Eight Christian Women In Media Worth Following

Even in today’s society, many Christians still utilize the hierarchy of the family as a reason why women should not achieve positions of leadership. However, these people are typically overlooking the many examples of powerful women throughout the Bible.

Not only did Miriam save Moses from drowning, she helped him lead the Israelites out of their imprisonment in Egypt. During the time when Israel was ruled by judges rather than monarchs, Deborah was an influential female judge. And Esther was an Israelite who became the queen of Persia.

Like these great women of the Bible, these are eight Christian women who have forged their own paths as media leaders.

Suzanne Spurgeon

“I think that my faith guides me in everything — not just in my work as a media consultant. In my everyday life, you need faith to keep going.”

The founder of Women Media Pros, Spurgeon is an Emmy Award-winning broadcast journalist. Her clients include airlines, energy firms, utility companies and government agencies.

She is also a former vice president at CNN, a Los Angeles bureau chief and a director of communications at UTLA. At the latter, she provided internal and external communications to 35,000 members of the teachers’ union. She has staged news conferences, provided PR and produced videos. With experience as an executive producer in network news, she has been a local television reporter and anchor in Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Des Moines, Iowa and Peoria, Illinois.

When asked about Women Media Pros, Spurgeon stated, “We do media training—coaching people to do interviews, a lot of TV interviews. We also prepare them for print interviews and for social media.”

Deborah Smith Pegues

“I really want to inspire women just to step out there, be present, go for it, and know that they can’t fail because we’re connected to an omnipotent, omniscient, all-present God.”

Pegues has lived a diverse life, from her humble beginnings as a Southern maid to a Fortune 500 vice president to a bestselling, award-winning author. She is an international speaker and an interpersonal communications strategist.

Her latest book, Forgive, Let Go, and Live, offers a 12-step program for forgiveness. It debunks the major myths about what forgiveness is and what it isn’t. It explains when to restore, redefine or release a hurtful relationship, and outlines how to forgive without forgetting. She’s also sold over a million copies of her book, 30 Days to Taming Your Tongue.

Pegues is a certified public accountant (CPA) and holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of North Texas and a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Southern California. She has held executive positions in several major corporations, including ten years as Vice President of MCA Universal Studios’ venture capital division.

Her motto is, “Everything works together for my good. I’m never a victim.”

Bella Shaw

“The hardest thing in the world is to be your authentic self. We all wear these differ-ent masks of what we think people want us to be, and we can’t play all those roles. We have to be one with ourselves, and that involves spirituality.”

Born in Austria to a U.S. Army colonel and an Austrian mother, Shaw eventually be-came the voice of the University of Oklahoma’s radio station. Upon moving from an NBC affiliate station in Oklahoma City to CNN in Atlanta, Shaw became one of the earliest stars of the cable news revolution in 1983.

Shaw now lives in the Santa Clarita Valley and is the host of Time Warner Cable’s “Local Edition.” She’s also a familiar face as the host of numerous infomercials.

Shaw has been quoted as saying, “The business has changed tremendously from the time I started. And I’ve evolved with it. I’ve gone through all the metamorphoses.”

Marion Pyle

“I think as ambassadors for Christ, excellence is a really important component.”

Pyle’s career began in the performing arts. She worked with stars such as Meryl Streep and Sam Neil. While living in Melbourne, Marion also co-founded P&M Drama Studios, an artistic hub that trained a stable of talented actors and directors.

As the vice president and director of Latino Strategies at the Rogers Group, Marion directed a bilingual team which provided public relations, social marketing and crisis communications for public, consumer and nonprofit clients. Using a strategic blend of traditional and social media, she directed successful regional and national Spanish-language campaigns for numerous companies, including Warner Brothers Interactive Entertainment, First 5 California and the LA Auto Show.

Legacy Media Lab is a boutique agency that specializes in media and communication strategies to elevate the brands and profiles of our clients (www.legacymedialab.com). Pyle is also an award-winning author, television host, public speaker, and university professor of professional communication (www.healedhealthyandwhole.com).

When asked about her success as a businesswoman, Pyle said, “Whatever God has given us to do in this life, we should do the best at it that we can.”

Reverend Diane Gardner

“Our goal is that women’s lives will be touched with the power of Christ, and that they will see how to add the Lord’s presence into every sphere of influence that they have. So we want to see them have the touch of the Lord in their lives.”

Gardner holds a master’s degree in theological studies. She’s a revered speaker, a Bi-ble school professor, chaplain, prison chaplain, author and retreat host. She sits on the international advisory board for Christian Women in Media Association (CWI-MA) and the advisory board for Liberty Savard Ministries.

Gardner is the author of the memoir “Overcoming the Enemy's Storms.” This book is intensely human and profoundly spiritual at the same time.

Gardner described how she deals with writer’s block, “When you’re feeling you’re stuck in something and you’re on a prayer call with other writers and they can pray for you, it’s very encouraging.”

Carol Doyel

“It’s kind of tough out there as Christian women in media.”

Doyel wants to see women reach their God-given destinies and become all that they were created to be. She is a natural encourager and collaborator. She launched a suc-cessful online women’s magazine and blog community, LivingBetter50.com. She has gathered an amazing team and 800+ contributors to create a content-rich magazine.

Doyel graduated from the Full Gospel Bible Institute in 2004. She went on to serve in women’s ministry in 2004. She serves as the West Coast/Hollywood regional director for Christian Women in Media Association (CWIMA) and also serves on the national advisory board. Her past community service and board memberships include Wash-ington PTA, Tacoma YWCA and Washington Women’s Education and Employment (WWEE). She and her husband of 27 years reside in Southern California.

Doyel said of CWIMA, “We’re committed to really inspiring women and equipping them to be cultural changers — really supporting and encouraging one another.”

Dorothy-Inez Del Tufo

“What I love — about doing this work and the business — is having the opportunity to be the light wherever I go because there are so many hurting people in Hollywood.”

For 22 years, Del Tufo coached hundreds of professionals on image and brand man-agement. She also led top-performing sales and service teams. She eventually listened to her divine calling to help professional women and entrepreneurs to take charge of their minds, bodies and spirits.

Del Tufo wears many different hats. She’s a celebrity makeup artist, transformational coach, inspirational speaker and best-selling author. Her years of training and experi-ence in areas such as leadership development, coaching, image consulting, makeup artistry, public relations and public speaking have allowed her to help women thrive.

About her life’s work, Del Tufo says, “My passion and purpose is helping women star in a life and career they love, while building their own bankable brands.”

Denise Wacker

“Women will know how to, first of all, worship and communicate with the Lord to find what he wants to do through us.”

The CEO of Denise Wacker Ministries, Wacker is a speaker, writer, poet, singer/songwriter, actress, spiritual dancer, comedian, church growth consultant and life coach. Having simultaneously served as Senior Pastor for numerous ministries, she was previously employed at Pacific Sunrise Homes and Cavalry Church of the Coastlands.

She holds a Master’s Degree in Religion Leadership Studies from Vanguard University, and she was an English major at Cal State University in Hayward, where she studied creative writing, poetry, and children’s literature with a professor from Berkley. She also studied at Vanguard University and Diablo Valley College. She grew up in Plainview, New York and has also lived in Tehran, Iran and throughout California. She loves God, nature, reading, travel and fitness.

In her blog, Wacker wrote, “We must stay close to the Word, know who we are in Christ, not enter into the world’s ways of success by compromising or doing what we are not made to do, but be who we are meant to be in Christ.”

Conclusion

Due to their media influence and impact on the world, each of these Christian women in media are worthy of admiration. These are ladies to watch, especially over the next few years.