Behind the Byline

Kathy Daneman has been a publicist for more than two decades. So… what exactly does a publicist do? “What I do is work with authors to get their books covered,” she explained. “To get book reviews, to get interviews, to place original essays, to get them on tv, to get radio interviews, to go on tour. And I help them come up with ideas for original pieces.” She’ll even help authors with research and help them come up with interesting topics related to their books. Learn more about what she does, and how scholastic journalism helped her get there. 

It's been 20 years and one week since Jenni Carlson wrote her first column for The Oklahoman. She's most well known for writing an article that sparked a 2007 rant from Oklahoma State football coach Mike Gundy ("I'm a man! I'm 40!"), but her career has spanned far more than those infamous three minutes.  The week after hosts Evan Blackwell and Sarah Scott interviewed Carlson, her newspaper released a moving article on her career. In our interview she shared how scholastic journalism started her down this path and helped her get where she is today. She also shared advice for young people who want to make their way in the sports journalism world. 

Kari Williams has a day job writing for VFW Magazine, but her byline has also appeared on some of professional wrestling's most well-known publications.  She started writing about pro wrestling in high school, and kept at it. But Kari is about more than just wrestling. She's been able to combine her interest in wrestling with her job at the VFW with articles on how active military and veterans' lives often intersect with the wrestling world.  Plus, she shared lots of great insights with hosts Evan Blackwell and Jenica Hallman -- everything from why you should join journalism organizations as a student to the value of internships, and why you should become a journalist even though it won't make you rich. 

Before Jessica Rapp moved to Beijing, her peers at the college newspaper warned her not to do it, saying she’d get blacklisted from working in journalism. Jessica went there anyway and (spoiler alert) was not blacklisted. Her byline has even appeared on such widely-read sites as CNN Style and Apartment Therapy.   She shared her experiences with hosts Jenica Hallman and Sarah Scott, including why it’s worth it to try living and working abroad, and how working for her high school and college newspapers helped her find her footing.   You can find Jessica on Instagram and Twitter, @jrapppp.

Matt Schott has had quite the journalistic journey. He started as a sports reporter in high school, continued through college and became his school’s sports editor, worked for professional publications including the Chicago Tribune, then came back to scholastic journalism. He’s been a teacher at Francis Howell Central High School in suburban St. Louis, Missouri for 14 years. In this episode, Matt shares his journey and the lessons he’s learned along the way with hosts Evan Blackwell and Jenica Hallman.

Anna Elizabeth James loves making movies, and she's good at it. She won awards in film school, branched out to direct the family films "Destined to Ride" and "Emma's Chance" and now has her sights set on even bigger fish. When Anna started writing professionally (her original goal was to write a novel, then her mentor led her to screenwriting), she knew she had at least "a smidge of talent" that she could nourish. The reason she knew she had that talent? Her high school English teacher, Mr. Jim Jordan (host of WYPN's Yearbook Chat with Jim podcast), had recruited her to be on his yearbook staff. In this episode, Anna shares life lessons, her incredible work ethic and how she honed her OCD into a superpower with hosts Jenica Hallman and Sarah Scott. You can learn more about Anna at annaelizabethjames.com and find her movies on iTunes and Amazon.

"Change with the journey." That's Jennifer Ward's advice to young journalists. She fell in love with journalism at her college newspaper and yearbook, and went on to work for the Dallas Morning News and the Fresno Bee. However, she followed her heart, changed with the journey, and eventually opened her own tabletop game store in Fresno, California. She still uses many of the skills developed as a journalist, especially research and interviewing. In this interview, she shares her advice and experience with hosts Evan Blackwell and Jenica Hallman. Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Leave a review or send them to podcasts@walsworth.com.

Dan Gelston jokes that he got into sports journalism because he wanted to attend the games for free, but his start covering high school games in a small town launched an impressive career. Gelston now works for the Associated Press. He's covered everything from the Kentucky Derby, to the Olympics in Beijing, to figure skating championships. In this episode, he shares some of the skills he started to develop as a high school and college journalist, and how those skill helped him reach where he is today. He also shares advice for aspiring journalists. You can find Dan Gelston on Twitter at @APgelston. Contact the Behind the Byline hosts via podcasts@walsworth.com.

Welcome to Behind the Byline! The Walsworth Yearbooks Podcast Network (WYPN) is excited to introduce a new show that shares the experiences of scholastic journalism students once they graduate. In each episode, hosts Evan Blackwell, Jenica Hallman and Sarah Scott interview a former yearbook, newspaper, photojournalism or broadcast student about the skills they learned in high school or college and how it helped them launch their current career. Watch for the first episode, featuring Dan Gelston, a sportswriter for the Associated Press. Subscribe now so you don’t miss any future episodes, which will feature former scholastic journalism students now working in a wide range of careers. https://www.walsworthyearbooks.com/podcasts/behind-the-byline Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Email podcasts@walsworth.com.