Tag: Adam Levin

Themes of truth in storytelling and making connections highlight 2018 Fall Convocation

Posted on by Sarah Freeman

Pictures from the Fall 2018 Grady Convocation can be viewed on the UGA Grady Flickr gallery:

Fall 2018 convocation graduates:

Themes of hard work, perseverance, truth in storytelling and making connections were shared as Grady College graduates were celebrated at the Fall 2018 Convocation ceremonies on December 13, 2018, at the Hugh Hodgson Performing Arts Center. Nearly 170 students graduated from Grady College this semester, many of whom participated in convocation.

Graduate students eligible for graduation included 28 MFA, Emerging Media and master’s in public relations students. Undergraduates who were recognized included 32 students with an advertising degree, 30 with a degree in public relations, 45 from the journalism program and 31 from entertainment and media studies.

Dean Charles Davis presided over the ceremony, giving an overview of Grady’s accomplishments this past year and praising students for their hard work, passion and academic excellence.

Adam Levin, founder of CyberScout and author of “Swiped,” addressed graduates with a talk focusing on employing truth in storytelling to “critique, clarify and convince,” and to bring stories to light that need to be told.


“Your mission is to seek out the truth, explore human emotions and give expression to the hopes and dreams of your fellow human beings,” Levin said. “Your duty is to use your talent, your skill and your public platform to give a voice to those who have none of these things. This is an awesome responsibility.”

Levin continued by saying that freedom of the press is vital to our democracy and as graduates go out into the world to pursue these professions, they will have the support of others.

“In the war on truth, you are the front lines,” Levin added. “We owe you our support. As a society, it’s incumbent upon us to stand with those with the guts to engage the world and bear witness to it…journalists, communication professionals…those who reflect reality back to us and help us make sense of it.”

He continued: “As you are society’s storytellers, I implore you to keep the stories that matter on our radar to keep them from being forgotten.”

The distinguished senior speaker, a student chosen based on an audition among the graduates for the honor, was Kathleen Brennan, an EMST major who also earned a major in English.

Brennan’s talk focused on the power of connection and relying on fellow graduates.


“If you know the people next to you, great,” Brennan said. “They will our greatest asset as we venture out into the world. Not just as networking opportunities, but as friends who can attest and support us during our greatest struggles. If you don’t, say ‘hello.’ They might just be the Lennon to your McCartney or maybe just someone who can sublease from you in LA someday. We are entering a really intimidating field, but I feel so blessed to be doing it alongside some insanely cool people.”

Lauren Izzo (ABJ ’05, MA ‘07), a member of the Grady Society Alumni Board,  concluded the platform of speakers by welcoming the students to the alumni ranks of the college and encouraging new alumni to stay involved through mentoring, coming to alumni receptions to meet current students and supporting Grady Giving Day.

Complete versions of the speaker comments can be found here:


Adam Levin to address Grady College graduates at Fall 2018 convocation

Posted on by Sarah Freeman

Adam Levin, founder of CyberScout and author of “Swiped,” will address Grady College graduates during the Fall 2018 Convocation ceremonies Dec. 13. The ceremony takes place at 10 a.m. at the Hugh Hodgson Concert Hall and is expected to be live-streamed on the UGA Grady College Facebook page.

Adam Levin (photo: Allison Michael Orenstein)

Levin will lead the charge to graduates through his talk, “Two Plus Two Equals Four:  A Speech About Truth.”

Levin is a nationally recognized expert on cybersecurity, privacy, identity theft, fraud, and personal finance. He is a former director of the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs and a co-founder of Credit.com. He is author of the critically acclaimed book “Swiped: How to Protect Yourself in a World Full of Scammers, Phishers, and Identity Thieves.” Levin’s mission is to educate consumers, businesses, journalists, law enforcement officials and lawmakers on identity management and protection, privacy, credit, and election security issues. His writing and interview credits include ABC News, Inc., The Huffington Post, Yahoo!, The Today Show, Good Morning America and the CBS Evening News, among others.

Levin, a graduate of Stanford University and the University of Michigan School of Law, is a friend to Grady College, visiting several times over the last few years to talk with students about entrepreneurship and cyber security. In October, Adam Levin and the Philip and Janice Levin Foundation pledged a gift to the James M. Cox Jr. Institute for Journalism Innovation, Management and Leadership to create the Levin Leaders Initiative.

Kathleen Brennan is 2018 Fall Convocation Senior Speaker.

In addition to Levin’s talk, Kathleen Brennan, an Entertainment and Media Studies student, was selected as the distinguished senior speaker and will address the graduates.

Grady College students can find more details about the ceremonies on Grady’s convocation webpage.

Tickets are required to attend the convocation ceremonies and can be ordered by contacting Karen Andrews via email at karena@uga.edu.

Cox Institute will unveil the Levin Leaders Initiative in January

Posted on by Sarah Freeman

A new gift pledge from Adam Levin and the Philip and Janice Levin Foundation will establish the Levin Leaders Initiative, an expanded leadership development program for journalism students presented by the James M. Cox Jr. Institute for Journalism Innovation, Management and Leadership.

The Levin family’s gifts and pledges to the program to date exceed a quarter million dollars.  The Cox Institute, part of the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Georgia, launched its leadership program six years ago and has since trained 85 of the college’s best journalism students.

Adam Levin discusses the role journalists need to play in educating consumers about identity theft and ways to prevent it during a lecture at Grady College in February 2016.

“The First Amendment is one of the cornerstones of U.S. democracy,” Levin said. “The Levin family is delighted to have our name associated with a program that has such demonstrated success in launching the careers of emerging news industry leaders. More than ever, we need to cultivate champions of the best journalistic ideals. It is essential to the fostering of an informed citizenry.”

The Levin family’s support provides for curriculum development, training materials, speaker expenses, experiential learning opportunities and the annual leadership awards banquet.

Charles Davis, dean of the Grady College, said the continued support of this program by Adam Levin and his wife, Heather McDowell, and the Philip and Janice Levin Foundation is a testament to our shared vision of preparing students for leadership roles in our democratic society.  “They understand the vital mission of the news media and are with us as we help build its future,” Davis said.

Levin is a nationally recognized expert on cyber security, privacy, identity theft, fraud, and personal finance and has distinguished himself as a fierce consumer advocate for the past 40 years.

Former Director of the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs, Levin is chairman and founder of CyberScout and co-founder of Credit.com. He is author of the critically acclaimed book, “Swiped: How to Protect Yourself in a World Full of Scammers, Phishers, and Identity Thieves.”

His book first brought him to the University of Georgia as a keynote speaker in a privacy issues conference co-sponsored by the Cox Institute, and he has returned several times to speak at Grady about privacy and cyber security. Levin has engaged with many Grady students during his visits and said their caliber and commitment inspired the decision to support a training program that looks to the future of the news media.

Levin’s mission is to educate consumers, businesses, law enforcement officials and lawmakers on identity management and protection, privacy, credit, and election security issues, which has resulted in the publication of his articles in numerous national news outlets. Levin is also a regular on national television and radio programs where he provides expert commentary.

“Levin’s extensive work with the news media provides him with a unique perspective. He understands why professional and ethical standards are important and sees the value in our training and the difference it makes in shaping the careers of emerging news leaders,” said Keith Herndon, director of the Cox Institute. “We are delighted to have the Levin family name on our program and the support it represents as we expand and enhance this initiative.”