PULLMAN, Wash. – The Edward R. Murrow College of Communication will induct four distinguished alumni into the Murrow Hall of Achievement. The distinction recognizes the accomplishments of outstanding college alumni and showcases the diversity of communication fields in which they have distinguished themselves.
Their achievements provide inspiration for Murrow College students and elevate the college, Washington State University and the broader communication industry.
Among the new members are two long-time broadcasters, a television production manager who has worked for every NBC Olympic Games since 2002 and a senior vice president of creative film services for Walt Disney Studios.
The Hall of Achievement Ceremony will kick off this year’s 39th Murrow Symposium, which runs April 2-4 in Pullman and finishes with a Murrow Interview in Seattle.
More about the inductees:
Bertha Lynn (’77 Murrow)
Bertha Lynn, ’77 Communications at Washington State University, is the executive director of the Children’s Diabetes Foundation in Denver. She credits her KOMO broadcasting mentor Marty Camp Wilson, her WSU mentors Hugh Rundell, V.N. Bhatia, Carla Kappler, Elwood Hartman, and alumnus Keith Jackson, as well as her Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority role models Annjennette McFarlin and Felicia Gaskins for empowering her to reach for her goals.
Bertha is one of Denver’s most recognized and honored broadcast journalists, delivering the news to Coloradans for 37 years at KMGH-TV 7 and KUSA-TV 9. She has been involved with countless nonprofits in the community throughout her career. She is a multi- Emmy® Award-winning journalist and has been inducted into the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Heartland Chapter Silver Circle, the Broadcast Professionals of Colorado Hall of Fame, and Denver Press Club Hall of Fame. She has been recognized by McGraw-Hill for Corporate Achievement and the Colorado Association of Black Journalists, which has named its Lifetime Achievement Award for Bertha.
She has dedicated her career to improving the community through her work in the newsroom as well as through her leadership on nonprofit boards. Her overarching philosophy is to do all she can for people in need. Bertha followed her big brother Joe Lynn to WSU and has been cheering for the Cougs since she was 10. She is married to Larry Naves, former Denver District Court judge. They are the parents of three children.
She serves as a trustee for Regis University and is a board member emeritus of Cherry Creek Arts Festival. Bertha was appointed by the Colorado governor to the board of the Scientific and Cultural Facilities District and served two terms. She previously has served as a director on the boards of the Women’s Foundation of Colorado, Catholic Foundation of the Archdiocese of Denver, Denver Art Museum African American Outreach Task Force, The Mayor’s Commission on Art Culture and Film, The Children’s Museum, National Jewish Hospital Women’s Division, Denver Symphony Association, Safehouse for Battered Women, KCFR Public Radio and National Conference of Christians and Jews.
Beth Tuura (’79 Murrow)
Elizabeth (Beth) Tuura earned her bachelor of arts degree from Washington State University in 1979. She is currently a freelance technical manager for CBS Sports and NBC Sports. Previously, Beth worked as a technical director for 25 years; clients included CBS, NBC, ESPN and Turner Sports. Career highlights include earning two National Sports Emmy Awards.
From 2002 through 2014 Beth worked every Olympics for NBC as a technical director. This year Beth traveled to Sochi, Russia, to cover her first Olympics as a technical manager. For the past three seasons Beth has worked for CBS Sports as a technical manager. She covers the NFL on CBS, NCAA Basketball on CBS and golf. Beth is married and lives in Orlando, Florida.
Kerry Brock (’79 Murrow)
Kerry Brock explores time and connectedness in her sculptured paintings, drawings, prints and handmade books. Bold graphics, storytelling and landscape influence her art practice, steeped in personal and professional history. Kerry grew up on a farm in Pasco, Washington, driving crop-harvesting equipment, competing with her sheep and horses in 4-H events and sewing her own clothes. At Washington State University she joined the debate team and discovered broadcast journalism, which led to 20 award-winning years in television news.
She served as anchor/reporter for KOMO TV in Seattle, host of the national PBS program Freedom Speaks and media analyst for CNN, Fox, Time, The Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times. She was also a founding employee of Edificerex.com in New York City.
Kerry shows her work throughout the Northeast and is a member of the Silvermine Guild of Artists, the Westport Arts Center and the Center for Contemporary Printmaking. She resides in Weston, Connecticut, with her husband John Seigenthaler and their son Jack.
John “Ibby” Ibsen (’00 Murrow)
John Ibsen, or “Ibby” as he was known among friends during his days at the Murrow school, is now the senior vice president of creative film services for Walt Disney Studios. Ibsen led the campaign for Marvel’s The Avengers, which set iTunes records twice for most-viewed trailer and posted an opening of more than $200 million. Ibsen has also won the industry’s top award for movie trailers, the Golden Trailer Awards, several times including the action preview for The Dark Knight.
Ibsen has served as creative lead on marketing campaigns for Marvel, Disney Live Action and DreamWorks titles, with work encompassing all AV content from trailers to TV spots. While at Disney, he has worked on tent pole campaigns for Iron Man 3, Lincoln, Thor: The Dark World and Need For Speed.
The secret to his success? “You have to do the unexpected sometimes to build an appetite for a film in an audience,” Ibsen says. “So you show restraint and that makes them want to see more.”
Last year he was honored by Variety as one of “Hollywood’s New Leaders.”
Ibby learned the business from the ground up, working as a P.A., editor and producer on the creative agency side rising to vice president/creative director in 2008. He has worked on and finished campaigns for Paramount’s Star Trek, Captain America: The First Avenger, Nacho Libre and Thor; Warner Bros.’ The Dark Knight, Terminator Salvation, Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows; and Fox’s Rio.
Ibby is currently at the helm on campaigns for Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Guardians of the Galaxy, Into the Woods and Avengers: Age of Ultron. He lives in Glendale, California, with his wife Becky, their two children, Skylar and Warner, and another baby on the way.
Additional information is available online at http://murrow.wsu.edu/alumni-and-friends/hall-of-achievement/index.html.
Contact:
Darin Watkins (Murrow ’84), Director of Communications, The Edward R. Murrow College of Communication, 509-335-4456, darin.watkins@wsu.edu