Class Notes

In August 2018, Robin Johnson (Jour; MJour’05) became director of the University of Idaho’s School of Journalism and Mass Media. Before that, he was an associate professor in Sam Houston State University’s Department of Communication. Robin’s research focuses on gender, technology, labor and digital media. In addition to his teaching and research roles, he serves as the department’s graduate program coordinator and multiplatform journalism track coordinator.

Ian Cohen (Jour) joined PayPal in November 2018 as the head of global content creation and innovation. He previously was the global executive producer and president of content creation and innovation at Weber Shandwick. Ian also merges his background as an Emmy-winning daytime TV producer. He lives near Boston with his wife, Lauren, and three children—who all know the CU fight song!

Liz Haltiwanger (Jour) has been named the general manager of KKTV 11 News in Colorado Springs. She started at the station in 2003 as the producer and led the news department for 10 years. Liz is a board member of the Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition and is the president of the Colorado Springs Press Association. 

Peabody award-winning investigative reporter Marshall Zelinger (Jour) recently celebrated his first day on the air on the 9News program Next with Kyle Clark. Prior to that, he spent seven years at Denver7.

Jake Loskutoff (Comm) was recently nominated for three Emmy Awards for his work with the Los Angeles Angels, Anaheim Ducks and Los Angeles Kings. He continues to grow his production company, LIFEinaVAN Studios, and just completed his first marathon.

Effie Seibold (MJour; Law’07) is the training director for the Colorado State Public Defender’s Office and was an adjunct professor at Colorado Law. She lives in Boulder with her husband and their two incredibly active little boys.

Nicholas Kant (Jour, Law’06) is deputy attorney general for New Jersey and serves as assistant chief of the banking and insurance section. In his free time, he swims and runs and has completed six marathons. Nicholas lives in Princeton, New Jersey.

Ian Weintraub (Comm) is vice president of marketing for Limelight Media, a Los Angeles-based entertainment marketing firm. He also heads the company’s New York office. Ian has worked with A-list talent such as Sylvester Stallone and developed successful engagement programs for Samsung, TaylorMade-Adidas, Motorola and Lexus.

Alicia Wallace (Jour) recently completed a Knight-Bagehot Fellowship in economics and business journalism at Columbia University. Before that she was the national marijuana policy and business reporter for The Denver Post. She will be staying in New York City and joining CNN Business as a senior writer covering cannabusiness. 

Jake Loskutoff (Comm) is an award-winning videographer, editor and producer based in the greater Los Angeles area. In addition to myriad collaborations with studios and media groups, he works with Fox Sports West, where he won an Emmy in 2014 for multi-camera videography.

Abby Chin (Jour) works for NBC Sports Boston as the Celtics courtside reporter, a role she has held since 2013. In 2018, she was part of NBC’s coverage team for the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, Korea. Abby lives near Boston with her husband, Mike Schmidt, daughter, Mabel, and son, Silas. 

Alex Stone (Jour) us a national correspondent for ABC News Radio who is based in Los Angeles, California. He has reported on many high-profile events, including Hurricane Katrina, the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics, the Carr Fire in California and memorial services for Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. 

Adam Cole (Jour) is serving as the public affairs office for the U.S. Navy's Amphibious Force, 7th Fleet in Okinawa, Japan. Cole oversees social media strategy, visual information production, and media operations for 13 units that fall under this military command. He deployed with the Bonhomme Richard Expeditionary Strike Group this past fall, conducting a bilateral exercise with the Philippines and making port calls to Singapore and Hong Kong - overseeing social media/media output throughout the deployment. He continues to proudly serve.

In April 2022, Robert Barba (Jour) joined the U.S. news desk of The Wall Street Journal as a news editor. Joining the WSJ in 2018, Barba was also part of a team named as a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize in explanatory reporting for a package on the 100-year anniversary of the Tulsa Race Massacre.

Zach Kouwe (Jour) just celebrated his 11th anniversary at Dukas Linden Public Relations, one of the largest independent financial communication firms in the industry. His work in PR came after more than a decade as a financial journalist, including time as a staff reporter for The New York Times.

While at CU, Grant McGilvray (Jour) was a member of the BuffVision family. After college, he won two technical achievement Emmy Awards while at Root Sports Rocky Mountain. He’s now creating next-generation broadcast and distribution ecosystems as an engineering architect for NBCUniversal while living in Denver with his wife, Jessica (Psych), and two sons.

Brent McHenry (Comm, Bus) is a director and producer based in Los Angeles. Since earning his MFA in cinematic arts at USC, Brent has helped produce numerous commercials, PSAs, music videos, and short and feature-length films. His most recent production, 40 Minutes Over Maui, was an official selection of the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival and over 40 other national and international film festivals. Most recently, he directed an ad campaign and brand anthem video for the clothing company UNI/FORM, founded by his longtime friend and fellow Buff Pat Allen (Comm’05).

Rachael (Shapiro) Lipton (MJour) is the copy chief of features and entertainment at the New York Post, where she has worked since 2004. Rachael edits famous gossip columnist Cindy Adams and contributes celebrity items to Page Six. She's hired a staff of copy editors and reports directly to the managing editors.

Dan Hyatt (Jour) hosted and produced a number of radio shows in Denver and St. Louis between 2004 and 2008 before being hired as the production manager and associate director for Fox Sports Midwest’s broadcast
of St. Louis Cardinals games in 2007. In addition to his work with the Cardinals, he is a researcher and statistician for many other MLB and NBA broadcasts, including the Colorado Rockies, Denver Nuggets and Indiana Pacers. He is based in Denver.

Patrick Gleason (Comm) is the Baltimore Ravens’ vice president of public relations. He has spent 15 seasons with the organization, including its 2012 Super Bowl- winning campaign. Patrick has also assisted with NFL communications at multiple Super Bowls and served as the AFC’s PR director at five Pro Bowls. He began his career as a student assistant in CU’s Sports Information Department.