Learning About Kylan Watson

Learning About Kylan Watson
By Dallas Jackson

            

Kylan Watson is an aspiring sports broadcaster who hopes to host his own show. Eventually, he plans to be in control of his own sports network. Watson was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

“Philadelphia’s everything to me; it’s life, it’s home, it’s blue collar. It defines me,” he said. “Everything is to raise up Philadelphia, so for me, all of my successes go to God, family and Philly.”

Watson’s first experience came to him when he was younger. His father got him a basketball hoop and they put it out in his front yard. Other kids from around his neighborhood came to his house to play basketball with him.

“It was really my first big experience with sports and how much of a unifying factor sports is,” Watson said.

He also said that although he’s from Philadelphia, Michael Jordan is his favorite athlete of all time. Most of his other favorite players all have some connection to Philadelphia: Donovan McNabb, Carson Wentz, Allen Iverson, Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid. 

Watson hopes to gain more on-camera experience, play-by-play commentary and interviewing skills during his time at Newhouse. In addition to gaining more skills, he also wants to make connections and friends.

Kylan Watson

Interview Transcript with Kylan Watson

Kylan here are you from originally?

I’m originally from Philly; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Were you raised there?

Born and raised, just like Will Smith.

What does Philly mean to you?

Philadelphia’s home. That’s where I cut my teeth. That’s where I grew up, that’s what raised me. My father was born and raised in Philly, and my mother is from Little Rock. That’s where I grew up at for 20 plus years. That’s where I established a blog, (WatsonSportsTakes.com), that’s where I created a podcast. Philadelphia’s everything to me; it’s life, it’s home, it’s blue collar. It defines me. Everything I picked up is everything I picked up growing up in Philly—education-wise, reading, my work ethic. Everything is Philadelphia so for me, all of my successes go to God, family and Philly. Everything is to raise up Philadelphia and show that it’s more than just the Liberty Bell, cheesesteaks and the Eagles. It’s more than that, it’s the people.

So, what’s it like in Philly compared to Syracuse?

It’s much more bustling. Syracuse is diverse, but Philadelphia’s a lot more diverse. It’s a top five city, so there’s a lot more stuff and a lot more colleges. It’s more of a college town than I’d say Syracuse is where in Syracuse, you only have one college. In Philadelphia there’s multiple colleges depending on where you are. In my area, it’s Temple, Temple University. Then you have LaSalle, which is not too far from me. Much more bustling and into sports. Definitely more alive right now. We just wrapped up our 4^thof July Picnic and we’re getting ready for Made in America, a concert that Jay-Z puts on. More artsy, more historic, a lot more tourism, good food, Philadelphia’s bustling right now. Compared to Syracuse which is smaller and somewhat more economically depressed than Philly is. Philadelphia’s coming up, but Syracuse is a nice place. But Philly’s better.

How did you end up being named Kylan?

My parents actually didn’t name me, my aunt named me. The story behind that is a little bit iffy. Apparently, there was this big argument over what to name me and my aunt ended up winning. My mother’s sister and she named me Kylan. That’s how it ended up happening. I didn’t get my name from my parents, my aunt named me.

What’s your first experience with sports?

A long time ago when I was a little kid, my dad got me a basketball hoop. It was one of those Mini Hoops that we had, he got me one and we put it out in our front yard and we just started shooting hoops. And kids from the neighborhood came through. It was really my first big experience with sports and how much of a unifying factor sports is. I wanted my game to be like Michael Jordan, he was my hero when I was younger. You couldn’t tell me nothing about Michael Jordan. I had Michael Jordan posters and the “Space Jam” movie, I had menus to his restaurant, literally Michael Jordan I had it. That’s what I emulated my game after. My first experience with sports was the basketball court and just watching Michael Jordan play.

What are your favorite sports teams?

Basketball – The Philadelphia 76ers and Miami Heat. Football- The Eagles. All Eagles and nothing more. Baseball is the Phillies and the Cardinals. Hockey, I’m not really into hockey but when I watch it, it’s the Philadelphia Flyers. Tennis is Serena (Williams), Venus (Williams), Roger (Federer) and Novak Djokovic when they’re playing. College football: Penn State. College basketball: Villanova and UNC.

What are your career goals?

I want to go into sports broadcasting. I want to be a sports broadcaster, hopefully on ESPN or CBS Sports, with my own show. After all that’s done I want to own my own media company and take over the world.

How do you like Syracuse so far? The city and the university.

So far Syracuse is fun. There hasn’t been much to see in the city because it’s the summer and Newhouse has us here at a weird time where it’s much more locals than college students. The city from what I’ve seen so far is pretty good. Destiny is pretty fun to go to; the downtown area is somewhat fun. The university is good, nice and big. It’s about five times bigger than my alma mater Albright College. It’s fun to be in a campus so big with so much to do. The city is not Philadelphia, but it’s fun and given me unique experience.

What’s your favorite food?

My favorite food varies, but my go-to is always chicken alfredo. I love chicken alfredo.

Who are some of your idols when it comes to journalism or sports journalism?

In the sports world: Bomani Jones, Jemele Hill, Rachel Nichols, Bob Costas. Outside of that, Don Lemon in politics, Jake Tapper (Philly all the way), Kristen Welker.

Pick one. Why are they your idol?

Kristin Welker is one of my favorite broadcasters because I’ve seen her grow. Originally, a lot of people don’t know this, Kristen Welker started off as a local Philadelphia broadcaster. And so, it was fun to watch her journey as she went from local anchor on NBC10 to now one of the biggest political reporters on MSNBC. She always comes with the facts and doesn’t really put her opinions in the journalism and it’s been fun to watch her, especially during briefings and stuff when I can catch them. She’s a good journalist, I like her.

What are you hoping to gain from the broadcasting and sports programs at Syracuse?

I’m hoping to gain more on-camera experience. A lot of my interests so far have been in writing, online writing. I was a sports reporter for an online startup, so I did a lot of online articles. Like I said, I do podcasting. And a lot of that doesn’t have my face, but you hear my voice. So, I definitely want more on-camera experience and play-by-play, covering press conferences, maybe getting to interview Jim Boeheim and see if I can scratch my teeth on that. Just getting the skills I need to better my writing, better my broadcasting, better my on-camera experience, and get a better understanding what it takes to put on a broadcast. And then connections and friends.

Who are some of your favorite athletes?

Outside of Michael Jordan, a lot of my favorite athletes have some type of Philadelphia swing to them. So, I love Donovan McNabb, Carson Wentz, Allen Iverson. Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid just because of how fun both of them are. I love LeBron, Dwanye Wade had been one of my favorite players. I watched him in Marquette and then in Miami. Alonzo Mourning and Tim Hardaway, I’ve got a bunch of favorite athletes.

What’s your favorite movie overall?

My favorite movie that I’ve really, really liked is “The Departed” with Leonardo DiCaprio and Matt Damon and all them in it. It was a really good movie and I really liked it.

What’s your favorite sports movie if you have one?

My favorite sports movie is “Remember the Titans” because I love Denzel Washington and that story that it told. It was one of my first sports movie introductions besides “Air Bud.” “Remember the Titans” is really good and I liked the story it told.

Do you have a favorite TV show?

Yes, I love “Game of Thrones.” It’s my favorite television show. I’m going to be sad when it ends next year. I won’t know what to do with myself on Sundays, on Sundays night.

I think that’s all of the questions that I have, so thank you.

You’re welcome.