Tekla Szymanski

Tekla Szymanski

Writing, Editing, Print to Web Adaptation, Web Development & Content Management: Where Old Media and New Media Meet.

Greater New York City Area

Current
  • Managing Editor/Content Manager at nywici.org, the organization's Web site at New York Women in Communications (NYWICI)
  • Editor/Copy Editor (freelance) at Metropolitan Museum of Art
  • Writer at New York Women in Communications (NYWICI)
  • Writer/Editor (freelance) at Chiropractic Leadership Alliance
  • Freelance Web Designer/Content Manager/Blogger at various Web sites
  • Founder, Designer and Editor at www.tekla-szymanski.com
  • USA Correspondent & Columnist at Tribuene (Germany)
  • Media Advisor at International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation
Past
  • Senior Editor at World Press Review Magazine
  • Managing Editor at Aufbau (New York)
  • Associate Editor/Foreign Desk at Telegraph Financial Daily and Globes (Tel Aviv, Israel)
  • Reporter/Adviser for European Affairs at Galei Zahal - Israeli Army Radio
Education
  • University of Washington
  • New School University
  • Koteret (Coteret) - School of Journalism and Communication (Israel)
  • Ha'Universita Ha'Petuha
Connections
120 connections
Industry
Writing and Editing
Websites

Tekla Szymanski’s Summary

I am a multilingual editor and writer both in old media and new media. I believe both complement each other. Print media are not dead; they have only grown. Knowing both worlds, I can bridge the gap and help you adapt to new media. But I still believe that content is key and sometimes less is more.

Building on a broad domestic and international newspaper, magazine and radio experience, I am a versatile content manager and web developer, who can keep the toughest deadlines. I design, launch, critique, maintain and provide content for Web sites. Computer skills: All relevant writing and publishing software; QuarkXPress; QPS Copydesk, various CM systems (i.e. Contribute); Dreamweaver CS3; Photoshop; Fireworks; HTML/XHTML/XML; CSS; Javascript; PHP and MySql.

I am not a programmer per se, however. But I am a journalist who is more than just comfortable with a source code and can bridge both worlds.

In my writing, I focus on Europe and the Middle East, especially Germany and Israel. I also specialize in American Jewry, German-Jewish-Israeli reconciliation, interfaith- and intercultural relations, Anti-Semitism and domestic/international women's issues. And I observe how political events are perceived abroad and cover news, views and trends that have yet to surface in the US.

Tekla Szymanski’s Specialties:

Foreign Affairs: Western Europe, Israel; German-Jewish relations; American Jewry, Anti-Semitism. Women's Issues, Writing, Editing, Research, Layout, Web Design, Content Management, Project Management, multilingual: German, Hebrew, French, Italian, English.


Tekla Szymanski’s Experience

  • Managing Editor/Content Manager at nywici.org, the organization's Web site

    New York Women in Communications (NYWICI)

    (Professional Training & Coaching industry)

    2005Present (4 years)

    I am the content manager and editor of this Web site, a member of the organization's Communications and Web Development Committees and am actively involved in the Web site's upcoming redesign.

  • Editor/Copy Editor (freelance)

    Metropolitan Museum of Art

    (Public Company; Museums and Institutions industry)

    July 2005Present (3 years 7 months)

    Freelance Editor in the museum's editorial department: books, catalogues: form, layout and style.

  • Writer

    New York Women in Communications (NYWICI)

    (Professional Training & Coaching industry)

    January 2005Present (4 years 1 month)

    I write articles for NYWICI's print newsletter, CONNECT, on international and domestic women's issues.

  • Writer/Editor (freelance)

    Chiropractic Leadership Alliance

    (Medical Practice industry)

    2005Present (4 years)

    Write/edit news releases for an e-newsletter and medical brochures.

  • Freelance Web Designer/Content Manager/Blogger

    various Web sites

    (Online Media industry)

    April 2004Present (4 years 10 months)

    examples:
    http://www.bloomadv.com
    http://www.nywici.org/blog.html
    http://worldpress.org/Mideast/1924.cfm

  • Founder, Designer and Editor

    www.tekla-szymanski.com

    (Online Media industry)

    January 1998Present (11 years 1 month)

    Designed and published multilingual Web site in 1998 on cultural, social and political topics in English, German and Hebrew (now more than 100 pages).
    Coverage of the Middle East, European politics, domestic and international women's issues, foreign media analyses, inter-cultural and interfaith affairs, commentaries.

  • USA Correspondent & Columnist

    Tribuene (Germany)

    (Writing and Editing industry)

    January 1998Present (11 years 1 month)

    USA Correspondent for German-Jewish quarterly based in Frankfurt, Germany; author of a regular column on American Jewry and US-German relations.

  • Media Advisor

    International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation

    (Non-Profit Organization Management industry)

    December 1995Present (13 years 2 months)

    Handle and advise on foreign media relations of this non-profit interfaith organization; assisted in arranging a special exhibit in Berlin, Germany, on Robert Olschwanger, a German-Jewish artist in the 1930s.

  • Senior Editor

    World Press Review Magazine

    (Non-Profit; 11-50 employees; Writing and Editing industry)

    September 1999April 2004 (4 years 8 months)

    Scanned the international foreign-language media in five languages, translated and wrote Western European and Israeli press reviews for a monthly nonprofit compendium of international news and commentary circulated among 80,000 readers worldwide. Conceptualized, assigned, edited feature and cover packages; copy-edited in QPS.
    • Expanded coverage of European and Middle Eastern affairs. Drew early attention to Germany’s economic downturn. Increased coverage of the Palestinian-Israeli peace process.
    • Wrote in-depth analyses on foreign affairs and major breaking news stories for WPR’s Web site.

  • Managing Editor

    Aufbau (New York)

    (Non-Profit; 1-10 employees; Newspapers industry)

    March 1995February 1999 (4 years)

    Managed a team of three editors and oversaw the day-to-day production for this German-Jewish biweekly founded in 1934. Supervised and served as writing coach for five interns; initiated and implemented the modernization and computerization of the paper. Promoted reconciliation and interfaith dialogue and represented German Jewry living in the United States. Co-author of a brochure used for Holocaust Studies in German schools.
    • Established new target audience in Europe of younger, non-Jewish readers.
    • Launched the paper’s first Web site.

  • Associate Editor/Foreign Desk

    Telegraph Financial Daily and Globes (Tel Aviv, Israel)

    (Privately Held; 51-200 employees; Newspapers industry)

    January 1994January 1995 (1 year 1 month)

    Scanned wire services (Bloomberg/Reuters/dpa/AP); tracked breaking news, and translated articles from French, German and English into Hebrew for this financial daily. In charge of graphic design, visuals, layout and set-up of four foreign news pages.
    • Member of the team that built the foreign desk, which went on to number five editors. Represented foreign desk on op-ed page with analyses of macroeconomic issues and international political affairs.

  • Reporter/Adviser for European Affairs

    Galei Zahal - Israeli Army Radio

    (Government Agency; 51-200 employees; Broadcast Media industry)

    19931994 (1 year)

    Scanned foreign TV channels and chose news items for radio broadcast on world desk. Wrote and recorded news and feature stories and prepared them for broadcast.


Tekla Szymanski’s Education

  • University of Washington

    Professional Certificate, Web Technology Solutions, 20052007

    HTML, XHTML, XML, CSS, Semantic Web, JavaScript, Databases: PHP & MySQL

  • New School University

    Internet Journalism 19991999

  • Koteret (Coteret) - School of Journalism and Communication (Israel)

    Professional Certificate, Print, Radio, 19891992

  • Ha'Universita Ha'Petuha

    BA, Liberal Arts (Humanities, Social & Political Sciences), 19861989


Additional Information

Tekla Szymanski’s Websites:

Tekla Szymanski’s Groups:

New York Women in Communications (NYWICI); Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ); SPJ Deadline Club, National Writers Union, The Online News Association (ONA), Editorial Freelancers Association, Freelancers Union

  •    Online News Association
  •    FollowTheMedia
  •    ThoseInMedia (The Who's Who in All of Media)
  •    Förderung der deutschen Sprache
  •    Society of Professional Journalists
  •    University of Washington - Seattle
  •    The Association for Women in Communications (AWC)
  •    Newspaper Professionals Network
  •    Open University Of Israel Alumni
  •    New York Women in Communications

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