There’s no question that the world of journalism has changed. Circulation for print publications is down; newsrooms are understaffed; blogs have become a source of news. Yet that hasn’t discouraged UNH students from majoring in journalism or communication and going on to land great jobs and not-so-recent grads from attaining seasoned-pro status. Check out some of the interesting places these wordsmiths are working.
Justin Doubleday '13
Major: English/journalism
Reporter, Inside Defense, an online news service covering defense and aerospace, Washington, D.C.
Chad Graff '12
Major: English/journalism and communication
Sports writer, Twin Cities Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minnesota
Nick Stoico '15
Major: English/journalism and political science
Sportswriter/editor, Concord Monitor, Concord, New Hampshire
Best story covered so far:
“Since moving to sports, the best story I've covered is probably the Division II high school boys hockey championship in March. Bow beat undefeated Keene for the title after losing to Keene twice during the regular season. It may not seem like a huge story outside of our coverage area, but it was pretty significant locally.”
Best thing about being a journalist:
“I think being a news reporter is the only job out there where you can 'stick it to the man' every day. Holding public institutions and the officials in charge of them accountable is the most important role of the press in our democracy. As for a sportswriter, it's simply a combination of two things I've always cared about deeply: sports and writing. I understand the emotions fans have while following their favorite teams. Being in the middle of it all is fun, and it's a great environment to practice writing and improve as a storyteller."
Cameron Johnson '15
Major: Journalism
Photographer, RR Auction, Amherst, New Hampshire
Kate Gardner '14
Major: English/journalism
Reporter, The Forecaster, Portland, Maine
Dana Jennings '80
Major: English
Culture editor, The New York Times
Katie Schulz '16
Major: Journalism, art minor
Digital producer, NH1 News, Concord, New Hampshire
Best story covered so far:
“I've done many stories, but I find my favorites to be the ones I'm making extra calls on, putting extra hours in and getting more than just the necessary components. My favorite stories come from the ones that I put my heart and soul into. As a young journalist, my best story is yet to come, and I'm excited for what that topic may be.”
Best thing about being a journalist:
“Getting to learn a little bit about everything. As a journalist, you don't have to choose a particular field for the rest of your life. Being able to invest yourself in an area of study to learn all you can to write a story is very rewarding.”
Brianna Hand '13
Major: English/journalism
Editorial manager, Skyword Inc., a content-marketing services company, Boston, Massachusetts.
Jackie MacMullan '82
Major: Journalism
Sportswriter, ESPN; biographer
Hadley Barndollar '16
Reporter, Seacoast Media Group, Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Thomas Gounley '12
Major: English/journalism and environmental conservation studies
Reporter, Springfield News-Leader, Springfield, Missouri
Mark Daniels '07
Major: English/journalism
Sports reporter, Providence Journal, Providence, Rhode Island
Zack Cox '12
Major: Communication, sports studies minor
Sports writer, NESN.com
Best story covered so far:
“The best story I have covered has to be Super Bowl LI. This was my first season as a Patriots beat writer for NESN.com (after stints covering the Bruins, Celtics and Red Sox), and for it to culminate in one of the greatest NFL games of all time was something I never could have imagined experiencing in my professional life. Covering the Patriots unfortunately means covering a whole slew of off-the-field controversies (Deflategate, the team’s connection to Donald Trump, etc.), as well, which made getting to witness and write about that incredible comeback and all the emotion surrounding it even more rewarding.”
Best thing about being a journalist:
“It’s hard to pick out a single best thing about being a journalist. The opportunities and access it affords me obviously are incredible. I love getting that inside look at all the players, teams and personalities that you really can’t get in any other profession, then being able to share it with others through my writing. Plus, my job description basically is to watch sports, write about them and talk about them. Not going to lie, it’s a pretty sweet deal.”
John Wayne Ferguson '09
Major: English/journalism
Reporter, Galveston County Daily News, Galveston, Texas
Keeley Smith '10
Major: English/journalism
Executive editor, Long Beach Post, Long Beach, California
Lisa Miller '80
Major: English
Director, UNH journalism program; associate professor of English
Josh Sullivan '15
Major: English/journalism
Crime reporter, Killeen Daily Herald, Killeen, Texas
Best story covered so far:
“This time last year, I wrote a story about a woman named Karen Vidoli, who ran the Boston Marathon and raised money for cancer research. Both of her parents and her sister died of cancer, and as she was training for a marathon, she was diagnosed as well. She beat it, and then went on to run four marathons, including Boston twice, all while raising thousands of dollars. She opened up to me about her crippling fear of the disease and her fear that she'd one day be diagnosed again. That story meant a lot to me because she trusted me with something extremely personal. I knew I had to do it justice on paper."
Best thing about being a journalist:
"Definitely the pay and the great hours. Just kidding. I never have a boring day at work. If it's a boring day, it means I'm not doing my job well enough. Even on slow news days, there is always data to look at or one specific area to explore. Policies are always changing; people are always selling drugs; and crimes are always happening. If they aren't being caught, then it's because of something the police aren’t doing, and there's another story in itself. “
Max Sullivan '14
Major: English/journalism
Reporter, Seacoast Media Group, Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Meg Heckman '01
Major: English, business minor
Lecturer, UNH English department, Boston Globe contributor
Noses for News
Many of these UNH alumni journalists are also alumni of the UNH student newspaper, The New Hampshire. Find out more about these and other alumni in The New Hampshire’s TNH Alumni Series.
Megan Specia '09
Major: Journalism/communication
Video journalist, The New York Times
Marcus Weisgerber '04
Major: English/journalism
Global business reporter, Defense One, which provides news and analysis on U.S. defense and national security, Washington, D.C.
Susan Doucet '14
Major: English/Journalism and international affairs
Associate editor, CommunityCo, a brand-building organization for invite-only professional communities, Boston, Massachusetts
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Written By:
Jody Record ’95 | Communications and Public Affairs | jody.record@unh.edu
