How Kara Hitt's love for sport, brought her to Newhouse

After a career ending back injury stopped her from playing college basketball, Kara Hitt knew that it was time to find a new passion where she could use her love for sport, and helping others. Like many others entering their freshman year of college, Hitt, who attended Texas A&M, didn’t know what she wanted to peruse as a long-term career.

After majoring in forensics and learning it wasn’t the career for her, she soon switched to Communications and Journalism. After getting a job with a broadcast company at A&M, Hitt had known she found her passion.

“I got hired on with 12th man productions… we did all the live television broadcast for all of A&M athletics. …and I realized that that's what I wanted to do… I knew I wanted to go into sports media and sports TV.. that's kind of how I ended up here.”

Hitt had another job she was equally passionate about. Working in the admissions office in higher education, she found her niche in helping prospective and current students. “…for some reason I don't end up making it in sports TV, at least know I have a fallback and would be just as happy doing that.”

Hitt is passionate about two careers that she feels confident knowing she can rely on. 

Soundcloud interview

 Google Doc for transcripton

Cole Johnson fulfills life dream of attending Syracuse University

As long as Cole Johnson can remember, Syracuse University has always been the school he dreamed of attending.

He once had aspirations to play professional sports, but when those dreams became dime, a new light begin to shine. Starting at Syracuse's Newhouse School for Broadcast and Digital Journalism.

Since a child, Johnson can recall a ball being glued to his hand. A football, basketball, soccer ball, it made no difference. This created a passionate connection with sports, but when playing wasn't an option, he had to decide how to keep the connection alive. 

"I know I’m not going to make it as an athlete. I can maybe try to play a D-3 sport, which I did for a little bit, but I’m not going to go anywhere big," Johnson said.  

This realization only created a solution for Johnson and he quickly learned  how to turn his doubt into a dream. 

"How about I talk sports, that would be the best job ever," Johnson said. "Just sit down and talk sports and get paid for it."

A complete transcript of the interview can be viewed HERE. Listen to the interview HERE. 

Killer Mentality

Killer Mentality: 

Tearing your ACL once is bad enough, but try tearing it multiple times, and as a result, requiring four knee surgeries. That isn’t a bad dream, but a reality for Morgan Alexander. Morgan, 22, is from Watertown, New York, and has played lacrosse for her entire life. She came to Syracuse to play lacrosse four years ago, but still has two years of eligibility left due to her injuries. For most people, they would simply quit. For Morgan, that was never even a possibility. Now as a graduate student at Newhouse in Broadcast Journalism, Morgan will not only be working hard in class this year, but she will also be back on the field, as she looks to make up for missed time. Most people would have quit after one knee surgery, but not Morgan. This killer mentality is something she has always had and will continue to use as her enters the cutthroat word of broadcast journalism. 

Transcribed Interview:

Matt: So how important is it for you to keep playing lacrosse? 

Morgan: Very important, because I’ve spent my entire life playing. So, for me, giving up and not playing was never an option. 

Matt: When you injured your knee each of the four times, how did you keep the mindset to come back, because a lot of people would just give up?

Morgan: It’s – I’m very, very passionate about lacrosse, and if I would have quit, it is something I would never let go for the rest of my life. It’s something I knew I couldn’t quit. I worked way too hard to get where I am. 

Matt: What position do you play? 

Morgan: I play attack. 

Matt: Um, so do you take that mindset in to going into sports media as a BDJ student? Do you want that same, almost killer mentality, that if you can come back from four sports injuries, you can pretty much do anything in sports media when you finish playing?

Morgan: Yeah, I think for me, um, being able to translate my competitive attitude from playing a sport for four years very competitively, and now being able to do it bigger, but in a slightly different environment, is um, very exciting for me. 

Matt: When you go into the industry, what’s the one sport you would love to cover if you can’t cover lacrosse?

Morgan: I would love to cover football, because growing up watching the Dallas Cowboys is what we did as a family. So, I – I am very interested – and big Tony Romo fan. Big Tony Romo fan. 

Link to Audio Interview: 

https://soundcloud.com/user-344446243/newhouse-school-of-public-communications-morgan-interview/s-tncrs

Brady Williams hopes to find what makes him happy

Every student has a unique path that has brought them to the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, but Brady Williams’ has been longer and windier than most.

            By the end of high school, Williams had no idea what he was going to do for the rest of his life and decided to go to school to become a physician’s assistant.  After two years in the program, the Buffalo native realized he was not in it for the right reasons.

            When Brady Williams was three, his father was diagnosed with a rare form of brain cancer, but Steve Williams overcame the odds and is still alive today. Brady felt that he owed it to a higher power to dedicate his life to the medical community.

            “I felt that I needed to go into the medical field because of what my dad had been through,” Williams said.

          Trying something he did not enjoy allowed Williams to realize he did not need to base his life around his father's illness to do something worthwhile with his life. Instead of chasing that feeling of obligation, Brady Williams has come to Newhouse in search of something that makes him happy.

            “I'm like, excited to actually be here,” Williams said. “That's the first time I felt like that since high school.”

A full transcript of the interview can be found HERE, and the raw audio file can be found HERE.

ESPN skit extra Geraci eyes long form sports journalism

Like many other graduate students in Newhouse’s Sports Media Seminar, Matt Geraci has watched his fair share of SportsCenter episodes and favorite team broadcasts.

But fewer students can say they’ve spoken on camera during an ESPN college basketball broadcast.

Matt Geraci is a student in Newhouse's magazine, newspaper
and online journalism (MNO) graduate program.

During Geraci’s undergraduate internship with the University of Dayton’s Athletic Department, he just happened to be in the right place at the right time.

“We need some fill ins for the ESPN skit,” a manager said as Geraci was busy with game day set up responsibilities.

Before he knew it, he was reciting lines alongside ESPN Bracketologist Joe Lunardi and former Dayton men’s basketball coach Archie Miller.

“I messaged my family, and they all saw me on ESPN before the game,” said Geraci. “It was kind of a fun experience that I just happened to luck into.”

Geraci specialized in sports management at Dayton, but he’s since discovered a deeper interest in creative writing that he wants to blend with his love for athletic competition.

“I think it offers a lot of possibilities, so hoping to continue down that path,” he added. “More of a kind of narrative-based approached to writing. Something like The Athletic. Something along those lines.”

Access the full Q&A audio here. Access the full Q&A transcript here.

Veteran broadcaster Goldstein keeps growing with fastest sport on ice

In 22 years with the Florida Panthers, broadcaster Steve Goldstein has seen it all. Lockouts. Playoff runs. Controversial management shake-ups. Major free agent signings.

Newhouse alum Steve Goldstein
first joined the Florida Panthers in 1997.

He has also embraced the challenges that come with covering a constantly evolving league and franchise.

For instance, rule changes intended to reduce interference with player speed have accelerated game pace over the last decade, making commentary efficiency especially important on live broadcasts.

“You've got to make that, literally, half second decision on what to leave out and what not to,” Goldstein explained.

During Goldstein’s time with the Panthers, media and fans around the league have also become more familiar with more advanced game and player analytics. Goldstein believes some simpler analytics-based comparisons--like differences between a team’s shot attempts and shots registered on goal--can and have been adding value to broadcasts in the latter half of this decade.

But Goldstein also feels that other advanced statistics requiring deeper explanation, like a player’s Corsi statistic, don’t fit naturally in broadcasts of a sport with hockey’s speed.

“Just be the supplemental part of the story,” Goldstein said, referring to his focus on letting the action speak for itself. “The story is right there on the screen.”

Access the full Q&A audio here. Access the full Q&A transcript here.

Pursuing Her Dream

Have you ever thought about where your life would be if someone had made a different decision than they did? For Alexa Roth, the decision her parents made to adopt her from Russia at eight months old altered the course of her life forever.

“To think I could have been anywhere else, I could have been with whoever, but I have parents that are my adoptive parents, who put so much into making sure that I could follow my dreams,” Roth said. “That I could get to where I wanted to be. And just to think about where I could be even in Russia is just, it's like, wow, I'm here. I'm living my dream, and I'm going to make the best of it. And it's crazy to think.”

However, the journey to living her dream was no easy one. Although she had supportive parents, other people around her were not so supportive. Roth was the media relations coordinator for her athletic department, but the department would not help her get to where she wanted to be.

“I asked to get press releases and press passes to go and do a stand up on the field, because that's what I eventually want to do. sideline reporting,” Roth said. “And they said, no, there's too many people on the field, we can't help you with that.”

Roth eventually sat down with her boss at work worried about the fact that she was not enjoying what she was doing in school. 

Her boss asked her the question, “what are some things you love to do?”

 Roth said, “I don't really know right now, but I'm good at writing and I really love sports.”

“Okay, well, this might sound crazy, and out of your comfort zone, but go down to the school newspaper and ask if you can write for the sports department. See how you like that.” He told her.

Roth ultimately loved that job and knew from then on, it is what she wanted to do. Because of the events that have taken place in her life and the people who have and haven’t helped her along the way, Roth is now moving forward with her dream of becoming a sideline reporter. She is pursing that dream by studying Broadcast and Digital Journalism at Newhouse.

To listen to the full interview or view the transcribed version, click the link below.

Interview with Alexa Roth