Michigan Association of Broadcasters

March 2 - 3, 2010

Hosted by the Michigan Association of Broadcasters, in cooperation with the
Society of Broadcast Engineers, Chapter 91, and the Michigan Association of Public Broadcasters.

2010 Speaker Information


	Gary Berkowitz Berkowitz Consulting Group Gary Berkowitz has been in radio for over 30 years. A Speech-Communications graduate of Emerson College in Boston, Berkowitz began his career as an on air talent at various Boston area radio stations. He went on to be the Program Director at leading radio stations including WPRO-AM-FM, Providence, WROR, Boston, WHYT-WJR and WKQI, Detroit. In 1990 Gary opened Berkowitz Broadcast Consulting specializing in the programming of AC radio. Since then, Gary has consulted for America's biggest and best AC stations including market leaders such as WMJX, Boston, WNIC, Detroit, WWFS (Fresh 102.7), New York, KEZK, St Louis, WLIF, Baltimore, KYXY, San Diego and many others. Today, Gary works with large and small broadcasters across the US to improve their programming, marketing and ratings. Berkowitz Broadcast Consulting is based in West Bloomfield, Michigan.

	Jim Brandstatter Jim has been a Michigan Sportscaster since his graduation from the University of Michigan in 1972, where he was a 3-year football letter winner as an offensive lineman who helped the Wolverines win two Big Ten Titles and compete in two Rose Bowls. Jim, called “Brandy” by his broadcasting partners, has vividly brought University of Michigan football games to life for more than 30 years on various outlets throughout Michigan on the Wolverines statewide networks. His background as a player and 37 year broadcaster gives Jim a perspective unique to football analysts, and listeners benefit from his experience. Brandstatter has also been the eyes for radio listeners of the NFL’s Detroit Lions. He has been calling the games for CBS Radio’s statewide Lions network since 1987. Jim was on hand describing every professional run of Barry Sanders, and is one of the longest tenured color analysts for one team on statewide NFL radio broadcasts. Jim has hosted “Michigan Replay” and “Inside Michigan Football,” the Michigan Football Coach’s television show since 1980. Jim’s knowledge of the game and strategy gives him an edge in getting the inside story. From Bo Schembechler, to Gary Moeller to Lloyd Carr, to current Michigan coach Rich Rodriguez, Brandstatter has been getting the answers for Wolverine fans on this Emmy nominated program. Jims’ resume included a weekly College Football Radio Show, called “Brandy and Bo” with former U-of-M Coach, the late Bo Schembechler. Brandy and Bo talk with coaches previewing upcoming games and discussed issues facing collegiate football. The live call-in show twice won Michigan Association of Broadcasters ‘Best in Category’ honors. In 2004 and 2008, Brandstatter was named “Sportscaster of the Year in Michigan” by the National Sportscasters/Sportswriters Association. Jim is also a published author. “Tales from Michigan Stadium” and “Tales from Michigan Stadium-Volume II” became top sellers for college football fans. When not broadcasting Detroit Lions or University of Michigan football, Jim is frequently asked to emcee sports banquets or give a motivational keynote speech. Jim’s sense of humor and his ability to inspire and motivate people to set and achieve goals keeps him busy on the banquet circuit. Jim is married to Robbie Timmons, the noon and 5PM anchor of WXYZ-TV’s award winning newscasts in Detroit. For relaxation, Jim enjoys playing golf, cooking, and reading mystery thrillers. When not watching Robbie or a football game, it’s a safe bet Jim is playing catch with the family pet sheltie, Cassie.

	Diane Charles Charles served as Director of Corporate Communications for Art Van Furniture where she is be responsible for the development and execution of community, media and public relations strategies to advance Art Van Furniture's corporate identity. With a career that has spanned nearly 30 years, Charles has an extensive background in broadcast journalism, as program director and local program manager at WXYZ-TV for the past decade; prior to that, Diane held executive producer roles at WDIV-TV. In her previous roles, Charles developed, wrote and produced Emmy-winning shows, and built strong relationships with prominent community and business leaders in the metro Detroit region. As executive producer at WXYZ, she was responsible for the delivery of broadcast specials for high-profile events in the metro Detroit area, including the Woodward Dream Cruise, the North American International Auto Show, Super Bowl XL, and the gubernatorial and mayoral debates. She also was executive producer of the longest running garden show on television, Rebecca’s Garden, which aired on NBC stations nationwide and currently runs in syndication on HGTV. Charles has served on the Board of Directors of the Woodward Dream Cruise and YMCA, and also as a member of the Michigan Television Academy. She holds a Bachelor of Applied Arts degree from Central Michigan University.

	Alison Circle Marketing Communications & Brand Manager - Columbus Metropolitan Library Alison Circle has more than 20 years marketing experience. For 13 years she was National Marketing Director for Garrison Keillor and "A Prairie Home Companion," which included performances, tours, products and international media coverage. Following that she was Account Director at Jack Morton Worldwide, a global branding agency, where her primary client was Target, for whom she managed internal branding, gift card and Target Visa launches. Since 2004 she has been Marketing Communications and Brand Manager for Columbus Metropolitan Library. In that capacity she rebranded the organization, introduced professional marketing expertise and won over 20 national and international awards for her work. She blogs about libraries and marketing for Library Journal, titled Bubble Room.

	Lynn Claudy Senior Vice President of Science and Technology - National Association of Broadcasters As head of the Science and Technology department, he is responsible for representation of the NAB in all radio and television technical matters. He joined NAB in 1988 as a staff engineer and held positions of Director of Advanced Engineering and Technology and Vice President before assuming his present position in February 1995. Prior to joining NAB, he was employed by Hoppmann Corporation, a communications systems integration firm where he held a variety of technical and management positions. He also was a part-time professor in the Physics Department at the American University in Washington DC, where he taught courses in acoustics and audio technology. Previous to that, he was a development engineer at Shure Brothers Inc., a manufacturer of audio equipment. He has a bachelor of arts degree from Oberlin College, a BSEE from Washington University in St. Louis and an MSEE degree from the Illinois Institute of Technology. He is a member of IEEE, SMPTE, SBE and AES.

	Eva Aguirre Cooper Community Affairs Director/WOOD TV8/WOTV (Grand Rapids) Eva Aguirre Cooper has been the Community Affairs Director at WOOD TV8/WOTV 4/WXSP since 1998, where her responsibilities include community outreach efforts, on-air reporting for 24 Hour News 8 and special station projects including Angel Tree, Christmas in May – Collection of personal care items for Pantries, Drive to Live - teen safety program and Connecting with Community. Her community involvement includes participation on various boards and committees such as the Grand Rapids/Kent County CVB, Healthy Kent 2010, Grand Rapids Community Foundation, Center for Community Leadership Grand Rapids, Grand Rapids Sister City Mexico Committee and ongoing participation in the Hispanic Community.

	Larry Estlack Director of Technology - Michigan Association of Broadcasters For the last eight years, Larry has been the Director of Technology for the Michigan Association of Broadcasters. He oversees its technical programs including the Alternative Broadcast Inspection Program for radio and TV stations and its Engineering Hotline which provides engineers and operations personnel with technical information on current and evolving technologies, problem solving, FCC compliance, crisis and risk management, facility planning, reliability improvement advice and referral services to other information sources. He has served as the chairman of the Emergency Alert System in Michigan for seventeen years and as Chairman of the South Central EAS area since 1977. He is actively involved in building better alliances between the Emergency Management community and broadcasters to improve public warning. Larry has been involved in both radio and television engineering for 30 years. He has served as facility designer and Chief Engineer of two new TV stations as well as numerous AM and FM radio stations and production facilities in Michigan. With a face “perfect for radio”, Larry is also an on-air radio personality and has been playing rock ‘n’ roll long before it became “classic rock”. He received the Michigan Association of Broadcasters first Engineering Excellence Award, and was induced in the Michigan Broadcast Hall of Fame in 2008. Larry is an active member of the Society of Broadcast Engineers, is Certified as a Professional Broadcast Engineer and serves as a frequency coordinator for much of the State.

	Frank Grundstein Director of Sales - Logitek Electronic Systems Frank's varied career in broadcasting spans over 35 years.Since 1993 he has been in broadcast sales working for Harris, Radio Systems and, for the past 6 years, Logitek. Frank's engineering career has touched on most environments for Audio for Broadcast. Frank has been a Major Market Chief Engineer, a video/film production facility manager, Chief Tech of a recording studio and a computer animator. He has a Master's Degree in Communications Systems from NYU and currently holds SBE certifications as CBRE and CBNT.

	James P. Hallan President/CEO - Michigan Retailers Association Hallan became President and CEO of the Michigan Retailers Association in 2008 after serving as President and Chief Operating Officer since 1989. He joined Michigan Retailers as General Counsel in 1985. He is chair of the Board of Directors of Delta Dental Plans of Michigan, Ohio and Indiana and a director of the Delta Dental Plan Foundation. He also serves on the Association Advisory Council for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and on the boards of the national Council of State Retail Association Executives and the State of Michigan YMCA.

	Doug Harris President - Creative Animal International Chief Creative Officer - Noisemaker Communications With a creative legacy that spans twenty five years in marketing and a stable of broadcast clients around the world, Doug Harris has earned a reputation as the world's premiere broadcast marketing consultant. A former Billboard Magazine Promotion Director of the Year, and the recipient of dozens of industry accolades, Harris has made a practice of out-thinking, rather than out-spending his competitors in ratings and revenue battles, and has demonstrated a unique ability to blend the needs of programming with those of sales. A syndicated movie critic and a frequent speaker at gatherings of broadcast professionals, Harris has addressed marketing groups in twenty-six foreign countries on five continents and was a featured presenter at the NAB Europe for eight consecutive years. As President of Creative Animal International and Chief Creative Officer of Noisemaker Communications, Harris creates clutter-busting campaigns for a wide variety of clients worldwide.

	Fred Jacobs President - Jacobs Media Fred has emerged over the past two decades as one of radio’s leading visionaries. He founded Jacobs Media in 1983, when he had the notion that Album Rock could be fragmented by the creation of the Classic Rock format. Today, Classic Rock stands out as the most successful radio format in the last 20 years. Prior to launching the company, Fred spent the majority of his time designing and managing research projects as the Director of Research for the Radio and Publishing divisions for Frank N. Magid Associates, a leading research and consulting firm. Later, Fred became Director of Radio Research for the ABC-FM Owned and Operated Radio Stations. From there, Fred gravitated to the station side, becoming program director for legendary WRIF-FM in Detroit, before forming Jacobs Media. Along with providing the creative and intellectual direction for the company, Fred consults Jacobs Media’s major market Classic, Mainstream, and Active Rock clients, while having input in every client relationship. Fred has a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan, and a Master’s degree in Telecommunications from Michigan State University.

	Joe Jason Joe is a 26 year radio veteran who most recently sold WDOW-FM/AM to LeSea Broadcasting in April of '05. He has been in radio station ownership for 18 of those 26 years. He is the recipient of 11 Michigan Association of Broadcasters "Awards for Creative Excellence" and has also won an "Addy" Award, radio's equivalent to TV's Emmy. Joe has been an on-air talent as morning drive host for 19 years and produces and announces the Michigan High School Athletic Association Finals for Boys and Girls Basketball, Volleyball...and will be doing the same for the Football Finals at Ford Field this November. Joe is also doing free lance television work for Comcast Sport Net, broadcasting college sports. Over the year Joe has served on the executive board of directors for the March of Dimes and Cystic Fibrosis, and is active in his community. Joe resides in South Haven with his wife of 22 years, Joanne and their 17-year old twins, Katy and Joey who are seniors at South Haven High School.

	John R. Johnson Communications Director, Michigan High School Athletic Association John Johnson has spent over 30 years in athletic publicity and is starting his 24th year as the only Communications Director in the history of the Michigan High School Athletic Association, where he has been a major force in promoting high school sports and its core values. Johnson has expanded and enhanced the Association's presence and image through creating nationally-recognized sportsmanship initiatives; Internet and statewide radio networks for state championship events; directing its television efforts including the MHSAA Network, its own Internet, statewide cable and over-the-air television program; expanding marketing, merchandising and new media efforts; creating corporately-sponsored scholarships for student-athletes; and serving as its primary spokesman. He serves as a play-by-play voice for the MHSAA Network, handled television play-by-play duties of Detroit Catholic High School League championships on the Catholic Television Network of Detroit from 2000-09, and is an accomplished sports photographer. He has also authored two books on the administration of youth sports. Nationally, Johnson has served as chair of the National Federation of State High School Association’s National High School Sports Record Book Committee. He is a regularly-featured guest on radio sports talk shows throughout Michigan; and a nationally-recognized expert and media resource on issues impacting educational athletics, frequently interviewed by local, statewide, regional and national media. A native of Mt. Pleasant, Mich., and graduate of Michigan State University, Johnson served in sports information roles at Albion College, Ferris State University, Western Michigan University and Indiana University prior to joining the MHSAA staff. Johnson, 54, resides in the greater Lansing area with his wife, Suzie. They have two children.

	Steve Julin Media Power Steve Julin has been editing, directing and producing video for over 20 years. He was a principal partner in developing Media Power and is an Apple Certified Instructor, Boris FX Certified Instructor, as well as Michigan's first Avid Certified Instructor. He has edited and provided training for such companies as Ford Motor Company, Kmart, Comcast, The Discovery Channel, CBS, PBS and NBC. In 2000, Steve received a Golden Eagle Award for documentary editing and was nominated for an Emmy in 2001. He also served as Senior Avid Editor at Grace & Wild HD Studios. Steve is a graduate of Eastern Michigan University where he received a B.S. in Television Journalism. Steve is currently a member of the advisory board for The William D. Ford Voc-Tech. Center and teaches summer camp at DAFT’s Focal Point. In March of 2004 Steve’s first book, “Avid Xpress Pro: Power”, was released and published by Muska and Lipman. The 350-page book covers the Avid Xpress Pro editing system from capturing material to nesting effects and even includes a chapter with 25 power editing tips.

	Jean-Alain (Jean) Lecordier, P.E President of Tower Consultants, Inc., formerly the Vice-President of Engineering with Kline Towers, in Columbia, South Carolina. Jean has over 24 years of structural engineering and project management experience in the broadcast industry. Jean holds a Masters in Engineering from the University of South Carolina and is registered as a Professional Engineer in more than twenty states. Jean has in-depth knowledge and extensive experience in the design, analysis, fabrication, erection and project management of tall and multi-user broadcast towers. Jean has been involved with a number of the country’s foremost broadcast tower projects, including the HDTV implementation and seismic retrofitting of Sutro Tower in San Francisco, California. Jean is active in various industry forums such as the TIA/EIA, the South Carolina Structural Engineers Association and has served on several committees addressing the ANSI/TIA-222- G , gin pole, and erection stress standards.

	Gail Madziar Vice President of Communications - Michigan Bankers Association Gail Madziar has served as Vice President of Communications for the Michigan Bankers Association since July 2006 and added the duties of VP of Membership in August 2008. Her career includes communications roles for Associated General Contractors, Michigan Association of Realtors and a number of associations. From 2002 to 2006, she served as communications specialist for the Michigan Department of Corrections. She is a graduate of Michigan State University and is currently pursuing her MBA. She serves on the board of the Michigan Council for Economic Education, tutors English as a second language students and has been active with Habitat for Humanity and area Girl Scouts.

	Jim Mathis, CSP Jim Mathis is an International Certified Speaking Professional, Corporate Reinvention Strategist and author. He has been speaking, leading conferences and consulting for over 28 years. He helps business leaders who want to reinvent their businesses in challenging economies. Founding a business in one year and quadrupling its income the next, Jim has much to share about business marketing strategy. He is president of The Mathis Group based in Atlanta, Georgia, a member of the National Speakers Association, the Global Speakers Federation, the International Coach Federation and author of: “Reaching Beyond Excellence.” Jim’s clients include: Blue Cross/Blue Shield, United Way, American Coal Council, United States Department of Justice, Lignite Energy Council, American Red Cross, US Foodservice, Richfield Hospitality, Colonial Insurance, Premier West Bank, Manor Care Health Care Corporation, Genesis HealthCare Corporation, American Bankers Association, Press-Ganey Corporation, Citizens Bank, NuVox Communications, SCANA Corporation, Owens-Corning, Dan Vos Construction Company and Reed Business Publications of Canada.

	Jamie McKibbin Station Manager/WKHM-AM/FM, WIBM-AM (Jackson) Jamie McKibbin is the Station Manager for WKHM-AM/FM & WIBM-AM in Jackson, MI. When not on the air hosting “The Big Dog in the Morning” show, or running the Operation of the radio station group, he is coming up with creative ways to make money for the group of stations. Chili Cookoffs, Bridal Shows, Travel Hotspots, Outdoor Expo’s and more are a few ideas he has turned into dollars at Jackson Radio Works.

	Keith L. Pelletier Director, Engineering - Dielectric Communications Keith Pelletier joined Dielectric Communications in 1997 after receiving his BSEET from the University of Maine, Orono. Over the last 12 years, he has been involved in the engineering of television, radio antenna systems and broadcast components. He was involved in the development and design of Dielectric’s patented digiTLine® transmission line and HDR Series of interleaved antennas. His recent focus on FM Isolation in IBOC systems has yielded significant results allowing broadcasters sound engineered solutions for implementing IBOC.

	Rick Pluta Managing Editor & State Bureau Chief - Michigan Public Radio Network In 1996, Rick Pluta took over state Capitol reporting and managing editor responsibilities for the Michigan Public Radio Network. Pluta had been covering state politicsand the Michigan Capitol for more than a dozen years. A lifelong listener of public radio, Pluta spent most of his career in print journalism before joining MPRN. He began his reporting career in Elizabeth, N.J., for The Daily Journal and the United Press International (UPI) Detroit bureau. At the time, UPI was the wire service for National Public Radio and Pluta's voice was first heard on public radio airwaves covering plane crashes, hostage standoffs and political campaigns. UPI moved Pluta to Lansing and the Michigan Capitol beat in 1987. After eight years with UPI, he moved to The (Pontiac, Mich.) Oakland Press, reporting and writing a weekly column on state government. During this time, he continued his on-air presence handling statehouse duties for Detroit's WJR-AM radio station. His work has appeared on "All Things Considered," "Morning Edition," "Marketplace," and the radio documentary series "Soundprint." In 1997, a piece of his on skydiving was honored with a first place award by the Public Radio News Directors Association. Pluta is a frequent panelist on Michigan Public Television's weekly state government news program,"Off The Record," moderated by senior capitol correspondent Tim Skubick. Pluta continues to write, and his byline has appeared in such publications as The Chicago Tribune, The Toledo Blade, The Detroit Legal News, and the on-line news service, StateNet.

	Matt Schuster MetroTV, Louisville, KY Matt Schuster has been in the field of community media for over 13 years. Matt manages Louisville Metro Government’s national award-winning government access channel MetroTV. Previously, Matt was the Cable TV Coordinator / Station Manager for Lake County, IL, and Meridian Township, MI. All three channels received multiple national awards from NATOA and in the ACM Hometown Video Festival, including Overall Excellence in Government Programming. Matt is the former chair and currently serves on the National Board for the Alliance for Community Media Matt also serves on the ACM Central States Region Board, and the Multi-Media Programming Committee for NATOA. Matt received his Master of Arts in Telecommunications from Michigan State University.

	Kevin Seguin-Scollin Director of Placement - Specs Howard School of Broadcast Arts Kevin has a Bachelor of Arts, Telecommunications from Michigan State University. His past experience includes Music Director/On-Air personality for WWWW- FM, Detroit; Afternoon Drive and “Love Songs” host on WOMC, Part-time Announcer, WYCD-FM, Star-97 and Magic 105.1; Midwest Regional Promotions Director, Imprint Records; Account Executive, WITL-FM and Metro Times Newspaper. Nearly 30 years of freelance and voice-over experience.

	Jolynn Schneider On-Air Sport Broadcasting Talent Jolynn Schneider is a TV and radio sports announcer. She has worked as on-air talent since 1986, covering basketball, volleyball, competitive cheer, pom pon, softball, soccer, baseball & football. She has worked many sports venues in the U.S.A. & Europe, including Michigan's own Tiger Stadium, Comerica Park, & Ford Field. She is an Emmy winner with Fox Sports Network. She is a former pro basketball player, team captain of the USA Today's #1 ranked Iowa Hawkeyes, the Detroit Free Press Amateur Athlete of the Year, and is featured in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.

	Gene Shanahan WLNS-TV Gene Shanahan graduated from Hope College in 1980 with a BA in Communications. He begain his career in newspapers at the Holland Sentinal; later moved to the cable television industry, doing installation and production for Continental Cablevision and Colony Interconnects. Gene has 23 years Broadcasting experience – working in Creative Services Production and Management at WLNS in Lansing. Since 1989, Gene has been adjunct faculty member at Lansing Community College in Digital Media, Audio and Cinema, (formerly Media Technology).

	David Silverman Davis Wright Tremaine, LLP David Silverman has been a partner in the Washington DC office of the national law firm, Davis Wright Tremaine, LLP since January 2007, following a merger with his former firm, Cole, Raywid & Braverman. David joined Cole, Raywid out of law school in 1980 and became a partner in 1987. David's practice focuses on broadcast, entertainment and intellectual property law, representing clients before the FCC, U.S. Trademark Office and Copyright Office. His broadcast practice has a special emphasis in the areas of political broadcasting, ownership, licensing, contests/lotteries, indecency and transactional issues. David has served as an expert witness on Internet music licensing issues and was involved in a US/Canadian border broadcasting dispute before the Office of US Trade Representative. David is a member of the District of Columbia bar, the American Bar Association, the Federal Communications Bar Association and the National Association of Broadcasters, among others. He has a B.A. degree from New College in Sarasota, Florida, as well as an M.A. in Communications and J.D., both from Northwestern University in his beloved home town, Chicago.

	Richard Strickland RF Safety Solutions Richard Strickland founded RF Safety Solutions in 2002 after 10 years as Director of Business Development for Narda Safety Test Solutions, the world’s leading supplier of RF safety measurement and monitoring products. As director of the RF safety business at Narda, Richard determined which products were developed and their performance characteristics. He frequently functioned as program manager, as he did with the Nardalert XT RF personal monitor, deciding on every aspect of that unit’s features and design. He initiated the development of RF radiation training courses at Narda and has since conducted courses ranging from basic employee awareness seminars to in-depth application specific courses. Audiences have included environmental health and safety professionals, engineers, technicians, attorneys, communications industry professional consulting engineers (PEs), and senior managers of major corporations, government organizations, and professional groups. Richard has taught more than 200 public and private seminars on RF radiation safety.

	Will Tieman Will Tieman, in his 4th decade of broadcasting college football and basketball games. Within the state of Michigan he is most recognized as the voice for Coach Tom Izzo’s Michigan State Spartan basketball team. In addition to his broadcast work with MSU, Tieman has served as the voice of Miami University, the Big Ten Basketball Game of the Week and was lead announcer for Coach Eddie Robinson’s Grambling State University Tigers national radio network. National network football bowl assignments have included The Citrus Bowl, The Motor City Bowl (now Little Caesars Pizza Bowl), the International Bowl and the Blue-Gray Game. He has anchored various television assignments and for 15 seasons in the month of May, Tieman provided national radio coverage from The Indianapolis Motor Speedway. During the course of year over 250 radio stations around the nation air broadcasts he anchors. For the past two years, Tieman and his crew received the Michigan Association of Broadcaster’s “Best Network Play-By-Play” Award. The honors were for the 2007 Motor City Bowl, and the next season for the Michigan State vs University of Texas basketball game. Tieman is currently the President of the Detroit Sports Broadcasters Association.

	Al Tompkins Poynter Institute Al Tompkins is The Poynter Institute’s Group Leader for Broadcasting and Online. More than 20,000 people a day read his online journalism story idea column “Al's Morning Meeting” on Poynter.org. Tompkins is the author of the new book Aim For The Heart: A Guide for TV Producers and Reporters, which is being used by more than 70 universities as their main broadcast writing textbook. He co-authored three editions of the Radio and Television News Directors Foundation’s “Newsroom Ethics” workbook. Al joined Poynter's faculty from his job as news director at WSMV-TV in Nashville, Tenn. For 24 years, he worked as a photojournalist, reporter, producer, anchor, assistant news director, special projects/investigations director, documentary producer, and news director. His hour-long documentary, “Saving Stefani”, was featured as a special Dateline NBC and was awarded the 1999 Clarion Award. The ten-year documentary project tells the story of a young girl that Al and a medical team found dying in a Guatemala hospital. Al has trained more than 9,000 local television news producers, reporters, photojournalists and managers in his One-Day Storytelling Workshops in 37 states. During his two and a half decades as a journalist, Al has won The National Emmy, The Peabody Award (group award), the Japan Prize, The American Bar Association’s Silver Gavel for Court Reporting, seven National Headliner Awards, two Iris Awards and the Robert F. Kennedy Award for international reporting. Al joined Poynter in 1998 after 25 years as a journalist, including serving as a reporter, investigative reporter, Director of Special Projects and Investigations and then was appointed News Director, WSMV Nashville. Under his direction, WSMV was Nashville's leading news station. To read an excerpt go to http://www.aimfortheheart.com

	Lucy Ann Visovatti Radio and TV personality Lucy Ann Visovatti (also known professionally as Lucy Ann Lance) grew up in Ann Arbor and is a graduate of the University of Michigan. She serves as the assistant manager of the City of Ann Arbor's Community Television Network, where she has worked for 25 years. CTN operates four cable access channels for the City of Ann Arbor, and is one of the oldest community media centers in the country. Lucy Ann is also co-owner of Lance & Erskine Communications, which produces the “The Lucy Ann Lance Show” broadcast Saturdays from 9 AM-12 PM on WLBY 1290 AM, as well as the “Lucy Ann Lance Business Insider” weekdays from 9 AM-12 PM on WLBY 1290 AM. Both shows are live streamed and later podcast at www.lucyannlance.com. During football Saturdays, Lucy Ann also co-hosts the Michigan Football Tailgate Party on the syndicated Michigan Football Network produced by Michigan Sports Marketing & IMG (flagship station WOMC 104.3 FM, Detroit.). Lucy Ann has helped raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for local charities as a volunteer emcee for many events. She recently was honored as “Woman of the Year” by the United Way of Washtenaw’s Women’s Initiative. She is also the recipient of Business Review’s “Most Influential Women” Award, and was the first recipient of the Miss America Women of Achievement Award from the Miss Washtenaw Scholarship Program. An proficient multi-tasker, you’ll often find Lucy Ann simultaneously conducting interviews, tweeting, and turning others on to social media platforms. Follow her at www.Twitter.com/LucyAnnLance and friend her at www.Facebook.com/LucyAnnLance. Follow CTN at www.Twitter.com/CTNAnnArbor and Fan CTN at www.Facebook.com/CTNAnnArbor.

	Gary Williams Chief Engineer - WLAJ-TV From starting in television as a vacation relief engineer back in the late 60’s at WWJ-TV, to Chief Engineer for stations affiliated with NBC, ABC, Fox, UPN, and CW, Williams has broad experience in broadcasting. While Chief Engineer at MVP Communications, Williams oversaw PAL and NTSC presentations in both the US and Europe. Williams is now dealing with inherent delays and monitoring issues in a hubbed broadcast operation. Williams graduated from Michigan Technological University and is SBE certified as a Senior Broadcast Engineer.

	Fred Wszolek Fred works with clients to define the strategies and messages that will ensure victory. He brings more than two decades of political, creative and issue management experience to his work. From campaign manager in the field to media producer in the studio, Fred has been involved in winning political and issue campaigns since 1984. Fred is formerly a partner in a Virginia-based national political consulting firm where he provided services to key congressional campaigns in four states. Previously Fred was Director of the Michigan Senate Majority Communications Office. He also worked for a Michigan based PR and political advertising firm, working on issues like workers compensation and auto insurance reform, tax cut proposals and candidate campaigns. Fred is an innovator in politics. Working with a team of nationally recognized pollsters, Fred helped develop MicroTargeting, the most sophisticated targeting and market segmentation tools available to Republican campaigns in America. In 2002, Campaigns & Elections magazine named Fred one of the Rising Stars of Politics. Fred’s broadcast advertising work for candidates and ballot proposals has been recognized with numerous Pollie, Telly and Communicator Awards.

	Michele Yamazaki VP of Marketing & Web Development Czarina - Toolfarm.com Michele Yamazaki is the VP of Marketing & Web Development Czarina for Toolfarm.com, a value added reseller of plug-ins and software. At Toolfarm, she juggles many roles, including developing content and training and answering support questions. She has demoed plug-ins for Apple, Boris FX, Red Giant, Digieffects and other companies at multiple trade shows, conferences and user groups. She is president-elect of MCA-I and formerly co-chaired the West Michigan Animation & Effects User Group, which she launched with Matt Schirado in 2002. Michele was previously a visual effects/motion graphics artist at Postworks and a contributing author of ‘After Effects @ Work’, published by Focal Press in 2006. She just wrapped up a four year stint teaching After Effects at Kendall College of Art and Design.


More 2010 Speaker Information Coming!