After a few years (and a few promotions!), we had the chance to catch up again with Jen Cook from WUCF PBS. Read about her story and career advice below. Her previous interview from 2017 can be found here.
When I was in the 3rd grade, I was crowned the school's "name that TV theme song" champion. Hi my name is Jennifer Cook and I'm a television addict.
In 8th grade, I decided I wanted to be a soap opera star on Days of Our Lives. When selecting high school classes I decided to sign up for television production classes. I somehow thought that I didn't need to know how to act or perform, I needed to understand how television worked. So here we are, I'm not a soap star, but I have been working in television since 1990. My first paid job in television was as a freshman at Michigan State University, working as a student production assistant at WKAR. I loved working pledge drives, the annual auction and the weekly public affairs show.
From here, I moved to Florida to take a job in Walt Disney World media relations. My three years working with media from across the country taught me some valuable skills in learning how to deal with media, writing press releases and working with celebrities...and oh do I have stories. From there, I went to work at an Orlando 24-hour news station, where I spent the next 14 years covering all the crazy Florida man stories you can imagine. But also covered some of the biggest stories around, like Space Shuttle Columbia, Casey Anthony, Trayvon Martin and more. But the thing about 14-hour news, it never stops, and I needed a break.
About that time, the brand-new PBS station, WUCF had a job opening for a Communications Manager and I thought that perhaps I needed to go back to my roots of public media. For the first time in my career, it felt like all my jobs in all different aspects of media really paid off. I've been at WUCF for six years now, and my titled has changed about six times since.
I'm now the Senior Director of Content & Engagement. I am responsible for bringing together national and local content, and ensuring our events, educational programs, local productions, digital products and communications are all on the same strategic path.
The most rewarding part of my job is seeing the team pull together something we all worked on together. For example, the first project I led was our "Summer of Space" plan. This was the first time we really focused our station energy on one intense plan. Development had a piece, local production had a piece, education had a piece. We said NO to other projects. It was daunting at the start, wondering if we could pull it off. But I'm happy to say not only did we hit our internal goals, but we were able to really amplify our message and value to the community we serve.
The most challenging part of my position is trying to make everyone happy. I know it's not even possible, but I work so hard to try. I want to make sure everyone feels heard, everyone has a voice at the table no matter their job title. While we aren't going to be able to execute all ideas, I want to make sure people at least feel they are valued. I could never do my job without a creative and engaged team working with me.
If I could get into a time machine and tell myself something that first week I walked through the doors of WUCF it would be to hold on tight. I don't think I could have ever expected some of the things we've been through as a station, but also as an industry. With technology evolving at such a rapid rate, with viewer habits changing and with so many options for content, it's a scary and exciting time to be part of this business. But wow, it's also exhausting.
When it comes to giving career advice, I have a few important things to say:
First, get yourself a copy of Bossypants by Tina Fey. It's a book I read at least once-a-year because, well, she's my spirit animal. One of my favorite things I tell students and interns often is to follow the golden rule of improv...the "Yes and..." rule. It means you never know what you are missing by turning down an opportunity that may be outside of your scope. don't be afraid to push out of your comfort zone and experience new things. Saying yes will allow you to be an active participant in discussions and can allow your voice to be heard.
Second, go back to the old Sesame Street exercise of "Over! Under! Through!" If a difficult road is ahead, see if you can use one of these three tactics to help you through the situation. Make sure to have your allies with you as you venture down these roads. There is strength in numbers. I think my final piece of advice is to know who you are, know your goals and be true to those things. Confidence in yourself goes a long way. If you don't have it, find it.
Looking to connect with Jen Cook to learn more about her experience or obtain additional career advice? Email her today at: Jennifer.Cook@wucf.org.
