May 25th Leadership Luncheon: What’s New In News & Media

The Greater Wayzata Area Chamber of Commerce is pleased to invite you to join us for a panel discussion on what is new in the news and media industry. This is the last installment in our five-part Leadership Series – January through May.

New panel facilitator added! Brian McClung, CEO at Park Street PR, will lead this dynamic panel discussion. McClung has spent more than 25 years at the intersection of media, politics, and business as a television news reporter, campaign manager, political spokesperson, communications strategist, and public relations executive. From 2004 to 2010, Brian served Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty as Press Secretary, Director of Communications, and Deputy Chief of Staff. Since then, Brian’s media and PR work has been widely recognized with numerous awards and as a list leader. Brian continues to have strong relationships with reporters around Minnesota and is a regular guest on Twin Cities Public Television’s “Almanac” and KSTP-TV’s “At Issue” – as well as serving as an analyst for KARE-11 including on Election Nights. As a spokesman and commentator, he has been quoted in the Washington Post, USA Today, New York Times, Chicago Tribune, and Miami Herald. Brian has also served as an adjunct professor at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota.

We are thrilled to welcome Suki Dardarian who is the Editor and SVP at the Star Tribune, Jana Shortal who is a News Reporter, Anchor and Host of KARE 11's Breaking the News, Kathy Robideau who is the Market President and Publisher at the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal. We will explore what's changing in the news industry, how are people consuming news now with the advent of so many online sources of information – or misinformation, in some cases, and get a peek into these top news organizations and what lies ahead for them as they bring news to people across our region and state. 

Come find out what drivers are working behind today's news sector and how it impacts your perception of the world around us.

Speaker bios:

Suki Dardarian became the new Editor and Senior Vice President at the Star Tribune in February of 2022 – the second woman to serve as the news organization’s top editor. She leads all aspects of the paper's newsroom, Minnesota’s largest newsgathering and reporting operation, featuring more than 230 full-time journalists who deliver local and national news and features content across all platforms. She isn’t new to the Star Tribune, working as the paper’s senior managing editor and vice president for eight years when she spearheaded the company’s renewed focus on local news and public-service journalism. Before she joined the Star Tribune, she worked at The Seattle Times in a distinguished 14 year career. Despite the Twin Cities’ smaller population compared to other major metros, the paper boasts the third-largest daily print subscriber base in the nation.

Jana Shortal – 19. That’s how many years Shortal has worked as a journalist for KARE 11 news here in Minneapolis since joining the organization in November of 2003. In all of those years she has gone from a general assignment reporter to hosting Breaking The News, weeknights at 6:30. Shortal is also a seven time Emmy winner. Her reason for journalism? Because the truth, still, has to matter. Prior to her time at KARE 11, shortal worked at WDAF-TV in Kansas City, Missouri for three years. She graduated with a Bachelor’s in Journalism from the University of Missouri – Columbia.

Kathy Robideau – Robideau was promoted to Market President and Publisher of the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal in February 2016. She led the Business Journal’s advertising team since 2010. Prior to that, she was the Chief Operating Officer of the Florida-based company, Nurse Staffing. She is a member of the Itasca Project and serves on the boards of the St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce, Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce, and Thielen Foundation. She is the president and founder of the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal’s Women’s Leadership Council. She attended the University of Cincinnati and is a graduate of Capella University.

Members – don't forget to login to your Chamber member profile when you register to receive the discounted member pricing for this program. Nonmembers are welcome, as well!