Location: United States
Taylor Pensoneau
The year was 1965. The Vietnam War was raging; protests were rampant across the country; the civil rights movement was gathering steam; and recent graduate-turned-newspaper reporter Taylor Pensoneau was going to be writing about politics. And, not only was he going to be writing about politics, Pensoneau would be heading up the St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s … Continued
David “Scoop” Peery
What do you do? I am retired. I do participate in conservation groups, two canoe clubs, Democratic Party activities, church activities (Unitarian Universalist) and other civic groups. How did you get your job? My last (more than) full-time job was owner, editor and publisher of the Smithville (Mo.) Lake Herald, a weekly community newspaper just … Continued
Ken Paulson
What is your favorite J-School memory? The highlight for me was actually being able to work at the Columbia Missourian and compete with others for big stories. The School was very crowded in those days, and I remember being on the university beat with three other reporters. Getting that first taste of competition was invigorating. … Continued
Georgia O’Brien Patrick
What is your company like? The Communicators is the coolest place to work. We won the first national competition for the best small business in America a few years ago. In a competition of hundreds of organizations we were selected among the top 10 finalists and then got the call that we were number one. … Continued
Jim Overbay
What do you do? Retired as news manager for Meredith Broadcasting. Previously, news director at KCTV, Kansas City, communications manager at the Chamber of Commerce of Greater Kansas City, and the assistant news director at KMBC-TV, Kansas City. How did you get your job? Perseverance. Contacts. Luck. What is the best professional lesson you learned … Continued
Ron Osborne
There was little in Ron Osborne’s early years to suggest that he would become a full-time playwright. His family didn’t attend theatrical performances. Like many of his classmates, he participated as a cast member in a few high school productions. Osborne majored in advertising, and his first job was as a technical writer. But it … Continued
Gayly Gardner Opem
Gayly Gardner Opem, BJ ’70, recently retired from her position as executive vice president of marketing at the Institute for the International Education of Students (IES) Abroad, a study-abroad program provider. During Opem’s five-year stay at IES, she helped double the organization’s revenues and the number of study-abroad participants. She built an impressive portfolio of … Continued
Diane O’Byrne
Preparation for a Career in Broadcast Journalism “You’ll work so hard at broadcast and you’ll be good, but you would be great in sales!” Not exactly the words broadcast news student Diane Campbell (O’Byrne) wanted to hear from her Missouri School of Journalism adviser and much-respected professor Dave Dugan. Little did O’Byrne know that Dugan … Continued
Mark Obbie
What do you do? I am a freelance writer specializing in stories about crime, courts, criminal justice policy, law and business. How did you get your job? I quit my day job! After a career that started in reporting and then moved into editing, then editing/publishing, then teaching journalism, I realized all my promotions and … Continued
Nancy Newton
What do you do? I’m a vice president/account supervisor of public relations at Cramer-Krasselt. In this role, I work with local and national companies to develop and implement public relations strategies that bring them visibility in consistent and meaningful ways while positively impacting their business objectives. Best professional lesson? Speak up. Do not assume anything. … Continued