Journalism to honor alumni, leaders during J Days awards lunch April 8

Seven people will be recognized during the annual J Days awards lunch April 8 at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln College of Journalism and Mass Communications. The college will present the Awards of Excellence to six alumni and partner with the Nebraska Broadcasters Association to present the Broadcast Pioneer Award.

During a luncheon for the honorees, the college will present Alumni Awards of Excellence to Greg Andersen, Linda Baldwin, LaSharah Bunting, Ronald Ng, Susan Phalen and Jim Rose. The Nebraska Broadcast Pioneer Award will be presented to Ken J. Elkins.

Andersen, '90, is the chief executive officer of BBH NY advertising agency, where he oversees all client business. Andersen, who joined the agency in 2006, was the director of the firm's engagement planning for North America. Named managing director in 2008, Andersen was responsible for developing the innovation agenda for the agency. Andersen has more than 16 years of experience in account management and strategic planning, where he did business and brand building in the financial service sector, telecommunications and technology, automotive and beverage industry. His clients included Saab, Verizon, Foster's Beer, GMC Trucks and Nokia. Andersen has prior agency experience at DeVito/Verdi/Euro and Merkley Newman Harty agencies. He served as executive vice president and director of strategic planning of Lowe New York. Andersen has served as a guest lecturer at Northwestern University's integrated communications graduate program, Columbia University in New York City, University of Texas and UNL. He serves on the Effie Worldwide board of directors.

Baldwin, '71, is the associate publisher for Isthmus, a weekly newspaper in Madison, Wis. She manages the business development and marketing functions of the award-winning weekly and websites, TheDailyPage.com and IsthmusParents.com. Prior to working at the Isthmus, Baldwin was a public television cultural arts producer and director and managed financial marketing for the national network of credit unions. In her 30 years of experience in marketing, she has also worked for KOLN-TV in Lincoln, Wisconsin Public Television and the Madison Festival of the Lakes. Baldwin has served on multiple boards and committees within the community. She chairs the Madison Cultural Arts District Board and serves on the Downtown Madison Inc. board of directors. She is a chair of international projects for the Rotary Club of Madison and is a founding member of the Alternative Weekly Network, a national cooperative for weeklies. She has been a board member of the Barrymore Theatre, Madison Repertory Theatre and the Civic Center Commission.

Bunting, '00, is the deputy Sunday metropolitan editor at the New York Times. Since joining the paper at age 25, Bunting held positions such as editor of op-ed columns and the assistant editor of the arts section. Bunting is dedicated to reaching out to journalism students, teaching editing workshops in New York and around the country. She is a faculty member for the New York Times Student Journalism Institute, a two-week residency program for college journalists based at Dillard University in News Orleans. Bunting was chosen to attend the New York Times Leadership Academy and the Maynard Media Academy at Harvard University, which both prepare journalists for careers in newsroom management. After graduating from UNL, she worked at the Dallas Morning News for three years before moving to the New York Times.

Ng, '94, is the executive vice president and executive creative director of BBDO New York. Prior to joining BBDO New York in 2009, he was the chief creative officer of BBDO/Proximity Malaysia since 2004 and sat on the network's Asia Creative Council. Under his direction, BBDO/Proximity Malaysia won countless awards including honors from New York Festivals, Adfest, The One Show and DM Show. The Big Won Report ranked their HELP "Wheelchair" campaign the sixth most awarded Innovative and Alternative Media campaign in 2008, and in 2009 the report ranked Proximity as the eighth most awarded agency in the world. The Gunn Report ranked Ng as the world's No. 1 copywriter. Ng has judged award shows around the world, including the Malaysian Kancils, Adfest, Asian Spikes and the Cannes Festival. He has worked with renowned clients including Orbitz, Johnson & Johnson, Mountain Dew, Autism Speaks and Monster.

Phalen, '92, is the communications director for the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence in the U.S. Congress. In this role, Phalen advises the committee chairman and members on domestic and international communications and protects classified information related to national security. Prior to her job in Congress, Phalen provided strategic messaging for the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction in the United States and Afghanistan. She has served as a public adviser to the U.S. ambassador for economic development in Paris and senior adviser for Iraq and Afghanistan Communications for the U.S. State Department. In 2000, Phalen headed radio operations in the press office for the Bush campaign in Texas. Prior to that she worked on Capitol Hill as the press secretary for former Texas congressman Henry Bonilla and deputy press secretary for Nebraska's former U.S. Senator Chuck Hagel. Phalen's experience has taken her around the world, but she has spent much of her career in Washington, D.C. An expert in crisis communications, Phalen has executed strategic communications plans for the U.S. government's national security agencies. Phalen was honored with the Department of State Award for Superior Service in 2007, the Department of State Award for Exceptional Public Service in 2005 and the Secretary Defense Medal for Exceptional Public Service in 2004, among others.

Rose, '85, is a veteran in media, broadcasting and sports marketing and a marketing consultant for global sports company IMG and its subsidiary, IMG-College/Husker Sports Marketing. He is a pioneer in Nebraska sports talk programming and entertains fans with his popular daily reports during the 1110 KFAB-AM Good Morning Show in Omaha. Rose, who consults with companies and organizations to develop branding strategies, ranks among the IMG/College Division leaders in annual gross billing and new accounts. He has executed successful strategies for brands like Cabela's, Mutual of Omaha, BryanLGH Medical Center, the Nebraska Lottery and Dorothy Lynch Salad Dressing. In 2008, Rose was named a Harold Soderlund visiting professor at the UNL College of Journalism and Mass Communications. He has also been a guest lecturer at the University of Kansas. Prior to working for KFAB, Rose served as the host and creator of Nebraska's first statewide daily network radio program launched in 1993. He worked in various positions with the Nebraska Sports Network throughout the 1990s before becoming the sports director and talk show host for KMBZ radio in Kansas City, Mo., and the Kansas City Royals radio network. He returned to Nebraska in 2002. Rose contributes to ESPN and the Golf Channel networks. Rose has been recognized for his contributions to broadcasting as the Lincoln Southeast High School distinguished alumnus and Nebraska Sportscaster of the year. He serves on the board of directors for the University of Nebraska Alumni Association.

Elkins is a member of the Broadcast Music Inc. board of directors. He joined the board in 1991 and served as its chairman from 2001 to 2004. Elkins began his broadcasting career at KETV, Omaha, as a camera operator. He moved to Dubuque, Iowa, for an assistant chief engineer and general manager position with KDUB-TV. In 1972, he returned to KETV where he served as operations manager, general sales manager and general manager. When Pulitzer Broadcasting Co. bought KETV in 1976, Elkins retained his position as general manager. He transferred to KSDK-TV, Pulitzer's flagship station in St. Louis, in 1980. In 1984, he was named president and chief executive officer of Pulitzer Broadcasting and oversaw seven television and two radio station. Elkins has served as the chairman of the NBC Television Affiliate board of directors, was a board member of the National Association of Broadcasters and member of the Television Board of Advertising. He is a past president of the Nebraska Broadcasters Association and was inducted into the NBA Hall of Fame in 1990. Elkins served on the board of the Barnes-Jewish Christian Health Care System in St. Louis for 10 years.

WRITER: Marilyn Hahn