Who We Are
Rick Kupchella | Founding Partner and President
rick@bringmethenews.com
Rick Kupchella has worked as an investigative reporter and television news anchor in Minneapolis and St. Paul for more than 20 years. He worked eight years before that – in New York, Washington, D.C., Michigan and Kentucky. Winner of more than a dozen Emmys, he’s also been recognized repeatedly by the New York International Film Festival, the “Best of Gannett,” the Edward R. Murrow Awards and the Eric Sevareid Awards (presented by the Minnesota Broadcasters Association). Rick has also served as president of the Minnesota chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists, and worked on campaigns to advance journalism at the state capital and Supreme Court. At BringMeTheNews, he continues to produce news stories of his own and works to advance journalism by helping the public find the best news stories in the state – every day.
Don Smithmier | Founding Partner
don@bringmethenews.com
Don was an early-stage employee and ultimately Vice President at Capella University (NSDQ: CPLA), a fully-online, accredited university. During his 14 years at Capella, Don held a succession of Marketing, Technology and Business leadership roles and was recognized as a pioneer in online advertising and the innovative use of web technologies. Don is a winner of Twin Cities Business Magazine’s “40 Under 40” and founder of two successful start-ups, including GoKart Labs, the web design and development group which built BMTN. Don earned his MBA from the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota.
Don Shelby | Anchor
shelby@bringmethenews.com
Shelby joined WCCO as anchor in 1978. Before stepping away from the anchor desk in 2010 Shelby earned two George Foster Peabody Awards and several Emmys, among many other awards. He also earned the respect of admiration of the public and his peers. TV anchor, investigative journalist, radio host, author and web writer, Shelby continues to keep busy with journalistic endeavors and community outreach. He turned his long-time interest in sustainable energy into action by building a LEED Platinum certified house in Excelsior that is part of the Twin Cities Parade of Homes.
Rick Speckmann | Sales/Marketing Manager
ricks@bringmethenews.com
Rick Speckmann has over thirty years of sales, marketing and corporate management. His experience includes ownership in four diverse markets of fast growth emerging market companies and fifteen years of executive search and leadership development consulting. He has presented over 300 speeches and workshops on the dynamics of strategy, human performance and employee retention. He currently is a board member of Winland Electronics (WEX) and has chaired the compensation and governance/nominating committees. Rick is a graduate of St. John’s University, MN. Rick is currently responsible for Sales/Marketing initiatives at BringMeTheNews.
Eric Perkins | Anchor
eric@bringmethenews.com
Currently serving as the Weekend News anchor and Weekend Sports anchor for KARE TV in the Twin Cities, “Perk” as he’s better known, also serves as the co-host of KARE 11 News Saturday. He’s been with KARE since 1996. Before that, the Pepperdine University grad also worked as a sports anchor in Memphis, Tennessee and Tupelo, Mississippi. In his time with KARE, he has covered the Minnesota sports scene extensively, including a Super Bowl and four different Olympic Games. He’s won multiple Emmy Awards including one for a segment called “Perk at Play” in which he’s become a bullfighter, pro lacrosse player and demolition derby driver, among others.
Justin Piehowski | Director of content/strategy
justin@bringmethenews.com
Justin Piehowski spent most of his childhood on St. Paul’s east side reading newspapers and watching local television news. As a young man he joined the military and served as an infantryman and Army journalist. He eventually earned a degree in professional journalism from the University of Minnesota and cut his journalistic teeth as a small-town newspaper reporter. Piehowski’s next tour was as Web Manager at KSTP-TV, where he won five regional Emmy Awards. His evolving passion for online news lead him to Internet Broadcasting, where he was the director of the national news and content network for more than 70 TV station web sites. He lives in Robbinsdale, MN with his wife and two children.
Adam Thompson | Director of Sponsorships
adam@bringmethenews.com
Adam Thompson has sold everything from ocean life artwork to DeWalt power tools. Adam’s last seven years have been in media sales, starting with Clear Channel Radio selling KFAN and Cities 97 and as Sales Manager of the Total Traffic and Weather Network. From there, Adam served as General Manager for BriteMedia Indoor, a local indoor advertising company. Adam spent the last three years as StarTribune.com’s National Sales Manager, and is thrilled to put his background in digital media, radio and promotions sales to work at BringMeTheNews. As Director of Sponsorships, Adam is responsible for growing sponsorship sales for BMTN’s digital and radio products by designing customized sponsorship opportunities that fit the unique needs of Minnesota’s most influential and recognizable brands.
Joe Nelson | News Producer
joe@bringmethenews.com
Joe Nelson was born and raised in the small town of Grove City in west central Minnesota and started his broadcasting career in 2003 as a college student at Southwest Minnesota State University. He got his start working part-time with KMHL Broadcasting in Marshall, MN where he served as an AM/FM host and sports play-by-play announcer. In 2006 he moved to St. Cloud, MN for another job with AM 1390 KXSS “The Fan.” While there he focused on high school sports play-by-play. He also enjoyed working closely with the St. Cloud River Bats in the Northwood’s League as a color analyst before taking over as the primary play-by-play announcer for the final one-third of the season. One year later Nelson accepted a job at AM 1130 KFAN. He is now the producer of the “Nine-to-Noon” show with Paul Allen. Joe also enjoys writing, blogging, and editing any radio-related audio for KFAN.com.
William Wilcoxen | News Producer
william@bringmethenews.com
William Wilcoxen has been working at Bring Me the News since 2010 as both a Web producer and broadcaster. He previously spent more than twenty years at Minnesota Public Radio as a reporter and newscaster. Over the years his beats ranged from central Minnesota to St. Paul to sports and he won several awards for his reporting. He is a graduate of Grinnell College and cut his radio teeth there by spinning discs to the cornfields of central Iowa. William was born and raised in Chicago. He maintains a curious allegiance to Chicago’s sports teams but otherwise considers himself a Minnesotan – even enjoying the winters which, he says, “keep the riff-raff out.”
Doug Frattallone | News Producer
doug@bringmethenews.com
Doug Frattallone has worn just about every hat in the news business, including TV and radio news anchoring/reporting, long-form print feature writing and Internet video production. He’s enjoyed a lengthy career as an award-winning journalist with stops in Scottsbluff, Neb., Duluth, Minn., Cedar Rapids, Iowa and the Twin Cities. Doug is a native Minnesotan who currently lives in Falcon Heights with his wife, Laurie. His son, Salvatore, is a sophomore at Roseville Area High School. His daughter, Elizabeth, attends college in Tampa, Fla. He’s a graduate of the University of Minnesota and an extremely loyal Twins fan, lucky enough to sit with his dad at both Game Sevens in ’87 and ’91.
James Anderson | Director of Content Marketing
james@bringmethenews.com
James Anderson spent a decade in community journalism in southern Minnesota, where he started as a general assignment reporter and left newspapers as an editor and publisher of two small-town weeklies. In the process he covered missing cattle, election recounts and everything in between, while introducing newsrooms to new media technologies. Prior to his career in journalism, James worked as a freelance writer specializing in non-fiction children’s books and in marketing communications. As Director of Content Marketing for BringMeTheNews, James manages client relationships and keeps up to date with news that is important to readers to ensure each sponsor’s content is presented in context with relevant news throughout the day.
Sara Kilborn-Gagne | Manager, Distribution Partnerships
sara@bringmethenews.com
Sara Kilborn-Gagne has been working in Twin Cities radio since college. She knew she had found an industry where she belonged during an internship at KQRS radio. Most recently, Sara was the Research Director for Clear Channel Minneapolis-St. Paul. She earned her M.B.A. from Augsburg College. As the Manager of Distribution Partnerships at BringMeTheNews, she is responsible for the growth and the day-to-day management of the BMTN radio network.
Art Hughes | News Director
art@bringmethenews.com
Art Hughes has waded through Minnesota’s government file cabinets, muddy soybean fields and boisterous union halls since 1997. He’s provided news for a variety of news organizations including National Public Radio, Reuters, Marketplace, CBC and BBC. He worked for 11 years at Minnesota Public Radio covering, among other things, education and Minneapolis city issues. Before that he worked in both public and commercial radio in Seattle and the surrounding area. Art is a long-time advocate for First Amendment and open government issues, serving on the boards with the state chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists and the Minnesota Coalition on Government Information. As a news director for BringMeTheNews he employs his expertise in news and state topics to keep the audience informed of the most relevant news every minute of the day.
Amy Hockert | Anchor
amy@bringmethenews.com
Amy Hockert is a Minnesota native and Emmy Award-winning journalist, with 15 years experience as a reporter and anchor, including six years in the Twin Cities. These days, Amy is running her own media consulting company, SmartMouth Strategies. She conducts media training and presentation coaching for CEOs, authors, small business owners and politicians, among others. Amy joins her good friend and former co-anchor, Rick Kupchella, in reporting news in the afternoons on the growing network of BringMeTheNews radio stations.
Joshua Stevens | News Producer
josh@bringmethenews.com
Joshua Stevens is a twice Emmy-nominated journalist with more than seven years of experience in commercial broadcasting. He grew up in West Fargo, North Dakota and earned his broadcast journalism degree at St. Cloud State University. Before joining BringMeTheNews, Josh worked in both radio and television as an anchor, producer, reporter, photographer and online editor. Most recently, he was the morning anchor for the NBC affiliate, KTTC-TV, in Rochester, MN. Some of his most significant stories included coverage of President Obama’s visit to Cannon Falls, MN; the Republican National Convention in St. Paul and a multi-part series on the 2009 DTV transition. In his spare time, Josh enjoys following Minnesota sports, traveling and staying updated on the latest electronics. Josh and his wife, Michaela, are excited to make the Twin Cities their new home.
