After telling the university’s stories, he’s ready to share his own

Dozens of times a year, a message from Bill Graf shows up in your campus email. And yet you probably have no idea who he is. It’s past time to remedy that.

For starters, he’s the guy behind such headline gems as “Hello, Numen” (introducing the seldom seen university seal) and “Sawn, but not forgotten” (about a lost, lamented oak tree). The guy who, when writing about the annual Cool Science Image Contest, embraced onomatopoeia: “You’ll find yourself marveling at the 2021 winners — from celestial bodies (ooh!) to carnivorous plants (eek!) to mating dragonflies (blush).”

After eight years editing Inside UW, the campus e-newsletter that goes out to every employee of UW–Madison, he’ll be retiring Aug. 1. By his count, he has hit “send” on nearly 700 issues – that’s more than 19 million emails.

There is no doubt his colleagues and those who admired his work will miss Graf’s sharp eye and distinctive voice, says Kelly Tyrrell, director of media relations and strategic communications in University Communications.

“He’s got a very unique sense of humor and I think you get a glimpse of that in his work, whether it’s a genius headline or a very witty blurb. Bill puts a lot of thought and care into his work and he’s brought a really unique voice to Inside UW.”

Sharing the university’s stories has been just the latest chapter in a multi-part career that began before Graf even graduated from UW–Madison. While studying journalism and political science, he began working weekends at his hometown radio station, WCLO in Janesville. In 1979, the fall of his senior year, the morning news anchor retired and the station offered Graf the job.

Balancing work and school commitments required Graf to start his days at 4 a.m., scanning the police blotter for felonies and fender-benders, writing and anchoring the morning drive news and sports reports, covering city hall, and then filing for the midday newscast — all before heading to Madison for afternoon classes. “This continued through two semesters and a summer term until I graduated in December 1980 — and finally got some sleep,” he recalls wryly.

He moved to radio stations in Madison and Milwaukee and, in 1985, switched to television, covering state politics for WISC-TV in Madison. The Capitol — his daily news beat for five years — became the setting for the next chapter in his career as a legislative aide.

“After years of covering ‘both sides’ of political issues and controversies, I felt an urge to get involved and try to affect events rather than just observing them,” he says. “I wrote newsletters, news releases, talking points and correspondence, and helped draft legislation on a variety of topics at a time when it was possible to work across the aisle and pass important legislation with bipartisan cooperation.”

Later, he returned to UW–Madison for a job that required research skill, a way with words, and political savvy: coordinating a project on the Wisconsin Idea that involved collecting examples of research, teaching and outreach that benefit the state. Graf used the data he’d gathered to create individualized reports each year for the university’s state relations staff to hand-deliver to legislative offices.

“It really was amazing to see how many examples there were once we started collecting them and how dedicated our faculty, staff and students are to the Wisconsin Idea,” he says. “It was very gratifying to be able to share these stories with people who were pleasantly surprised to learn the UW was involved in their communities.”

In his current role as managing editor for University Communications, he continues to focus on what his audiences need and want, whether he’s working on news releases going out around the country or information going out across campus.

Tyrrell says that as a science writer, she appreciates that she can rely on Graf to read her drafts through the lens of a non-expert. “I could always trust that Bill would identify things that were confusing or unclear or might not resonate with audiences that don’t have expertise in the areas we were covering.”

When curating content for Inside UW, Graf says he keeps in mind not just what people need to know but what they might find interesting and entertaining.

One reader, an extension educator in Ashland County, recently emailed to share the value of that approach:

“I just wanted to say how much I enjoy your weekly news. … I always find something amazing and new and imaginative to learn about. You make the whole university seem so special with your slideshows, videos, and links to amazing people, research, and accomplishments. It’s hard to put out so much news every week, but I’m happy you do it and do it so well!”

Colleague and frequent contributor Mary Ellen Gabriel, director of communications for the College of Letters & Science, calls Inside UW “the gold standard for internal e-newsletters,” and says “that’s thanks to Bill Graf. His editorial judgment, punchy, succinct headlines and thoughtful blurbs are an e-marketer’s dream.”

“He’s always thinking about representation — whose stories get told, whose faces get visibility,” Tyrrell adds. “I have really valued his lens of inclusion and diversity.”

Graf is quick to point out that telling the university’s story is a team effort, with contributions from writers, photographers, videographers and others in University Communications and across campus. One of the highlights of his job is leading the office’s morning news meeting where he directs the logistics of getting the day’s content produced, edited and distributed through various news and social channels.

As he contemplates what’s next after UW, Graf looks forward to a less character-limited life and seeing “if I’m capable of writing more than 45-word blurbs.” He has a couple of writing projects in mind: one taking what he promises is a unique perspective on U.S. presidents and another combining his interests in history, architecture, government and … coffee. There may be a book or two coming, or perhaps it’s time to try podcasting.

Or maybe, he quips, you’ll be able to play “iUW” from the App Store — a tongue-in-cheek allusion to the joy that assembling the newsletter has given him.

“If I could turn editing Inside UW into an app, it would be more fun than Wordle.”