Now in its fifth year, Professor Pete Weitzner’s Networking in New York and D.C. course connects students interested in a broadcast journalism/producing-for-the-news career with top-level alums working for all the major networks. This year’s excursion saw the addition of four new experiences:
The Wendy Williams Show
,
The Nightly Show
, ESPN, and a tour of the White House. “Three-quarters of the networks have a Chapman connection,” says Weitzner. “There are many reasons to get discouraged in this business so this is a way to show students this can happen and these connections are closer than you think.”

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Sophomore Jon Ryder (BFA/Television Writing & Productoin’18) is a testament to that connection. While touring
The Wendy Williams Show
in New York City, Ryder was introduced to freelance technical director alumnus Scotty Anderson (BFA’02), whose credits include
The Colbert Report
and
NBC Olympics
. Ryder, who aspires to become a technical director because he craves the pressure and adrenaline that lies behind the scenes in TV, was invited to join Anderson on the set of
Fox & Friends
. There, he was able to take on the technical direction of
The After the Show Show
segment. In fact, you can watch the
segment right here
.

“That experience confirmed my passion for this industry, and that I know what I’m doing and that this is what I want to be doing,” says Ryder.

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Monica Petruzzelli (BFA/News & Documentary’16) agrees. “This trip left me feeling inspired and ready to kickstart my career,” she says. So does Catie Kovelman (BFA/Creative Producing ’19). “Networking in New York was one of the greatest experiences of my life,” she says. “As a freshman in Dodge, it really confirmed my love for media and that I’m studying the right thing! Seeing everything from CNN and ESPN made me really excited for the future and gave me a renewed passion to learn about the industry.”

“The class taught us so much about the field that we love so much, and could easily lead to future employment opportunities,” adds Madison Bader (BFA/Television & Broadcast Journalism’16).