Terence P. Jeffrey started as editor in chief of CNSNews.com in September 2007. Prior to that, he served for more than a decade as editor of Human Events, where he is now an editor at large. Terry was born in San Francisco and raised in the Bay Area, the seventh of eleven children. Both his parents were doctors of medicine.
Terry earned a bachelors degree in English Literature from Princeton in 1981. In 1984-85, he studied Arabic at the Arabic Language Institute of The American University in Cairo. In 1986-87, he studied in the Masters of Arts in Arab Studies program at Georgetown University, but did not earn a degree. From 1987-91, he was an editorial writer for The Washington Times, which nominated him for the Pulitzer Prize for his investigative editorials about then-House Speaker Jim Wright. In 1992, he served as issues and research director for Pat Buchanan’s first Republican presidential campaign. In 1993-1994, he served as executive director of The American Cause, an educational foundation. In 1995-96, he was national campaign manager for Pat Buchanan’s second Republican presidential campaign. Buchanan that year won the Alaska, Louisiana and Missouri caucuses, placed second in the Iowa caucuses, and won the New Hampshire primary. Terry writes a weekly column for the Creators Syndicate and is a regular guest on CNN’s Situation Room. He and his wife, Julie, have five children and live in the Virginia suburbs outside Washington, D.C.
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Michael joined CNSNews.com in 2007. He has worked as associate editor of Consumers' Research magazine; associate editor of Human Events; editorial page editor of The Lima News; journalism fellow for The Phillips Foundation; editorial writer and national issues reporter for Investor's Business Daily; and editorial director of the Cato Institute. Michael's reporting has been cited/published in the Wall Street Journal, New York Post, Investor's Business Daily, Orange County Register, Washington Times, Insight, National Review, Associated Press, Scripps Howard, and Congressional Quarterly, among other outlets, including the following books: The Vision of the Anointed by Thomas Sowell; From West to East: California and The American Scene by Stephen Schwartz; The Venona Secrets: Exposing Soviet Espionage and America's Traitors by Eric Breindel and Herbert Romerstein; Sacred Secrets: How Soviet Intelligence Operations Changed America by Jerrold and Leona Schecter; and the forthcoming Encyclopedia of Libertarianism. Michael graduated with Special Honors in English (B.A.) from the University of Chicago.
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Patrick covered government and politics in South Africa and the Middle East before joining CNSNews.com in 1999. Since then he has launched foreign bureaus for CNSNews.com in Jerusalem, London and the Pacific Rim. From October 2006 to July 2007, Patrick served as Managing Editor at the organization's world headquarters in Alexandria, Va. Now back in the Pacific Rim, as International Editor he reports on politics, international relations, security, terrorism, ethics and religion, and oversees reporting by CNSNews.com's roster of international stringers.
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Craig joined CNSNews.com in July of 2005. Craig is responsible for all CNSNews.com media relations, public relations, and marketing programs. Prior to joining CNSNews.com, he served as communications manager for the Intelligent Transportation Society of America. Craig has spent his career managing communications, public, media, and member relations for non-profit organizations such as the National Automobile Dealers Association, the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies, and the Ethiopian Community Development Council.
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Melanie has been with CNSNews.com since November 2000 as an evening editor responsible for writing, editing and posting stories to the website. She was promoted to deputy managing editor in 2002, overseeing the radio production department in addition to her daily editing duties. Prior to working at CNSNews.com, Melanie served as news director for WKYS-FM, one of Washington, D.C.’s top-rated radio stations. Ms. Hunter also worked as a traffic reporter for Shadow Broadcasting in the nation’s capital and prior to that, as a news anchor/reporter for WAMO-FM in Pittsburgh, Pa. Her television experience was obtained at several Washington, D.C. stations. She worked for America’s Most Wanted at Fox affiliate WTTG, the Creative Services Department of WUSA-TV and the Evening Exchange on WHUT-TV. She holds a bachelor’s degree in television production from Howard University.
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Susan brings to CNSNews.com a strong background in broadcast writing and editing. She joined CNSNews.com in April 1999, after working for 18 years as a television producer and news-writer in the Washington, D.C., Denver, and Greensboro, N.C., television markets. Susan holds a bachelor's degree from Mount Holyoke College and a master’s degree in journalism from Northwestern University.
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Randy Hall – Staff Writer/Editor
Randy brings more than 25 years of journalism experience to CNSNews.com. An identical twin and native of northeastern Pennsylvania, he earned his bachelor’s degree in English and communication from Columbia Union College in Maryland. After serving as a news and feature writer and photographer for the Herald Record newspaper in central West Virginia, he attended Andrews University in Michigan, where he received a master’s degree in communication. He returned to Maryland to work as assistant editor of the Columbia Union Visitor, a full-color twice-monthly newsmagazine he helped produce for more than 13 years. His first position with the Cybercast News Service was as evening editor, and he spent a year writing, editing and posting stories to the website before being named Staff Writer in January 2005.
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Fred Lucas joined the staff of Cybercast News Service in January 2007 as an investigative reporter/staff writer after a seven-year career with daily newspapers. Prior to joining CNSNews.com, Fred worked as a political reporter for The News-Times in Danbury, Conn. and before that for The State Journal in Frankfort, Ky., reporting on corruption scandals, state political campaigns and the 2004 presidential race. He has done freelance work for The Weekly Standard, Human Events and The American Spectator. Fred holds an M.S. in journalism from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
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Kevin Mooney joined CNSNews.com in July 2006 as an investigative reporter/staff writer. He has a high level of interest in domestic and international politics. Since joining the news operation, Kevin has reported on immigration policy, national security issues, key cultural trends and religious topics.
Prior to joining CNSNews.com Kevin worked as a reporter for the Trenton Times and Forbes Newspapers in New Jersey. He also held editorial positions with Dow Jones and Company and Bloomberg News in Princeton, N.J. Kevin holds a B.A. degree in Communications and Political Science from Rider University.
Most recently, he graduated from Regent University in Virginia Beach with a joint M.A. in Journalism and Public Policy. Kevin’s graduate work also included a study abroad program at Hertford College in Oxford University where he studied constitutional law from British and American perspectives.
Kevin is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists.
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Pete Winn – Senior Writer/Editor
Pete Winn joined CNSNews.com in October of 2007 as a staff writer/investigative reporter. For nearly 20 years, he has reported on key legal, cultural, political, scientific and religious topics at the national level for online, magazine, radio/TV and print publications. His work has been quoted by, or appeared in, The Washington Times, ABC News, AP, UPI, MSNBC and The New York Times, as well as in local newspapers and on radio stations around the country.
Prior to joining CNSNews.com, Pete was the associate editor and co-creator of CitizenLink, a daily public-policy and government-issues e-newsletter/Web site produced by the Colorado Springs-based Focus on the Family. For seven years, he served as head writer and substitute host for Family News in Focus, an internationally syndicated radio news-and-issues program heard on more than 1,400 stations in the U.S. and Canada.
With experience as a radio news director in both commercial and public radio, Pete is a former voting member of the Radio-Television News Directors Association of America (RTNDA). He also served as an editor for Politico: a Journal of Contemporary Concerns. He holds a B.A. degree in Politics & Government and Philosophy from Ripon College, Ripon, Wis.
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Penny Starr joined CNSNews.com in January 2008 after working for more than 25 years in print media. She has worked as an editor, writer, columnist and photographer at newspapers and magazines in California, Nevada, Oregon, Texas and South Carolina before joining the CNSNews.com team in Washington, D.C. She has won numerous awards for her reporting, columns and photography. She has also worked as a media and marketing consultant for clients in the arts and music industries. As a senior staff writer at CNSNews.com, she covers Congress and the White House, as well as a wide range of cultural issues.
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Julie Stahl – Jerusalem Bureau Chief
Julie joined CNSNews.com in August 1999 as the Jerusalem Bureau Chief. In that capacity, she has reported on the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, the subsequent breakdown in negotiations, the Palestinian uprising and Israel's war against terrorism. Other stories included Pope John Paul II's historic visit to the Holy Land, the briefly renewed and then suspended Israeli-Syrian peace process, Israeli national elections and Israel's unilateral withdrawal from Lebanon. Before joining CNSNews.com, Julie worked briefly as an editor at the Information Center of Israel's Foreign Ministry, as an editor and producer for Middle East Television and as a correspondent for CBN radio. She has a bachelor's degree in theater from Florida State University and a master's degree in journalism from Regent University in Virginia Beach, Va.
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Nicholas Ballasy joined CNSNews.com as a Video Journalist in June 2008. His career in broadcast journalism began to take shape in college, where he served as the host and producer of a public affairs talk show he created called On the Issues. The program educated and informed youth about politics through interviews Ballasy conducted with high profile figures like Former President Bill Clinton, Former Vice President Al Gore, former NY Governor George Pataki, Fox News Sunday host Chris Wallace, Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to name a few. Ballasy also covered entertainment and social topics on the program when interviewing guests like Miss America 2006 Jennifer Berry, Miss New Jersey 2007 Amy Polumbo and Grammy-nominated singer Jason Mraz. On the Issues aired on public access television throughout Central New Jersey and Bucks County, Pennsylvania. The show was named, Best Public Affairs Show in 2007 by the National Broadcasting Society in their National Electronic Media Competition where over 85 colleges from around the country compete. It also won a 2008 Silver Telly Award. Over 80 editions of the show were produced.
Ballasy was also the political reporter/producer for his college newscast where he covered climate change conferences at the United Nations headquarters in New York City, the 2005 New Jersey Gubernatorial Race, Pennsylvania and New Jersey 2008 Presidential primaries and both 2008 Democratic Presidential debates in Philadelphia. He served as a political columnist/reporter for his college newspaper.
In the summer of 2007, Ballasy was one of approximately 100 students from around the country selected to attend the Institute on Political Journalism at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. and served as the only intern at CNN’s White House Unit. The Institute awarded him the “Frank Shakespeare Excellence in Broadcast Journalism Award” named after the former President of CBS. Throughout his college career, he also interned in the news department at WABC, Channel 7 in New York City and with the weekend edition of ABC World News Tonight.
Ballasy, from Warrington, Pennsylvania is a Magna Cum Laude graduate of Rider University where he double majored in Communications and Political Science. Prior to graduation, Rider University named him the Journalist of the Year and he won The President’s Award, which is given to one male and one female in the graduating class. He is a member of the honor societies Alpha Lamda Delta, Lambda Pi Eta (communications) and Phi Sigma Alpha (political science). Ballasy was named to the 2008 edition of “Who’s Who Among Colleges and Universities.”
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Jonathan Schulter joined CNSNews.com as a Video Producer/Photojournalist in May 2008. In college, He started working with other students producing, editing and writing about interviews and news packages on campus. He was also Co-Producer of “On The Issues” that was Produced and Created by Nicholas Ballasy.
Schulter then became Head of Productions at the Rider University Television Station where he created, produced, edited, and shot ”Spotlight On Student Government” that educated, informed, and emphasized the importance of student government on his college campus, He also was produced, edited and shot various documentaries, commercials and news packages for the his college television news program.
Schulter participated in an internship with the Trenton Sovereign Bank Arena where he was Production Assistant, and Editor. He also was an Intern in New York with WABC Eyewitness News as Production Assistant and Assignment Desk Editor. He was also a lab-assistant at the television studio on his college campus. He covered global climate conferences and a Live Earth red carpet event at the United Nations in New York City.
Schulter is from South Brunswick, NJ and Graduated Cum Laude from Rider University, in Lawrenceville, NJ with a B.A. Communications Degree and majored in Broadcasting Production. He was also a member of the Baccalaureate Honors Program. He has received multiple National Broadcasting Society Awards for the Public Affairs Category, Video News Package, Video News Segment, and more as well as a winner of a Silver 2008 Telly Award. He is also a Member of the Lamda Pi Eta Communications Honors Society.
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Sergei Blagov– International Correspondent (Moscow)
Sergei is an independent researcher, journalist and a former newswire reporter. He spent nearly seven years reporting from Hanoi, Vietnam, during the 1980s and 1990s.
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Eva Cahen – International Correspondent (Paris)
Eva is an American journalist living in Paris with 20 years of international experience in television and print. Her particular areas of interest are French-American ties and international relations.
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Mark Mayne – International Correspondent (London)
Mark has written for British and U.S. publications, covering international issues such as development, terrorism, security and technology.
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Kevin McCandless – International Correspondent (London)
Kevin is a long time American resident of the British city. A graduate of the University of Missouri, he has reported for New York Newsday and a number of Midwestern newspapers.
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Stephen Mbogo – International Correspondent (Nairobi)
Stephen is editor of The Kenyan Spectator, a national weekly publishing from Nairobi. His main areas of interest are foreign relations, security and democracy as well as economy and information technology.
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Deepak Mahaan – International Correspondent (New Delhi)
Deepak boasts two decades of broadcasting experience, is a documentary filmmaker and contributes regularly to online publications dealing with politics, foreign affairs, development and sports.
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Eric Pairel – Chief Technology Officer
A graduate of George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, Eric earned a degree in Communications. Eric is responsible for content management, application development, design, and maintenance of the CNSNews.com web site and network. His background includes graphic design, network administration, and ASP.NET web application development.
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