Emmy Winning Reporter Eva Zymaris, Class of 2014

Emmy Winning Reporter Eva Zymaris, Class of 2014

Author: WJPZ October 16, 2023 Duration: 28:18

Eva Zymaris, Class of 2014, has gone from Z89 News Director to Emmy winning reporter in New Haven Connecticut.  And she credits so much of her career success to the WJPZ family.

This New Jersey news aficionado quickly learned that Syracuse was the school for her.  As a sophomore, despite her desire to pursue a career in television, she was drawn to WJPZ.  She mentions the culture set by folks like Jeff Kurkjian, Allie Gold, Jeff Cucinell, and more.   Eva went from doing "89 second news updates" to the executive staff and co-hosting the Z Morning Zoo.

She was also quick to tap into our amazing alumni network - bringing business cards to her first Banquet.   She shadowed Steve Donovan's morning show.   She spent her second Sirius Radio internship on Rich Davis's morning show.  

After school, Eva landed her first reporting job in Western Massachusetts, after much persistence.  This cultivated a relationship with the 413's favorite native son, Jeffy K.   Eventually, Eva moved up to WTNH in New Haven Connecticut, the former home of Chris Velardi.

Today's guest considers it a privelege to be able to meet folks in her community and tell their stories.   While she loves the human interest side of reporting, she was awarded for her and her team's coverage of a murder case that started before Covid and continues today.  You'll hear about that too.

Eva tells the story of a valuable lesson she learned from PD Rashaud Thomas when the station was temporarily running out of Newhouse.   And she leaves us with some rock-solid advice for students and young reporters who want to pursue a career in the field.

The WJPZ at 50 Podcast Series is produced by Jon Gay, Class of 2002, and his podcast production agency, JAG in Detroit Podcasts.

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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
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,…
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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…
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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!…
How This Podcast Landed Jason Palladino, 1997, a New Gig [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 36:44
Jason Palladino, aka Jay Sweet, from the Class of 1997, always approaches a new gig with a sense of fearlessness. So it's no surprise that he would be our first alumnus to land a new job because of the WJPZ at 50 podcast…