Our Team

Meet Our Team

CNS First Hundred Days Watch is the work of twelve students at the Philip Merrill College of Journalism at the University of Maryland. They are doing this as a capstone project as they come to the end of their school years. They are:

ILANA BERNSTEIN

Ilana Bernstein is a junior pursuing a double degree in broadcast journalism and theatre at the University of Maryland, College Park. Ilana has interned for Girls’ Life Magazine and has had numerous articles published online. She was featured in the magazine. Ilana is a staff reporter for The Writer’s Bloc, an online publication that focuses on arts, culture and politics. Ilana has a passion for travel and community service and has worked with inmates at a prison in Connecticut, visited Estonia and Latvia, and visited with people previously on death row in New Orleans. Ilana can be reached at: ilanab@terpmail.umd.edu

MAGGIE GOTTLIEB

Maggie Gottlieb is a senior broadcast journalism major and public policy minor from southern Maryland. Her interest in politics began when the 2016 campaign season did, holding internships with NBC’s “Meet the Press” and Cox Media Group’s Capitol Hill bureau, among others. She covered the Democratic National Convention and went to London for election week for overseas reaction. She plans to work in television news production when she graduates this coming May. In her free time, Maggie enjoys Twitter-stalking politicians and playing with her two dogs, Taz and Ringo. She can be reached at maggiecg95@gmail.com or via Twitter @gottmags.

MARISA HABER

Marisa Haber is a senior broadcast journalism major and creative writing minor from Wellesley, Massachusetts. She contributes to a lifestyle column for the Boston Herald and writes for multiple on-campus publications. In summer 2015, Marisa took part in the Salzburg Academy on Media and Global Change with 75 other participants selected from around the world. In her free time, Marisa enjoys fitness and keeping up with the beauty/fashion industry and hopes to start her career writing for a lifestyle magazine.

JACQUELINE HYMAN

Jacqueline Hyman is a junior multi-platform journalism and English double major at the University of Maryland. She is the editor-in-chief of the Mitzpeh, the independent student-run publication catering to the campus Jewish community. This past summer, she was an intern at Washington Gardener Magazine. Previously, she was the opinion editor for Mitzpeh for two years and was a copy editor at both Unwind and the Writer’s Bloc on campus. Jacqueline hopes to become a professional editor after she graduates. She can be contacted at jbhyman0508@gmail.com or via Twitter @jacqbh58.

MICHAELA JOHNSON

Michaela Johnson is junior broadcast journalism and government and politics double major with an interest in homeland security policy. Michaela is also interested in sports reporting, and has previously interned for CSN Mid-Atlantic and the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs. She is currently a communications fellow with the Partnership for Public Service, a nonpartisan nonprofit organization that works towards an efficient, effective and engaged federal government. After graduation, Michaela would like to pursue a career in sports or political reporting. She can be reached at mjohns55@terpmail.umd.edu or on Twitter @mjohnson262.

JON MEDNICK

Jon Mednick is a senior broadcast journalism and marketing double major from Reisterstown, Maryland. He is currently a video editor at CBS affiliate WUSA9 in Washington, D.C. where he has been working for almost two years. Jon has worked with Pulsefeedz, the Left Bench, Capital News Service and WMUC Sports in his four years at Maryland. After he graduates in May, Jon would like continue pursuing a career in sports broadcasting. He can be reached at @J_Mednick on Twitter.

KYLE MOREL

Kyle Morel is a senior multi-platform journalism major at the University of Maryland. He is currently interning for The Daily Caller, a political online publication in Washington, D.C. Previously, he was a sportswriter for the on-campus website Pulsefeedz and has also freelanced for The Diamondback, Stories Beneath the Shell and Unwind Magazine. In the future, he would like to pursue a career as a writer, preferably in the sports industry.

SHELBY SMITH

Shelby Smith is a senior double major in Multi-platform Journalism and Film Studies at the University of Maryland. She was a sports copy editor for Unwind Magazine and has interned for Washington Gardener Magazine. She has studied how to capture, edit and upload pictures, videos and audio at College Park. Smith has reported on several beats, including politics, courts and city council meetings. She hopes to graduate this Spring, start her own entertainment podcast and to find a job as a public relations person in the film industry.

MICHAEL STERN

Michael Stern is a senior broadcast journalism major from Plainsboro, New Jersey. He is the co-founder of The Left Bench, the co-founder of Beltway Bulletin, the sports director of WMUC Sports and is a production crew chief at Capital News Service. Michael has also reported and producer for Capital News Service through his four years at Maryland. Michael has interned at USA Today, NBC News Channel and WTOP, and worked at the inauguration for CBS. His passion for political journalism started in fourth grade when he started a school newspaper and wrote his first article on whether or not Hillary Clinton would run for President in 2008.

ALEXANDRA THERIOT

Alex Theriot is a senior multi-platform journalism major, minoring in global terrorism studies. Previously, Alex served as staff writer, style editor and webmaster for Unwind Magazine, the campus arts and entertainment publication. Alex has held communications internships at the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Department of Homeland Security. She completed her journalism internship at CNN. Upon graduation, Alex hopes to attend graduate school in the Washington, D.C. area, continuing to pursue a career in national security.

SAMANTHA WALDENBERG

Samantha Waldenberg is a junior broadcast journalism major and public leadership minor at the University of Maryland, College Park. She is a New Jersey native, with a love of politics, sports, and storytelling. She is the president of the University of Maryland Society of Professional Journalists chapter, and has previously interned with NBC Washington and Monumental Sports and Entertainment. She can be reached via email at samanthawaldenberg@gmail.com

JACOB WEINBERGER

Jacob Weinberger is a sophomore broadcast journalism and government and politics double major at the University of Maryland, College Park. Jacob has previously written for multiple sports websites such as Capitals Outsider, the Left Bench, and the Maryland Baseball Network. He has also co-hosted a radio talk show at WMUC Sports. Jacob discovered his passion for politics while volunteering for Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign. He would like to continue to work in politics following his graduation.