Sue Kopen Katcef

Lecturer

Sue Kopen Katcef is an award-winning veteran broadcast journalist who serves as director of "Maryland Newsline," the nightly news show produced by advanced broadcast news reporting students as part of the College's Capital News Service program. “Maryland Newsline” airs on UMTV, the cable TV channel operated by the Merrill College of Journalism which is seen in Montgomery and Prince George’s counties in the Maryland suburbs of Washington.

Sue previously taught broadcast news writing and production classes and created "Terp Weekly Edition," a radio news magazine produced by students for campus radio station WMUC. After just three years, "Terp Weekly Edition" was named the national winner of the Society of Professional Journalists Mark of Excellence Contest for outstanding newscast. Prior to coming to the College, Sue was a reporter and anchor for WBAL Radio in Baltimore, where she continues to freelance, and she has worked as a television reporter at Baltimore’s WJZ and Maryland Public Television. Sue is also involved at the local and national chapter levels for the Society of Professional Journalists. Sue, who joined SPJ as a University of Maryland student, is currently a National Board Campus Adviser At-Large and is the adviser to the University of Maryland Student Chapter. She is also corresponding secretary for the DC SPJ Pro Chapter and scholarship chair for the MD Pro Chapter. Sue was given SPJ’s Distinguished Teaching in Journalism Award in 2003 and SPJ’s David L. Eshelman Outstanding Campus Adviser award in 2002. She has twice been named “Outstanding Faculty Member” by the University of Maryland College Park’s Panhellenic Association and in February 2006 she was honored as TIAA-CREF’s “Top Terp” before the Maryland-Duke basketball game. Sue is a member of the Board of the Chesapeake Associated Press Broadcasters’ Association. She serves on the Appointments and Advisory Board for WMUC and was a founding member of the Bench, Bar, Media Ad Hoc Committee as well as the coordinator of and contributor to “A Journalist’s Guide to Maryland’s Legal System”—a pocket-sized legal primer and contact resource for reporters. Sue’s reporting has earned awards from the Radio-Television News Directors’ Association, the New York Festivals, the Society of Professional Journalists, the Chesapeake Associated Press Broadcasters’ Association, the American Bar Association and the Maryland State Bar Association, among others. She also has been awarded a Silver Telly and given a Communicator Award of Distinction. Sue lives in Annapolis, Maryland with her husband, a prosecutor in the Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney’s Office and their young son. 

Expertise

Radio/Television News; State Legislative Coverage; Cameras-In-Court 

Affiliations

Society of Professional Journalists; Radio-Television News Directors Association; Chesapeake Associated Press Broadcasters Association; Bench, Bar, Media Ad Hoc Committee; WMUC Appointments and Advisory Board 

Courses Taught

Broadcast News Writing/Production; Independent Study