Liz Gupta (nee Doyon), always knew she wanted to be an attorney. And when she learned that an undergraduate degree in journalism would provide her a great foundation, she headed off to Syracuse. And while she knew what she wanted to do for a long-term career, she wouldn't have guessed she'd be a 19-year-old general manager of a radio station, asking the Chancellor for a million dollars, and working with general contractors on a massive rebuild.
After joining the station, Liz quickly became part of the morning show, then joining the exec staff as morning show director. By spring of her sophomore year, she had become a leading candidate to become the station's new general manager.
Liz's tenure as GM was unique in the half-century history of the radio station. Knowing that the station needed to be overhauled, she worked with Stephen Kurtz, Alex Silverman, and other alumni to put together a proposal. She and Alex walked in to Chancellor Nancy Cantor's office and asked for nearly a million dollars. And she said yes.
While this would turn out to be a pivotal moment for the long-term history of WJPZ, it did not come with some major issues in the short term. What was supposed to be a summer construction project dragged through the entire fall semester, necessitating the station to be voice-tracked from Newhouse studios. Liz and Alex had a number of meetings with contractors and others to try and push the project across the finish line. Finally, along with Rob Crandall, Stephen Kurtz, and Corey Crockett, the spend the week prior to Christmas 2012 installing the new equipment, sometimes while the construction continued. The new station went on the air, just in time for Liz's term as GM to wrap up as she headed to London for a semester.
If you missed it in Corey Crockett's episode, here's the video of when they put the new station on the air:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wE9wfQZ6TgQ
Liz returned from London, and spent her senior year as VP of Ops, and finally got to experience the new studio.
Following graduation, Liz worked as a victim advocate in her home state of Massachusetts. From there, she went to law school at Washington University in St. Louis, before returning home to Boston, where she's been ever since. And she got married in 2022, with a Z89 contingent of course.
WJPZ continues to be the world's greatest media classroom, and Liz learned some incredible lessons during her tenure. She talks about maintaining professional composure in high-stress situations (such as delayed construction). And the importance of relationships - she cites a number of friendships with both classmates and older alumni that she's formed over the years.
And we close with a great story that involves Liz and Rocket Ross.
Join Us in Syracuse for Banquet on March 4th: https://bit.ly/WJPZ50BanquetTickets
The WJPZ at 50 Podcast is produced by Jon Gay '02 and JAG in Detroit Podcasts
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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