Written by Cristina Castrellon '19
Since she was little, Olivia Stomski knew she wanted to work in sports. She met a woman who was the VP of the NBA and at 8 years old, her immediate thought was, “I want her job” followed by, “I’m going to be a sports TV producer.” That dream grew closer to truth when she finished her undergraduate degree in broadcast journalism at Newhouse. Stomski went on to work in various editing and producing roles at Fox Sports Net.
Now a professor of television, radio and film and director of Newhouse Sports Media Center, Stomski came back to SU to see students love something that she loves. Aside from her teaching career, Stomski is the executive producer at ProAngle Media in Los Angeles, freelances for ESPN and Fox, and covers live sports events mainly in colleges and across the country. Stomski flies out on the weekends to attend games, wherever they are, and returns to Syracuse on Sundays. The schedule is crazy, she said, but it’s what she loves.
When she first started her career, she had to face the fact that there were very few females in sports media. “There weren’t many women to give me advice, and if there were any women in the job, it would be a graphics operator that had a male telling her what to type,” Stomski reflected on her past experience but said that it doesn’t look like this now. The outlook is very bright, a lot of progress is happening and happening fast, and although she agrees that the job isn’t easy and can be very stressful, she said that if you love it, it could be the best job in the world.
“I’m not going to tell you it will be easy, but it will be worth it,” Stomski gives this advice to her students. Stomski enjoys what she does and likes to think that the future of the industry is bright with Newhouse graduates in it, which is why she works hard to help her students prepare for the fast-changing world. Stomski believes that every time she travels and works, she is learning something new, which later becomes helpful for her students who will step into the industry. Juggling a crazy schedule and teaching career, Stomski is absolutely passionate about her job and everything she does in the industry. “It will be tough, but it will be worth it,” Stomski offers this to anyone who aspires to work in the field.
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