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By Anna Blanco (Jour)

In the early 1960s, Operation Peter Pan brought 14,000 unaccompanied Cuban children to the United States. One of them, 10-year-old Guillermo “Bill” Vidal, would grow up to become the mayor of Denver.

More than five decades after Vidal’s journey from Cuba to America, CMCI students made the 2,064-mile trip in reverse to tell Vidal’s story in their documentary, ¿Como Fue? A Cuban Journey.

Photo by Ross Taylor

Guillermo “Bill” Vidal stands near his former home in Cuba. 

The project—which began in 2016 and included 11 CU Boulder students, faculty and staff—brought the group to sites throughout Cuba, where Vidal spent the early part of his life before traveling to America.

“I think it’s a really interesting story, what happened to the children that came out of Cuba and the things they’ve been able to do here in this country as immigrants,” says Mollie Putzig (MJour’16), who served as a videographer for the film. “Guillermo is obviously a shining example of success and hard work that immigrants put into this country.”

The project was a collaboration between the investigative student news program, , and the University of Colorado Denver, where Vidal received a bachelor's degree in civil engineering in 1973. Since its completion, ¿Como Fue? has appeared in 10 film festivals across the country. The film has earned four awards, with the most recent being for Best in Show at the Vero Beach Film Festival in Florida.

In addition to gaining hands-on experience in journalism and documentary filmmaking, students who worked on ¿Como Fue? had a chance to experience life in another country. While filming, the crew stayed with local families who helped give them a sense of Cuban culture.

“On our first afternoon in Havana, we turned the first corner we came to and heard the most amazing, happy salseros playing beautiful music at a cafe,” says Jeff Browne, the film’s executive producer who formerly directed CU News Corps and is now the executive director of Quill and Scroll International Journalism Honor Society at University of Iowa. “Of course we started recording immediately, but that didn’t take away from the sheer pleasure of hearing them play.”

Cuban music was an integral part of the trip. The film’s name was inspired by a favorite song of Vidal’s by the Cuban musician Benny Moré.

After documenting the sounds, sights and people that shaped Vidal’s life—both in the U.S. and in Cuba—the crew returned to Boulder to produce the film. 

“After you export it, it’s almost like you’ve brought a living thing into the world,” says Emilie Johnson, the film’s director of photography and the media, production and technology manager at CMCI. “It’s not truly living, but it does have a pulse and a purpose. And so, it’s just rewarding to share somebody else’s story.”

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By Stephanie Cook (MJour'18)
Photo above by Roxann Elliott (MJour'16) and on the right by Glenn Asakawa (Jour'86)

Who’s the best person to run a student newsroom?

In today’s dynamic media landscape, the answer is simple: Yes.

Chuck Plunkett, the new director of CMCI’s investigative student news program , knows the real-world challenges of working for a major newspaper. After all, he just came from one.

The former Denver Post editorial page editor has more than 20 years of experience in state and regional newsrooms contributing investigative reporting and coverage of local and national politics, public policy and breaking news.

He resigned from the newspaper in April, after producing an editorial package that criticized the Post’s corporate owners, Alden Global Capital, for a string of layoffs and resignations that put a stranglehold on the paper’s editors and reporters. Now, he’s focused on training future journalists in the art of fact finding and keeping the public informed about important issues of the day.  

“I loved working in newsrooms, and I didn't want to leave them. But it is also true that, before I started my career in journalism, I hoped to find myself teaching in university classrooms,” Plunkett says.

As director of CU News Corps, Plunkett will be the primary coordinator for the investigative news outlet, which journalism students take for course credit.

   The CU News Corps program offers incredible opportunities to help train the next generation of journalists and maintain that connection to the profession that has defined my adult life.”
Chuck Plunkett, CU News Corps Director

News Corps students provide package-driven, long-form journalism to several of Colorado’s top professional media organizations on key state issues. In recent years, they’ve partnered with The Denver Post, as well as 9News Denver, Colorado Public Television, Public News Service and other outlets.

Each semester, News Corps students focus stories around a central theme. Previous topics include immigration, crime and political fact checking—all of which Plunkett has reported on extensively throughout his career. In 2008, he was the Post’s lead writer covering Denver’s preparation for and hosting of the Democratic National Convention. Later, he was part of the team of Denver Post reporters who won a Pulitzer Prize in 2013 for breaking news coverage of the Aurora movie theater shooting.

“Chuck had just the right character to be the conscience of our community as he brought out diverse viewpoints on all the issues of our time,” says Dean Singleton, who owned The Denver Post from 1987 to 2013. “CU students will be incredibly lucky to have access to his vast experience and knowledge as they prepare for an exciting future in covering news.”

CU News Corps began in 2012 as a small team of students reporting on breaking news and partnering with local media. It is supported by Bill and Kathy Scripps, who established a $2.5 million endowment in 2017.

Starting in the fall, the CU News Corps course will serve as the required capstone course for all entering journalism students. It will eventually enroll 60 to 70 students per semester.

While Plunkett joins the program with an industry perspective, this won’t be his first time working with students. In 2014, he created and taught a pilot program at the University of Denver called “Fact Lab” that worked with upper-level students to fact check political messaging in campaign ads for the 2014 election season. The Denver Post published the students’ work on its politics blog, The Spot, and excerpts in its paper editions.

In August, The National Press Club Board of Governors that Plunkett would receive a 2018 John Aubuchon Press Freedom Award for producing the six-page editorial section of the Denver Post that was critical of the newspaper’s ownership.

According to the organization, the award “is given each year to both domestic and international recipients who courageously manifest the principles of free expression and transparency.”

As the director of CU News Corps, Plunkett will work to pass on these principles of the trade to his students.

“Over the years I've often thought longingly about returning to the academy and its mission,” he says. “The CU News Corps program offers incredible opportunities to help train the next generation of journalists and maintain that connection to the profession that has defined my adult life.”

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From top left to bottom right: Bill, Willie, Kathy and Shelby Scripps.

Bill and Kathy became supporters of CU News Corps after their son, Willie (Comm’15), fell in love with the CU Boulder campus and enrolled in CMCI. Their daughter, Shelby (Comm’17), attended the college, as well.

“We were introduced to the concept of News Corps in its early stages and liked the idea of students gaining hands-on experience for reporting and news gathering,” Bill says. “We started with a small gift, and increased that as we saw the success of the program.”

After an initial gift of $100,000 in 2012 for equipment, annual support from the Scripps family has been instrumental in the growth of CU News Corps, which operates as a news outlet, providing package-driven, long-form journalism to professional media organizations on issues that impact Colorado.

This year, the program has a new partnership with Colorado Public Television to deliver a one-hour prime-time program of original content for viewers along the Front Range. Additionally, it continues to work with The Denver Post, Public News Service, the Colorado Independent and the Daily Camera.

“In this rapidly changing media environment, CMCI offers a great opportunity for students to keep pace,” Bill says. “We thought it would be appropriate to endow News Corps so that it will be around for perpetuity.”

The family, who love Ralphie and enjoy attending football and basketball games together, also have been generous supporters of CU Athletics, the Esteemed Scholars program and the Center for Community.

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