University of Nebraska – Lincoln College of Journalism and Mass Communications alumnus Bob Cullinan visited University of Nebraska–Lincoln last week as the CoJMC’s 2015 Alumni Master to share his experiences and advice with students.
A life-long storyteller, the 1977 graduate built a more than 40-year career as a writer, reporter, photographer, editor, producer, on-air anchor and consultant in nearly every facet of the communications business.
“It was the professors at this college who gave me the skills I needed to be successful in my career,” he said. “My training at my first job was, ‘here’s the typewriter and here’s the studio, now go to work.’ It was the training I got at the J School that prepared me.”
Cullinan began his career in sports journalism as a reporter and anchor in Omaha and Denver. From there he went on to become a sports director for a TV station in Monterey, California, and then media director for Primetime Publicity and Media. In the early 1990s, he was a freelance motorsports announcer for a variety of networks, including ESPN, NBC and SpeedVision.
Since then he has served as a media and marketing consultant for clients such as Wind River Systems, Hewlett-Packard and Microsoft, but he continued his passion for cycling as a cycling columnist for Marin Independent Journal.
While at University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Cullinan participated in Alumni Masters Week activities with the Nebraska Alumni Association, including lunch with the Scarlet Guard and the Masters Week Medallion Dinner. He also spent a lot of his time at the CoJMC speaking to classes and connecting with students.
“I tell students that it’s here that you need to learn everything you can, but it’s essential you get an internship,” Cullinan said. “Not only will it be where employers see if you’ll make a good employee, but it’s where you’ll find out if you want to work in that field.”
While Cullinan has had a full career on all sides of the media, he says he’s now “mostly retired,” but he still gets up every day at 5 a.m. with a curiosity for what the day will bring that he says a journalist never loses.
