a USC California Health and Institute for Justice and Journalism Fellow. She was the co-host of The Payoff, a podcast about personal finance for millennials from Mic.com, a guest on Buzzfeed’s Another Round and on Slate’s Represent. She also hosted a Twitter exclusive video for the History Channel. She has interpreted for This American Life and Love + Radio.
Mark Trahant (Shoshone-Bannock) is the winner of the 2019 NAJA-Medill Milestone Achievement Award
The Native American Journalists Association (NAJA) and Northwestern University’s Medill School named Mark Trahant (Shoshone-Bannock) the 2019 NAJA-Medill Milestone Achievement Award recipient.
The award honors an individual who has had a lasting effect on media to the benefit of Indigenous communities. The award is given jointly by the Native American Journalists Association and the Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications. The award celebrates responsible storytelling and journalism in Indian Country.
Trahant is editor of Indian Country Today. He reflected on the first tribal editor, Elias Boudinot (Cherokee), the namesake for another of NAJA’s top awards, when reflecting on the standard for Indigenous journalism.
“[Boudinot] described his paper as ‘a vehicle of Indian intelligence.’ Even though ink has been replaced by pixels; the task remains the same – to publish an informative daily account that’s comprehensive and adds context to the stories missing from the mainstream media.
“We have so many stories to tell. Our mission is simple but important: Solid, factual reporting. Great writing. Photography that inspires and records. Provide a real service to readers across Indian Country’s digital landscape,” Trahant said.
Trahant previously served as editorial page editor of The Seattle Post-Intelligencer and worked for the Arizona Republic, Salt Lake Tribune, Seattle Times, Navajo Times Today and Sho-Ban News.
He has been a reporter for PBS Frontline, publishing “The Silence,” which detailed sexual abuse by priests in an Alaska Native village.
Trahant is known for his election reporting in Indian Country, developing the first comprehensive database of American Indians and Alaska Natives running for office. His research has been cited in publications ranging from The New York Times to The Economist to Teen Vogue.
During the 2018 election, Trahant launched a journalism initiative and as a result, more than 40 Native media professionals conducted the first ever live coverage of election night. Six hours of TV programming was produced at the First Nations Experience | FNX studios in California and viewers were able to get reports about the dozens of Native candidates running for office during this election, which included the first two Native American women voted into Congress.
Trahant was recently elected as a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and has been a professor at the University of North Dakota, the University of Alaska Anchorage, the University of Idaho and the University of Colorado.
The award includes a $5,000 cash prize and an invitation to the recipient to speak with Medill students and faculty on campus in Evanston, Illinois, to further advance the representation of Indigenous journalists in mainstream media.
New fellowship from Medill and The Garage aims to increase diversity among media entrepreneurs
Student working at the Garage
A new fellowship for entrepreneurs working on media and media-related endeavors is being launched by Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications in partnership with The Garage, NU’s entrepreneurial incubator.
The one-year fellowship will identify and support entrepreneurs from underrepresented groups—with an emphasis on women and people of color—who are working on innovation in the media industry.
The fellow will receive an $80,000 stipend for the year, and access to a variety of resources across Northwestern. The fellow also will be able to participate in select classes at Medill and in other areas of the University, and will be an active participant in both the Medill and The Garage communities.
The Garage is an 11,000 square foot space that brings together a cross-disciplinary community of students, faculty, staff and alumni who share a passion for developing ideas. Currently home to more than 60 student-founded startups and projects, the co-working space provides cutting edge technology resources, special programming and mentorship from accomplished entrepreneurs.
María Inés Zamudio is the recipient of the 2020 Cecilia Vaisman Award from Northwestern University Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications and the National Association of Hispanic Journalists. Zamudio covers immigration for WBEZ, the Chicago NPR affiliate.
The Vaisman award honors an individual working in audio or video journalism who works every day to shed light on the various issues affecting Hispanic and Latinx communities inside and outside the United States and is an active member of the NAJH. It is given jointly by NAJH and Medill, and includes a $5,000 cash prize. The award is named for Medill faculty member Cecilia Vaisman who died in 2015.
“María Inés’ reporting brings to her listeners a greater understanding of the challenges faced by the Latinx and other immigrant communities in Chicago,” said Medill Dean Charles Whitaker. “These are critically important stories to bring attention to as our city and nation grapple with what it means to be a diverse and inclusive society. I’m delighted we get to honor María Inés’ work with this award that is so meaningful to Medill.”
Zamudio’s nomination was reviewed and selected by a jury of Medill and NAHJ representatives, including members of the NAHJ Chicago chapter. The award criteria was determined by the jury.
“I am honored to receive this award, and to represent the communities I report on in doing so. I love the work that I do and having that work recognized by Medill and the NAHJ is humbling,” said Zamudio. “I hope more Hispanic and Latinx communities and journalists get the recognition they deserve.”
Zamudio is an investigative journalist and part of the race, class and communities team at WBEZ, Chicago’s NPR news source. Prior to her time at WBEZ, Zamudio worked for American Public Media’s investigative team.
In 2015, Zamudio and a team of reporters from NPR’s Latino USA received a Peabody National Award for their coverage of Central American migrants. Zamudio’s story was reported from the Mexico-Guatemala border and it focused on the danger women from Central American while traveling through Mexico as they try to reach the United States.
She’s also worked for the Memphis Commercial Appeal and Chicago Reporter magazine as an investigative reporter. Zamudio’s work has appeared in The Associated Press, New York Times, National Public Radio, NBC 5 Chicago, Telemundo and Univision among others.
“NAHJ is elated to celebrate María Inés Zamudio as the 2020 Vaisman award recipient,” said Hugo Balta, two-time NAHJ President. “Her service in media honors the work and legacy of Cecilia Vaisman to ensure representation of Hispanic and Latino communities in the news does not remain a monolith.”
Zamudio’s contributions will be highlighted during a virtual award ceremony hosted by Medill Nov. 11 in partnership with NAHJ.
