A Short Message from Jag

A Short Message from Jag

Author: WJPZ February 25, 2023 Duration: 1:52

Email Jag: jag@jagindetroit.com

Hey everyone, it’s Jag with a couple of quick announcements about the podcast.

First and foremost, I can’t thank you enough for your incredible support of this project. Thank you to those who have come on the show, those of you who have listened and shared it, everyone who has helped me put this together, and anyone who’s dropped me a nice message about it.  And a special thanks to two folks who aren’t in our podcast credits.  Matt Friedman, who posts the teasers for each episode to our WJPZ alumni Facebook page and has connected me with so many of our great alumni. And Josh Wolff, who hooked me up with many of our more recent alums.

I originally planned on doing 50 episodes of the show to commemorate 50 years of WJPZ, but the response was overwhelming – far beyond anything I could have ever expected We’ve got over SEVENTY interviews either recorded or scheduled, and I assume more to come after Banquet.  If you have any additional guests for the show – have them reach out to me – my email address is in this episode’s show notes.

That said, we are going to change up the release schedule.   One of the reasons I wanted to do this show was to build excitement for the upcoming Banquet.  So for the week leading up to the event, we’ll be releasing a new interview every weekday.

Once we all head home from Syracuse, though, this podcast will pull back to a once-a-week schedule, with new episodes dropping every Monday.   Simply put, while this has been a labor of love, it’s been a lot of labor and a lot of love, and I can’t keep up the pace we’ve been on.  I do have a business to run…and my wife misses me….I think.   By the way, thanks to Ellen for her support when I’ve disappeared into my office on nights and weekends for a few months.

I’ve learned so much about the great history of WJPZ with this project, and I hope you have too.  One thing I already knew, which continues to be hammered home with every episode, is what an incredible family we are.   So again, thank you for your continued support of this project, and I can’t wait to see you in Syracuse.

Want to be on the show? Email JAG at jag@jagpodcastproductions.com

Connect with the WJPZ Alumni Association: https://wjpzalumniassociation.org/


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For fifty years, the student-run airwaves of Syracuse University's WJPZ at 50 have been more than a radio station; they've been a launchpad. This oral history project captures that legacy not through dry facts, but through the voices that built it. Each episode is a conversation with a different alumnus, from the pioneers of the 1970s to recent graduates, tracing how their hands-on experience in what's called the "world's greatest media classroom" shaped careers in broadcasting and far beyond. You'll hear personal stories of late-night broadcasts, technical mishaps turned into triumphs, and the forging of lifelong bonds that created a unique professional family spanning generations. This podcast digs into the real, often messy, work of learning by doing, revealing how a campus station became an enduring institution. Tune in for a collection of fifty interviews that together form a living archive, celebrating the people, not just the programming, behind five decades of student-led radio.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

WJPZ at 50
Podcast Episodes
NPR National Correspondent Jennifer Ludden, Class of 1988 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 27:49
Jennifer Ludden, Class of 1988, has had an incredible radio reporting career. And it all started at WJPZ. This Tennessee native was recruited by "dorm mom" Sue Mandel (now Weingarten) to come "get a tour" of the radio st…
Man vs Food, Downton Abbey, and AARP with Jeffy K, Class of 2006 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 35:48
In our large group of friendly, outgoing people, Jeffy K is truly a standout. This 2006 alum sits down with us today to talk about his journey from Western Massachusetts to Syracuse, then his roles at The Travel Channel,…
Melody and Baymes, Class of 2020 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 29:00
Melody Emm and James "Baymes" Grundy are the most recent WJPZ couple in our history, and today we learn about their significant contributions to the radio station. Baymes, a New Jersey native, toured SU on the recommenda…
Hall of Famer Rusty Berrell, Class of 1986 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 19:53
Hall of Famer Rob, aka Rusty the Bailiff, Berrell hopped in his truck to spend a few minutes with us today. Doing his research on the best communications schools in the country, this Fargo kid soon found himself at Syrac…
Sirius XM and Fox Sports' Rich Davis, Class of 2001 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 38:36
Being successful in "The Business," or any business for that matter, requires a combination of passion, hard work, a little bit of luck, and treating others well. Today's guest personifies all of that. Rich Davis from th…
The Women Running WJPZ in 2023- Grace Denton and Maddie Doolittle [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 50:58
If you've got a backlog of several episodes of this podcast to listen to, we highly recommend you bump today's to the top of your list. If you were in Syracuse for this year's Banquet, you heard from two of the all-femal…
Sue Mandel and Rob Weingarten,'85, a Match Made at WJPZ [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 24:22
Note: Thanks to Newhouse Professor Tina Perkins, WJPZ Class of 1993, for editing this episode of the pod. Sue Mandel and Rob Weingarten may be the first marriage to come out of WJPZ. Members of the Class of 1985, they me…
Andrew Scaglione, 2016, on Calling the National Title Game [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 32:55
Andrew Scaglione, Class of 2016, knew about WJPZ long before he was a student. That's because his father is a longtime friend of Hall of Famer Danno Wolkoff. In fact, Andrew's parents actually met at the Wolkoff wedding!…