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Tom Germuska (BSJ62)

Thomas Allen Germuska, Sr., 84, retired communications consultant, formerly of Palatine, passed away unexpectedly on February 12, 2025 at home in Rolling Meadows, IL.

Born in Cleveland, Tom graduated from John Marshall High School and received his undergraduate degree from Medill. He was a Chicago Sun-Times reporter for six years before taking on a public relations position at United Airlines. He was at United for two decades before starting his own independent consulting company.

Tom was devoted to his church, and for many years ran the PADS Overnight Shelter Program at All Saints Lutheran Church. He enjoyed building homes with Habitat for Humanity.

Tom gave deeply of himself, had a strong sense of duty, and celebrated over 46 years of sobriety. A skilled ceramicist, he enjoyed his time at Thrown Elements Pottery in Arlington Heights. He especially loved exhibiting and selling his work at art shows, including the Edgewater Arts Festival, where he had numerous repeat customers.

Loving father of Thomas (Megan) Germuska of Avon Lake, OH and Joseph (Jenni Grover) Germuska of Skokie, IL. Proud step-grandfather (“Mr. G”) of Regan and Emma Campbell.

Dearest older brother of Richard “Dick” Germuska and Marilyn Best; brother-in-law of Joanne Germuska; and uncle of Jennifer (Tina Cameron) Rhone, Jill (Michael) Rotkis, and Jamie Germuska.

Preceded in death by former spouse Constance Ann Germuska (nee Gorlo) and parents Ladislaw and Stella Elizabeth (nee Vernick) Germuska.

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Christian Grönroos to receive 2025 Don Schultz Award

Post author By Belinda Clarke
Post date February 6, 2025
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The recipient of the 2025 Don Schultz award for Innovation in Teaching, Theory and Practice of Integrated Marketing Communications.

Grönroos is a pioneering scholar in the field of marketing. He has developed an area of marketing scholarship known as service-dominant logic that closely parallels the approach of integrated marketing communications in prioritizing customer service and customer experience.

His articles are some of the most cited papers on IMC, and have advanced IMC thinking substantially.

“We are delighted to recognize Christian’s groundbreaking contributions to the marketing field,” said Medill Dean Charles Whitaker. “He is among the very best scholars in marketing in Europe, and thus, a worthy recipient of the Don Schultz Award which honors innovation.”

Grönroos is professor emeritus of service and relationship marketing at Hanken School of Economics, Finland. Besides his interest in service marketing and related areas, such as relationship marketing, service quality, and internal marketing, he has worked on new strategies for marketing and marketing communication.

In the context of marketing communication, he has particularly emphasized the role and power of customers. He has also advocated that integrated marketing communication must adhere to the numerous means of communication to become effective and not remain within a conventional range of communication channels.

He has published several books, translated to eight languages, and published extensively in scientific journals such as the Journal of Academy of Marketing Science, European Journal of Marketing, Australasian Journal of Marketing, Marketing Theory, Journal of Industrial & Business Marketing, Management Decision, Journal of Services Marketing, Journal of Service Management, and Journal of Service Theory and Practice, and in several other popular journals.

In 1999, he received American Marketing Association’s Servsig Career Award for his contribution to the service field and in 2013 he was elected Legend in Marketing by the Sheth Foundation.

Medill’s Schultz award is named for long-time Medill Professor Don Schultz who played a pivotal role in creating the field of Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) and establishing the IMC department at Medill in the early 1990s. Medill was the first school to offer a graduate degree in Integrated Marketing Communications in the United States. Schultz is regarded internationally as the “father of IMC.” He died in 2020.

Grönroos will give a presentation to Medill faculty this spring and accept his award.

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Howard Geltzer (BSJ58, MSJ59)

Post author By Belinda Clarke
Post date January 14, 2025
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Howard Geltzer, longtime Medill board of advisers and Hall of Achievement member, died Jan. 7, 2025. He was 88.

Geltzer and his wife Sheila started their public relations agency, Geltzer & Co. public relations, in New York City in 1974. At the end of the 1970s, Sony gave the agency responsibility to launch the Walkman. Sony had low expectations for the product and wanted to keep down costs. No advertising; no promotion; only the Geltzer & Co. publicity effort. The contract was three months long. The Walkman exceeded all sales expectations. The three-month assignment lasted 12 years. Sony moved all of its product publicity business to Geltzer & Co. Other clients over the years included Black and Decker Housewares, Dow Chemical, Morton Salt, Samsung, and Toshiba.

The Geltzers also ran the 2000 New York presidential campaign of Dick Gephardt, a fellow Northwestern alumnus.

After 26 years in business, the Geltzers sold their agency to Publicis, the multinational advertising and marketing agency.

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Kalle Kamal Eko (MSJ12): Combining Storytelling and Social Media with Humanitarian Work

Post author By Rafaela Jinich
Post date November 4, 2024
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Kalle Kamal Eko is the Communications and Marketing Manager for Catholic Relief Services in West Africa, where he combines storytelling with social media to amplify the organization’s humanitarian work. With over a decade of experience in communications, Eko began his career as the first social media intern in Chicago’s mayor’s office, later taking on roles at City Colleges of Chicago, the MacArthur Foundation and the Asia Society. His work now involves traveling throughout Africa to document impactful projects, using his Medill-honed skills to navigate the challenges of communication and cultural diversity.

What is your current role, and what does it entail?

I’m the Communications and Marketing Manager for Catholic Relief Services in the West Africa region. We’re a humanitarian organization focused on emergency response, development work, resilience-building after disasters, and education efforts like school feeding programs. My job is to find creative ways to share these stories and highlight our impact. I work on getting media placements, creating social media content like TikTok videos and Instagram reels, and showcasing field projects. Recently, I was in Senegal at a women-run palm oil factory. I filmed the work there and added music to capture the singing and dancing that happens in the factory—it’s about presenting our stories in a way that resonates with audiences.

What brought you to this role? What was your career path like?

My career began 10 years ago in Chicago’s mayor’s office as the first social media intern, which opened my eyes to storytelling through social media. It was Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s first term, and as the youngest person in the office, I set up the city’s Facebook and Twitter accounts, curated content, structured the blog, and strategized on how a public official could use Instagram—things that were new back then. After that, I went to Medill to hone my storytelling skills. Medill didn’t have a social media focus at the time, but I was able to build my skills in digital storytelling.

After Medill, I returned to Chicago to work with City Colleges of Chicago as their social media director. In that role, I focused on creative engagement strategies, like celebrating graduations on social media and boosting engagement with hashtags. Then, I joined the MacArthur Foundation as their social media manager, where I expanded my focus beyond Chicago, managing global projects and major announcements like the MacArthur Genius Grants. That role set me up to take on more international work, and now, with Catholic Relief Services, I cover a whole region, traveling to Africa every few months to document our projects.

How did you combine your social media and communications skills with meaningful, impactful work?

After working in city government and higher education, joining the MacArthur Foundation gave me global exposure. I managed announcements for the MacArthur Genius Grants and traveled to countries like Ghana and India to work on various projects. This broadened my skills and allowed me to focus more on digital media. Later, at the Asia Society, I expanded into podcasts, newsletters, and video projects, covering all of Asia. Now, at Catholic Relief, I use all those skills and more as I travel frequently to document our work in Africa.

What are some challenges you face in your current role?

Funding is a constant challenge, as it directly affects what we can do. We always have to think carefully about our audience, message, and the resources we have available. Language can also be a barrier, as our staff speak both French and English, so balancing communication in both languages is key. Navigating cultural differences and stakeholder needs in various countries is another ongoing challenge.

What skills from Medill have been most useful in your career?

Medill is a practical place, not a theoretical one. We were out there doing stories, experimenting with different storytelling platforms, and that hands-on experience was invaluable. Social media platforms have evolved since I graduated—Instagram has more video content, Twitter is different, and Facebook’s popularity has shifted—so the most important thing I learned was flexibility. Medill taught me to analyze new platforms, understand their audiences, and evaluate whether my organization should be on them. Medill really prepared me to adapt and use any medium to reach the right audience.

If you could give advice to new Medill graduates, what would it be?

The best advice I can offer is to really stay flexible and patient throughout your career journey. Flexibility means staying open to a wide range of opportunities, even ones you might not initially consider ideal. Right after college, I didn’t have a full-time job lined up and ended up working in various roles—from city government to fellowships and even a stint at Best Buy—just to keep moving forward. The job market was tough, but this period taught me resilience and opened up new perspectives. Eventually, I found a role in the mayor’s office, which led me to social media, a field I hadn’t previously thought about. Looking back, if I hadn’t been patient and open, I might never have found my niche.

When I started as a social media manager, platforms and strategies were vastly different. Over time, I’ve had to adapt continuously as they evolved, reminding me that flexibility is essential in today’s dynamic job landscape. Patience is equally crucial—you might not get your dream job right away, but every experience builds skills and brings you closer to your goals. Taking a long-term view and trying out various paths without despair can be incredibly rewarding in the end.

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Major survey of news consumption highlights challenges for entire industry

Post author By Belinda Clarke
Post date October 22, 2024
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A sweeping, in-depth survey of the news consumption habits of Chicago-area residents by Medill researchers captures the tectonic shift to smartphone usage from television and print newspapers, and finds that half of consumers believe no one should pay for journalism.

The survey of 1,004 people, one of the largest examinations ever of news consumption habits in the Chicago area, identifies numerous notable findings. Nearly two-thirds of those surveyed, or 62%, said they use their smartphones to get local news all the time or often, compared to 52% who watch news on television all the time or often. Thirteen percent of respondents said they read traditional newspapers and magazines often or all the time, while only a limited number of residents (19%) pay or donate money for access to local journalism.

In one of the survey’s most significant findings, Medill’s researchers identified a lack of public awareness of the financially perilous state of local news. A majority of those surveyed (54%) believe local news outlets are doing “somewhat well” financially. Another 17% said they are doing “very well,” meaning that in total, 71% of respondents don’t know the news business is in crisis. Research by the Medill Local News Initiative has chronicled in detail the alarming pace at which news organizations under financial duress are shrinking or disappearing, creating “news
deserts” in communities across the country.

The disconnect between performance and awareness has profound implications for the future of journalism because many local newsrooms need to persuade more consumers to become paying customers for digital news to make up for weak online advertising revenue. But audiences not only don’t believe the news business is suffering, they are skeptical about who, if anyone, should pay for news. About half (51%) of Chicago-area residents said no one should pay for news. Another 27% of respondents said those who can pay should pay.

Much smaller numbers said those who read the most should pay, or everyone should pay. “The most solid pillar of local news is reader revenue, digital subscriptions, or memberships,” said Tim Franklin, Senior Associate Dean at Medill and one of the authors of the survey. “If half of people think that no one should have to pay for news, that shows the news business model has some headwinds.”

The survey, published as a 64-page report, “The Medill Survey: How the Chicago Area Gets its News,” was conducted by faculty of the Medill School with funding by the MacArthur Foundation. The authors are Medill Professor Stephanie Edgerly, Associate Dean of Research; Assistant Professor Yu Xu; along with Franklin, who is also John M. Mutz Chair in Local News and Director of the Medill Local News Initiative. NORC at the University of Chicago, on Medill’s behalf, surveyed adults throughout the 14-county metro area, including parts of southern Wisconsin and northwest Indiana, via a mixture of phone and web methods. The margin of error was +/- 4.66%.

While the survey focused on the Chicago region, the results may bea microcosm of the fast-changing landscape for local news across the country. The study’s goal was to examine the current state of the public’s interest in and reliance on local news, as well as readership, viewership and listenership habits. The survey also explored other views on journalism, including motivations for consuming news and attitudes related to the trustworthiness of reporters to perform their roles well.

Some of the survey’s key findings include:

The public generally remains engaged in following news events. About half (53%) of adults consume local news once or multiple times a day.
There are strong generational differences in reader interest, with almost two-thirds (62%) of adults ages 60+ consuming local news once or multiple times daily, compared to just 39% of people ages 18-29.
The generational difference is also profound for television viewership: While 66% of adults 60+ watch local TV news daily, that number drops to only 22% for 18-29 year-olds.
Chicago-area consumers are fairly positive about what they consume. About half (53%) trust local news media to get things right, a higher portion than found nationally (44%), according to a different study of local news.
While most respondents (85%) have never met a local journalist, 43% said they were interested in attending a meet-and-greet with local reporters.

A principal goal of the study is to give news organizations, journalists, philanthropists, scholars and other interested parties a better understanding of consumers’ behaviors. “Armed with these insights, key stakeholders can explore new pathways to better meet the public’s news needs and explore new business models to support the local journalism our communities need,” Edgerly said.

While the Medill report confirms the impact of technological change on local news consumption habits, it also suggests that some basic assumptions by journalists and civic leaders about how the public values local news may no longer be true. Industry leaders have made passionate arguments in defense of financially struggling newspapers, warning that democratic traditions are at stake because journalists are watchdogs of public interest whose work binds citizens to
communities. But that perspective isn’t widely recognized.

The survey found that the main reason people said they consume local news and information is to meet the needs of everyday life. Specifically, 60% of respondents consume news because it “helps me save and manage money,” while 52% consume news because it “helps me stay healthy.” Far down the list are “helps me feel connected to my community” (15%) as well as “helps me take action to address issues I care about” (12%) and “helps me stay informed to be a better citizen” (10%).

“The big push by philanthropy and policymakers right now to provide money for local news is in a democracy framework: More robust local news helps improve the democratic institutions of a community and the country,” Franklin said. “This survey suggests that message isn’t taking hold with the public yet and there’s more work to do to make the public aware of what’s at stake with the loss of local news. While we as journalists attach altruistic reasons for our work and why people come to local news, many of them are tuning in or reading in a transactional way.”

The report includes a conclusion urging stakeholders with an interest in a free and vigorous press to play a role in elevating local news at a moment when it is under siege. The report also features a brief history of Chicago journalism to offer further perspective on the important findings of the survey.

“How the Chicago Area Gets Its News” is a product of the Medill Local News Initiative, a research and development project aimed at bolstering the sustainability of local news.

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Medill launches new program to cover Illinois Government

Post author By Belinda Clarke
Post date October 22, 2024
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Photo of Illinois capitol in Springfield

Medill has created the Medill Illinois News Bureau, which will provide local news outlets with coverage of the state legislature and government agencies.

Working in partnership with Capitol News Illinois (CNI), Medill graduate and undergraduate journalism students will develop expertise in covering state government, producing stories and multimedia content that will be distributed to news organizations statewide and in bordering states. CNI is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization based in Springfield that is operated by the Illinois Press Foundation. Its vast distribution network includes about 700 newspapers, digital-only news sites and broadcast outlets throughout Illinois and in border state cities such as St. Louis.

“This new Medill Illinois News Bureau is intended to help strengthen coverage of state government at a time when the Statehouse press corps has been depleted and after most newspapers have closed their Springfield bureaus,” said Medill Dean Charles Whitaker. “Medill is stepping up to help fill some of that void, and to provide students with invaluable, real-world experience and classroom expertise covering one of the largest and most complex state governments in the nation.”

A team of Medill students will be based in Springfield during the legislative session and will work out of CNI’s newsroom. When the legislature is not in session, these students will develop enterprise pieces and cover breaking state government news from Chicago.

“Our Capitol News Illinois team is very excited about this partnership with Medill,” said Jeff Rogers, the founding editor of CNI and executive director of the Illinois Press Foundation. “Through its Local News Initiative, Medill and Northwestern University are making a significant push to revitalize community journalism and address the growing number of news deserts in Illinois. Because Capitol News Illinois addresses a news desert at the Illinois Capitol, this is a perfect partnership that will further connect communities statewide to their state government. This is a win for everyone, including the fantastic student journalists at Medill, who will get their work published by newspapers and broadcast outlets throughout the state.”

The program is funded with a grant from the Robert R. McCormick Foundation. The McCormick Foundation is a major supporter of the Medill Local News Initiative, a multi-pronged project aimed at bolstering local news locally and nationally. The initiative includes the Medill State of Local News Project, which tracks the number of news outlets nationally and news desert communities, and programs such as the Medill Local News Accelerator, the Midwest Solutions Journalism Hub and Teach for Chicago Journalism. Program participants also will conduct local news audience research.

“We are glad to have Medill and Capitol News Illinois as partners in keeping our citizens informed about the actions of their government and keeping the State of Illinois accountable to its residents,” said Tim Knight, the president and chief executive officer of the Robert R. McCormick Foundation.

Medill Senior Lecturer Bob Rowley will serve as director of the Medill Illinois News Bureau. Rowley is a former national and foreign correspondent for the Chicago Tribune, where served as national editor for seven years. Rowley covered state government and local politics early in his reporting career.

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Richard Lee Harris (BSJ76)

Post author By Belinda Clarke
Post date October 21, 2024
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Richard Lee Harris, a beloved family man and distinguished journalist, died in hospice in Washington DC on October 2, 2024. He was 70.

Richard, a member of Medill’s Hall of Achievement, shaped some of the world’s biggest news stories over the past half century as a broadcast producer for NPR’s All Things Considered, news editor at NBC News, and senior producer for ABC News’ “Nightline” for almost two decades. He structured a first-of-its-kind televised town hall between Israeli and Palestinian leaders in 1988 and secured an interview for “Nightline” with Nelson Mandela moments after his release from South African prison. Richard’s pitch for Ted Koppel to interview Brandeis professor Morrie Schwartz on the topic of death and dying put in motion the global best-selling memoir “Tuesdays with Morrie.”

Richard won 14 News & Documentary Emmys and a Columbia DuPont award, and is honored as a standout alumnus in the Northwestern University Medill School of Journalism Hall of Achievement.

In his personal life, Richard enjoyed playing word games with his sister, taking photographs of nature and family moments, bonding with the family dog on late-night walks, and savoring coffee and ice cream (or better yet ½ coffee ice cream). Richard spent some of his happiest moments as Papa to his three grandchildren, reading together, filling the bird feeder, and indoctrinating them into Red Sox Nation.

Richard is survived by his loving wife of 44 years, Kit (O’Connell) Harris; daughters Emily Harris, Susannah Harris, and Lily Harris; sons-in-law Duza Baba and Ben Estabrook; grandchildren Miles Baba, Cecelia Baba, and Norah Estabrook, and sister Debbie Mozes, along with many brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, nieces, and nephews.

Richard was preceded in death by his parents, Mildred ‘Millie’ Harris and Lester ‘Lefty’ Harris, and his uncle Jonas Chaves.

https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/washingtonpost/name/richard-harris-obituary?id=56561625

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Neil King (MSJ90)

Neil King, the former global economics editor at The Wall Street Journal, died Tuesday from cancer.

He left The Journal in 2016. Last year, his book “American Ramble: A Walk of Memory and Renewal” documented his 330-mile walk from Washington to New York.

King worked for 15 years in the Journal’s Washington bureau, where he covered beats ranging from terrorism and foreign policy to trade and the international oil industry. He served as national political reporter from 2010 until early 2014, when he took over as editor of the Journal’s economics coverage.

He first joined Dow Jones in January 1995 as a reporter for The Wall Street Journal Europe, based in Prague. In November of that year, he moved to Brussels as chief correspondent of the European Journal’s Central European Economic Review. In 1996, he became the European Journal’s chief diplomatic and security correspondent.

Prior to joining Dow Jones, King was a staff reporter for the Tampa (Fla.) Tribune in 1990 and moved to Prague in 1992 as a freelance correspondent. He did freelance reporting for the European Journal from Prague from 1993 to 1994.

Born in Colorado, King earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Columbia University in New York and a master’s degree from the Medill.

King, former WSJ global economics editor, has died

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Stephen Byers (MSJ71)

Stephen Byers passed away on June 2, 2024 at the age of 81. Beloved husband of Gen McBride for 24 years. Loving father of Steven Byers, Mark Byers (Mary Krogmann), John (Laura) Caspari and Cate (Kyle) O’Connell. Proud grandfather of Allen Byers, Dawson O’Connell, Brynn O’Connell, Zoe Caspari and the late Hannah O’Connell; step grandfather of Ian McVeigh, Gwen Atkins, Carrie Krogmann and Bella Krogmann. Dear brother of George “Mike” (Judy) Byers, the late Jane (Lynn) Carstens, Bill (the late Janice) Byers, Phyllis (Dick) Lacey, Rick (Dorie) Byers. Dear brother-in-law of Joe McBride, Mike (Kerin) McBride, Pat (Kim) McBride, Dennis (Karen Barry) McBride, Mark (Kim Stanton-McBride) McBride and Tim (Shirley Porterfield) McBride. Proud great grandfather of Lacey and Allen Byers Jr. Steve will be greatly missed by his wonderful home health aide Laura Buchman, his nieces, nephews, cousins, other relatives and many friends.

Steve attended Indiana State University for his undergraduate degree Northwestern University for his masters in journalism UW Milwaukee for his doctorate in Urban Studies.

Steve was a talented journalist, wrote for several papers and was a reporter and editor for more than three decades at the Milwaukee Journal and Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. He then was a professor of journalism at Marquette University.

Steve devoted his life to Gen and her children and their grandchildren for the last 30 years. He brought laughter wherever he went, always brightened the room and taught many how to love with a bigger heart.

He loved basketball, traveling, sailing and cooking. But most of all he loved his many talks with Gen about books and politics. Steve and Gen had the joy of together writing the book Dear Mrs. Griggs: Women pour out their hearts from the heartland.

While later in life Parkinson’s took away many of the things that made him happy, he kept a good spirit and only wanted happiness for those he loved.

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Major survey of news consumption highlights challenges for entire industry

Post author By Belinda Clarke
Post date May 28, 2024
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A sweeping, in-depth survey of the news consumption habits of Chicago-area residents by researchers at the Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications at Northwestern University captures the tectonic shift to smartphone usage from television and print newspapers, and finds that half of consumers believe no one should pay for journalism.

Some of the survey’s key findings include:

The public generally remains engaged in following news events. About half (53%) of adults consume local news once or multiple times a day.

There are strong generational differences in reader interest, with almost two-thirds (62%) of adults ages 60+ consuming local news once or multiple times daily, compared to just 39% of people ages 18-29.

The generational difference is also profound for television viewership: While 66% of adults 60+ watch local TV news daily, that number drops to only 22% for 18-29 year-olds.

Chicago-area consumers are fairly positive about what they consume. About half (53%) trust local news media to get things right, a higher portion than found nationally (44%), according to a different study of local news.

While most respondents (85%) have never met a local journalist, 43% said they were interested in attending a meet-and-greet with local reporters.

“How the Chicago Area Gets Its News” is a product of the Medill Local News Initiative, a research and development project aimed at bolstering the sustainability of local news.

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