Emmy-award winning alumna Adrienne Roark ‘93 (communication) built her career on one unwavering belief: journalism can change the world.
Roark serves as chief content officer at TEGNA, where she leads content strategy across more than 60 local television stations nationwide. Previously, she served as president of content development for CBS News and Stations, overseeing major-market stations before becoming head of CBS News.
Her path to national leadership in media began in Columbus when she first stepped into a newsroom as an intern at WBNS-TV while an Ohio State student.
“I will never forget my first day walking into the newsroom,” Roark said. “I realized after hearing all the noise and people and the reporters and the scripts and just everything, I knew I was home.”
This internship shaped Roark’s future in broadcast journalism. The fast-paced, deadline-driven energy of the newsroom drew her in.
“It was the coolest place,” she said. “This energy and just the sense of purpose…all the journalists running around and the deadline and the excitement of making television.”
That internship soon turned into a part-time role and later a full-time job before she even graduated.
Roark steadily advanced through the industry, working as an editor, producer, news director and general manager in markets across the country, including Cleveland, Miami, Orlando, Dallas and Portland. In Miami, she strengthened her crisis coverage skills by reporting on hurricanes and international stories across the Caribbean.
Eventually, CBS News recruited Roark to New York to help lead and strengthen its local stations. She later oversaw eight stations before becoming president of CBS News and Stations’ content development. In 2025, she moved to a new role leading content strategy nationwide at TEGNA.
Despite her national leadership throughout all of her positions in media, Roark said her motivation never changed.
“I have never changed my why,” she said. “The reason I do this is the same reason that I decided to do this when I was at Ohio State - because I firmly believe that we can change the world for the better, one story at a time.”
Roark remains deeply connected to Ohio State and the School of Communication. She recently joined the School’s Advancement Board, served as an honorary chair for the first-ever Alumni Reunion in fall 2025 and supported School of Communication initiatives including The Lantern’s annual rivalry edition.
While at CBS, she hosted Ohio State communication students at the CBS Broadcast Center in New York multiple times and served as a mentor to a student.
Her commitment to giving back is deeply personal.
“I wouldn’t be sitting here in the role I’m in without people helping me,” Roark said. “I wouldn’t even have known how to navigate any of that without somebody helping me along the way. To have that ability to be able to pay it forward and come back and do that, to me, that’s incredibly important.”
Roark credits Ohio State not only for classroom learning but also for the experiential opportunities that gave her an early professional advantage. Broadcast journalism and rhetoric courses were especially impactful, along with the real-world newsroom experience she gained as a student.
Now a three-time regional Emmy winner and national media executive, Roark continues to champion journalism that informs, empowers and strengthens communities. Through leadership, mentorship and philanthropy, she is helping ensure future generations of Buckeye communicators have the same opportunities that shaped her career.
Article by student Ellie Kulberg