By Ehlayna NapolitanoStaff Writer
Harry Cicma, an NBC sports anchor, visited Professor Telforts public relations class on the morning of Wednesday, Feb. 27. Cicma anchors for multiple radio stations and is a producer of several sports-oriented TV shows.
Cicma addressed the class for 40 minutes about the field of broadcast journalism before accepting questions from students.
I thought [this] would be a good experience to expose the students to his professionalism, said Professor Telfort. He hoped that the informal session would prepare his class for the professional world of journalism.
Cicma graduated from Rutgers University and found a job at a small TV station in Sioux Falls, Iowa. In the following decade he chased his ideal job from one TV station to another.
I was literally living on an air mattress [at one point], Cicma said. I was interviewing famous people but I was barely making any money.
Now Cicma produces several television shows focused on niche sports, like tennis and fencing. He is also working as the third sports anchor on NBCa station that he applied to for nearly ten years before a happenstance phone call finally got him hired.
Hailey Fitch, a second-year public relations major who hopes to practice corporate PR at Disney, took heart from Cicmas talk.
Its really scary; you dont know where youre going to end up because journalism is getting smaller, Fitch said. Its great to hear that he went through all of these things and he still got his dream.
Cicma imparted experiential wisdom on the students, encouraging them to pursue their passions with fervor and with dedication. If you love something and you have talent amazing things can happen, he said. Thats what happened to me. My dream is to anchor in a city with a big skyline. Thats what I used to say and now Im in New York.
This is precisely what Fitch is taking out of the experience. [My takeaway] is to just keep trying, she said. Even if you feel down in the dumps, just keep going.