Christine Dempsey is a breaking news reporter for The Hartford Courant. Her career spans more than 30 years, and she has worked at four newspapers in two states, Connecticut and New York. She has won awards from the New England Newspapers & Press Association, the New England Associated Press News Executives Association, the New York Press Association and the Connecticut Society of Professional Journalists. Her recognized work includes stories about domestic violence, narrative accounts of life-saving rescues and profiles of homeless people. A graduate of Marist College, she is married and has two daughters. She lives in Tolland, Connecticut.
Dee Dee DeBartlo
Dee Dee De Bartlo is Founder of De Bartlo & Co, a book publicity and marketing firm. A 25-year veteran of the publishing industry, before starting her own company she co-founded February Partners, a publicity firm and small press. Prior to that she spent 13 years at HarperCollins where she was a Senior Publicity Director of William Morrow. In addition to launching Freakonomics, De Bartlo was Cokie Roberts’ longtime book publicist. She has worked with many notable authors and top publishing houses. She is the co-president of Women’s Media Group where she has served on the board for 6 years.
Karen Miller Pensiero
Karen Miller Pensiero is Managing Editor of The Wall Street Journal. In this role, she is responsible for all newsroom operations, training, budgets and people and for ensuring the Journal has a world-class, talent-driven and diverse newsroom. She was appointed to this position in September 2017. Ms. Pensiero is a more than 30-year veteran of the Journal and parent company Dow Jones and has held numerous roles in her career, most recently as Editor for Newsroom Standards for four years where she served as intendant of the Journal's elevated standards of reporting and editing. Prior to that, she held a variety of positions, including director of corporate communications for Dow Jones; managing editor/international, overseeing the editing of the Journal’s Asian and European editions and publishing partnerships; editor of Money & Markets coverage for The Wall Street Journal Europe in Brussels; director of Dow Jones Interactive Publishing International, responsible for the international expansion of electronic publishing businesses, includingWSJ.com; and manager of international development for the Dow Jones International group. She proudly began her career as a Dow Jones Newspaper Fund summer intern for the Dow Jones News Service. Ms. Pensiero is a lecturer and panelist on journalism ethics and standards, serves as a judge for the Ancil Payne Award for Ethics in Journalism at the University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication, is an advisory board member of Press Forward, and a board member of the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism CUNY Foundation, the Missourian Publishing Association and the Dow Jones News Fund. Born in Warrensburg, Mo., Ms. Pensiero is a graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism.
Sydney Stein
Sydney Stein is the co-founder and CEO of Wimzē, a social-first creative agency working exclusively with wellness and mission-driven brands. With experience in the digital space spanning over 8 years, Sydney has a holistic understanding of social media and how to use it to support overarching business objectives. Wimzē was founded on the core concept of mission-alignment: Good ideas come from good people that are inspired by positive impact. Wimzē is committed to using the power of advertising with integrity and the goal of making the world a better place. Some of the brands Wimze has worked with include Indie Beauty Expo, Beauty Independent, World Science Festival, myWorth, Honest Marijuana, Pure Green and more. Sydney is an instructor at General Assembly and has taught many workshops around Manhattan, Long Island and Los Angelos for Stacklist, Beauty X Summit, NYC’s Small Business Services (SBS), among other independent entities. While Sydney’s expertise lies in digital marketing and creative storytelling, her true passion is in understanding people, behaviors, and communities. She spends her morning commutes to Greenpoint reading books such as Daring Greatly, Emotional Intelligence 2.0, and The Second Mountain and listening to podcasts such as The Goop Podcast, Esther Perel and How I Built This. She is a proud high school mentor through iMentor’s NYC Chapter, a volunteer for her local animal rescue, and an all-around listener and fixer. Sydney is a big lover of the outdoors, bluegrass music and wandering the mountains of Colorado and Wyoming.
Candi S. Cross
Candi S. Cross is the founder of You Talk I Write, a nonfiction ghostwriting agency based in Manhattan. Her unique combination of skills matches the needs of aspiring authors who have a tale to tell but no understanding of the publishing industry or flair for forming the right words. Candi’s range of clients spans execs, entertainers, doctors, attorneys and scientists around the globe. She has co-developed approximately 120 books published by traditional houses, corporate brands and self-publishing outlets. Candi is committed to helping diverse individuals with contemporary stories to tell. Her agency, You Talk I Write, is based in Manhattan. She is a board member of Women’s Media Group.