A life in four
(ongoing) acts
Act 1
Skeptical about his chosen major at the University of Okahoma at first, Jim Willis was hooked on the importance and fun of journalism after just a few weeks on his first job at the semi-weekly, Edmond Sun & Booster, covering explosions and tornados in this Oklahoma City suburb. From then, it was on to The Oklahoman, and then The Dallas Morning News.
Act 2
A decade later, Willis wanted more time to explore better ways of doing his job, so he pursued and received a Ph.D. in Journalism from the best journalism school in the world: The University of Missouri, Then it was on to university teaching at schools like Missouri, Northeastern, Oklahoma, Memphis, and private schools like Boston College and Azusa Pacific University. He has chaired the departments of journalism and communication at three of these schools.
Act 3
Along the way, Willis began writing books about the media, and kept on writing. To date, he has authored, co-authored, and edited 15 of those books, and the topics have grown to include history and even college sports.
Act 4
In 1995, Willis' work began getting noticed internationally, and he was invited to do lecture tours in Europe and to become guest professor at two German universities. He established a working parternship with German Television ZDF, and a student- and faculty exchange program that is still flourishing. This year he travels to Russia at the request of Novosibirsk University and an international NGO to teach master classes and begin a longterm partnership with those wanting to advance the cause of indpenedent media in Russia.
Results
The results, so far, of all this have been honors such as:
* Faculty Scholar of the Year
* Two endowed university chairs (Universities of Oklahoma and Memphis)
* Certificate of Appreciation from the U.S. Embassy in Berlin
* Fulbright finalist (twice)
* A $1 million grant from the U.S. State Department for a partnership with journalists in Afghanistan
The Acts are Ongoing
Unlike a normal play, however, where each act is over when the next begins, Willis' career is comprised of overlapping acts. None of his acts is ever finished, as he continues to report, research, write books, teach, and do international partnerships. Two other books are now under contract with publication pending, and the Russian venture is in progress. As a special correspondent, Willis' work is as recent as 2017 when he went to Germany to cover the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, for Christianity Today Magazine. In 2016 he covered the German refugee crisis, and in November, 2014, he was there for coverage of the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall for The Oklahoman and its' digital counterpart, Newsok.com. It was the third time he has covered these anniversaries in Berlin.
Signature Stories
His signature coverage, however, came in April and May of 1995 when he reported some 20 stories on the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, and its aftermath, in Oklahoma City.
A Virtual Unknown blog
Since 2009, Willis has been writing about the everyday impact of the digital media in a blog for The Oklahoman online edition, Newsok.com. The blog is called A Virtual Unknown.
To Willis, staying current and in the thick of things are the two things that invigorate his teaching, and his own enthusiasm, the most.
Why stop when you're living your dream?
And
