News and notes as reported by our esteemed graduates. From books published to awards won, here's a sampling of what our alumni are up to.
Bill Owen (B.A. Telecommunications ’53) is the author of “Dropping Names: 60 Plus Years of Broadcasting Memories,” tracing his career from KUSC-FM to his 30 years at ABC New York. He is also the author of other books, such as “All Those Things My Teacher Never Told Me,” “The Over 60 Trivia Book,” “Runners-up, Bridesmaids, and Second Bananas,” as well as co-author of the first encyclopedia of radio programs, “The Big Broadcast.”
Dennis Neil Jones (B.A. Public Relations ’76, M.P.A. ’78) was named a 2014 Southern California Super Lawyer by Law & Politics for his expertise in insurance law. This is the seventh year he has been named to this prestigious list. Mark Kariya (B.A. Journalism ’78) was named the recipient of The American Motorcyclist Association’s 2013 Media Award at the annual AMA Championship Banquet in Columbus, Ohio on January 18. Mike Huckman (B.A. Broadcast Journalism ’83), award-winning journalist and former CNBC Life Sciences Reporter, was appointed chief strategist at Pure Communications, Inc. Kevin Kirk (B.A. Communication Arts & Sciences ’83) was recently promoted to Director of Freestyle Sales for the Western United States by The Coca-Cola Company. Steven Travers (B.A. Communication Arts & Sciences ’83) has published a new book titled, “The Duke, The Longhorns, and Chairman Mao: John Wayne’s Political Odyssey.”
Ellen Plotkin Mulholland (B.A. Print Journalism & English ’85) recently published a young adult novel called, “Birds on a Wire,” which follows 72 hours in the lives of three best friends before they embark on their senior year of high school. Read more about Ellen at thisgirlclimbstrees.weebly.com. James Davenport (B.A. Communication Arts & Sciences ’90) was recently inducted into the St. Francis High School Athletic Hall of Fame for Baseball; he was a member of the Trojan Baseball team from ’88 to ’89. He is currently the Director of Business Development, Hosting & Cloud, at AT&T. David Sweet (M.A. Print Journalism ’90) was named Editorial Coordinator of three magazines at JWC Media outside of Chicago. Cathy L. Hue (B.A. Broadcast Journalism ’00), formerly Cathy Truong, is segment producer on a brand new docu-series for the E! Network, “Society X with Laura Ling.” The pilot episode on Designer Drugs aired in the fall. Previously, Hue has produced for award-winning shows including “SoCal Connected” (KCET), Current TV and Channel One Network. She is a freelance journalist and founder of Our Story Productions. Bich Ngoc Cao (B.A. Print Journalism & Political Science ’04), digital marketing director at Harvest Records, was appointed to the Board of Library Commissioners by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and serves as the board’s vice president. Erin Coscarelli (B.A. Broadcast Journalism ’06) is working as an on-air anchor and sports reporter for Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, an NBC Regional Network. Lindsay Miller (B.A. Print Journalism ’06) is the creator and host of PopSugar’s new interview series, “In Her World,” which showcases inspiring women and the personal passions behind their success stories. Clint Schaff (M.A. Communication Management ’07) recently became the U.S. General Manager of Dare, a global creative digital agency and was also named a 2014 New Leaders Council Fellow. Breanna M. Cardwell (B.A. Journalism and Communications ’08) was named Communications Officer at The California Wellness Foundation. Breanna received her MPPA from California Lutheran University. Anastasia Alen (B.A. Communication ’10) was sworn into the California State Bar and the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California on Dec. 4, 2013.
Claire Spera (M.A. Specialized Journalism ’10) was recently named publicity coordinator for the University of Texas at Austin Butler School of Music, where her first project was organizing publicity for the 10-day Menuhin International Competition for Young Violinists, which came to North America for the first time in its 30-year history. She continues to write dance and theater reviews for Austin’s daily paper, the Austin American-Statesman, and is a contributing writer for Arts + Culture Texas Magazine. Katharine Azar (MPD ’10) married Behtash Azar (Architecture ’05) in Newport Beach, Calif. In addition, Kate is now an Account Executive at issue advocacy firm, Griffin|Schein. Kamala Kirk (B.A. Communication ’11) recently joined E! Entertainment as Writer/Editor for E! Shows.
Susana Bautista (PH.D ’12) is the author of a new book, “Museums in the Digital Age: Changing Meanings of Place, Community, and Culture”—see excerpt below, Bautista has also been named the interim deputy director of the USC Pacific Asia Museum. Krista Daly (M.A. Specialized Journalism ’13) is a staff writer for the Imperial Valley Press in El Centro, Calif. As a county reporter, her wide-ranging beat takes her from government to health to renewable energy to community events.
Have news to share, questions to ask, regarding our alumni? Visit: annenbergalumni.com
