At this summer’s NASNA conference, NASNA will recognize the outstanding work of street papers across North America. This year we received 61 submissions in 6 categories. Below are biographies for our 9 judges. Awards will be announced July 31 at an event at the Experimental Station in Chicago.
Thank you to our awards sponsor this year the McCormick Foundation.
Joe Cappo
Joe Cappo is an award-winning journalist and longtime observer of the marketing business, formerly worked at Crain Communications Inc., where he held several important posts over a 25-year career. He most recently was senior vice president-international and licensing for the company.
A native of Chicago, he attended DePaul University where he majored in philosophy and economics. He joined Crain Communications in 1978 as columnist for the then newly launched Crain’s Chicago Business. In the intervening years, he served as publisher of Crain’s Chicago Business, publisher of Advertising Age, and group publisher over seven journals. Before joining Crain, Mr. Cappo worked at the Chicago Daily News, covering crime, politics and general assignments for fifteen years. Since leaving Crain, he has joined the adjunct faculty of DePaul University, teaching graduate courses in journalism and advertising in the College of Communication.
As a journalist, Mr. Cappo interviewed a broad range of personalities over his career including: Richard M. Nixon, Hubert H. Humphrey, Yogi Berra, Colonel Harland Sanders, Gloria Steinem, F. Lee Bailey, Johnny Carson, Leo Burnett, David Ogilvy and many others.
Stephanie Zimmermann
Stephanie Zimmermann writes the three-times-weekly consumer column, “The Fixer,” and covers consumer issues for the Chicago Sun-Times. Having previously worked as a journalist in such far-flung locales as Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Nairobi, Kenya, Stephanie is equally adept at investigating shady companies and recommending a good place for roasted goat. Stephanie spent a bucolic childhood in Wisconsin, but for most of the last 23 years has called Chicago home. She holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in journalism from Northwestern University and has won a number of local, state and national reporting awards.
Monique Caradine
Monique Caradine is a 15 year media professional. She has worked as a producer and on-air personality for several nationally recognized radio and TV talk shows. Most notably, Monique worked at WVON radio, where she hosted Mo in the Midday, an award winning talk show which aired for 6 years. Currently, Monique is the host of Perspective, a weekly television program which airs on FOX affiliate WPWR My50 Chicago. Monique is also the owner of Momentum Media Group, which independently produces TV & radio programs for niche audiences. A native of Chicago’s South Side, Monique is a long time advocate for women and girls.
Rachel Davis Mersey
Rachel Davis Mersey earned her Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication in 2007. She joined the Medill faculty in 2008 as an assistant professor of journalism with a specialization in audience understanding. The consistent focus of her work is on the craft of journalism. She is intrigued, in particular, by journalism’s impact on sense of community, civic participation, and social capital. Before coming to Medill, Rachel was on the faculty at the University of Minnesota’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication. She also worked at The Arizona Republic in Phoenix where she was part of the news team that launched the newspaper’s weekly tabloid targeting women 18 to 34. In addition, Rachel worked across platforms with azcentral.com and the local NBC-affiliate.
Bob Goldsborough
Bob Goldsborough is a retired editor, having worked 21 years with the Chicago Tribune, the last seven years as editor of its Sunday Magazine, and 23 years with the trade publication Advertising Age. He is also a mystery writer authoring seven Nero Wolfe mysteries continuing the adventures of the famous detective created by Rex Stout. Currently, he is writing the Snap Malek Chicago historical mysteries, published by Echelon Press.
John Slania
John Slania is the director of the Journalism Program at Loyola University Chicago. He was a reporter and editor at the Daily Herald, Milwaukee Journal and Chicago Tribune. He teaches Reporting & Writing, Writing for the Web, Sports Journalism, and Writing for Business and Trade Publications, among other courses, as well as overseeing the annual publication of Mosaic, a student-produced social justice magazine. He also supervises Loyola Student Dispatch, a breaking news website.
Slania has an MSJ from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. A Loyola alumnus, he earned his BS with a double major in Communication and English. Slania continues to practice journalism, and is a regular contributor to Crain’s Chicago Business, The Business Ledger, Book Page and Time Out Chicago.
Mark Hallett
Mark Hallett is a senior program officer in the journalism program of the McCormick Foundation. Mark joined the foundation in May 1995, and coordinates grantmaking in a number of areas, including youth journalism, free press in the U.S. and Latin America, diversity in journalism, and First Amendment initiatives. He and his wife, Carmen Vidal-Hallett, were awarded a grant from the Graham Foundation to research and do presentations around the innovative environmental policies of the city of Curitiba, Brazil. The two live in Chicago with their son, Gabriel Jose, and daughter, Emilia Maria.
Norma Green
Norma Green holds a Ph.D. in Mass Media from Michigan State University and is currently the Director of the Journalism Graduate Program at Columbia University in Chicago. She has 25 years of print media experience in newspapers, magazines and book publishing. Norma has been involved with NASNA since its inception and was on the original steering committee and host committee for the summit in Chicago in 1996 which led to the formation of NASNA. She has also attended every NASNA conference except for one.
Laura Thompson Osuri
Laura Thompson Osuri co-founded Street Sense in 2003, and was the Executive Director from November 2005 – December 2009. Prior to starting Street Sense, she was a reporter for American Banker, a financial daily for five years. Laura graduated with a BS degree in Print Journalism from American University in 1998. She served on the board of NASNA for 5 years. Today Laura is a freelance journalist living in the Washington DC area with her husband and son.
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