Scott Shuster

Scott Shuster, a US broadcast journalist, was born in Greendale, Wisconsin. He earned the first B.A. in Mass Communication from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee and also studied Political Science (Latin America) at Marquette University. Demonstrating an early aptitude for broadcasting, Shuster became a local radio newscaster in Milwaukee at age 16, working at WRIT-FM and WOKY. By 18, he was on television, delivering the 11 o’clock news on Milwaukee’s WVTV-TV. His career advanced rapidly, and by age 24, he was the highest-rated local television news presenter in the US at WTVT, the CBS affiliate in Tampa-St. Petersburg, Florida. His personable and conversational news delivery style was a notable departure from the more serious presentation norms of the 1970s. During his tenure at WTVT, Shuster notably reported on a record-setting Led Zeppelin concert in Tampa, a report later featured in the band’s 2014 “Celebration Day” theatrical movie release.

Shuster’s career saw him move to Washington, D.C., where he joined National Public Radio (NPR) as one of the early producers for “All Things Considered.” He subsequently worked for the Associated Press Radio Network and the Africa Service of the Voice of America. A significant turn in his career was becoming the Geneva, Switzerland-based foreign correspondent for ABC News. He reported under both Paris Bureau Chief Pierre Salinger and Chief Foreign Correspondent Peter Jennings. For nine years, Shuster covered over 40 developing countries across Africa, South and East Asia, and Latin America. In 1986, he assisted CNN Executive Producer Stuart Loory in planning “CNN World Report,” helping to establish program contribution relationships with government broadcasters in several African nations. He later gained an MBA degree from Switzerland’s IMEDE/IMD, the International Institute for Management Development, Lausanne, Switzerland. Shuster has also served as a member of the adjunct faculty at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and has spoken on journalism governance and communications, including a French-language tour for the United States Information Agency in francophone African countries.

Returning to the US, Shuster joined McGraw-Hill’s BusinessWeek magazine in New York, where he became the founding editorial director of McGraw-Hill’s worldwide business event development organization, BusinessWeek Executive Programs. Reporting to James H. McGraw IV, Shuster pioneered a “TV-talk-show style” corporate meeting format, emphasizing live, unrehearsed interviews with business leaders and audience participation. For 17 years, he chaired all BusinessWeek events globally, expanding the “all-discussion” format to include forums for chief executive officers, chief financial officers, chief information officers, and other corporate leaders across the US, Europe, Latin America, and Asia. He has conducted over 5,000 live interviews with management leaders, including notable figures such as President George H.W. Bush and Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales. After his time with BusinessWeek, Shuster continued as a consulting editor for The McGraw-Hill Companies while moderating business events for various corporations, governments, industry associations, and professional societies. He has also published works by Tolkien scholars under his imprint North Landing Books.