Life and Work with Priscilla Casper

Today we’d like to introduce you to Priscilla Casper.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
When I was in high school, my mom encouraged me to audition to be an anchor for my school’s morning news program. I never thought I wanted to do anything in journalism and originally thought how boring that was as a career… sit in a chair and read words through a TV screen. Well, I got one of the anchor spots and I learned it was much more than that. In this class, I not only anchored the daily announcements to the whole school every second period, but I also went out of my comfort zone to talk to people I had never spoken to before and write stories about what was happening around our school. I loved it!

So, when I was applying for college, I already knew what I wanted to do. As a southern California girl and my dad a University of Southern California alumni, I knew USC was my dream school. Not only did I grow up going to the USC football games with my family, but USC had a phenomenal journalism school. Unfortunately, I didn’t get in and was crushed. Something I worked so hard for… all the AP classes, extracurricular, 4.0+ GPA… felt like it meant nothing. I was lucky admitted to Loyola Marymount University and went there for a year. Then I tried to transfer into USC my sophomore year and I got into USC’s Annenberg School majoring in Broadcast and Digital Journalism.

While I was at USC, I pushed myself and was driven to take advantage of the opportunity I had been given. Every semester I had an internship working at a news station or some type of news media outlet. Through my college years, I interned for six different companies including CNBC Los Angeles, CBS/KCAL9, and Entertainment Tonight (all mostly unpaid). But my experience was invaluable and I gained the greatest mentors that have turned into dear friends. I can definitely say I would not be where I am today without their mentorship and friendship.

Aside from internships and school, I worked for a company called Maximo TV where I spent my weekends and weeknights reporting on red carpets and movie premieres for their YouTube channel. USC Annenberg also had a student-run news station called Annenberg TV News which every semester I held a new position. I was MMJing and turning stories every week, to anchoring the broadcast and even producing.

When I graduated from college, I sent my reel across the country to many stations with openings. Of course, when you send your reel to one job opening, it is competing with hundreds of other candidates. I landed a reporter position at KGUN9 in Tucson, Arizona. I fell in love with Tucson and it wasn’t too far from home if I needed a little weekend getaway.

This was the first time I really moved far away from home. The first couple of months were hard adjusting in my new job. When you are on TV, people expect you to be perfect and that is simply not possible… especially when it is a live TV! I was very hard on myself and often doubted I could do this. With social media nowadays, people feel the need to message you negative things about yourself when they don’t even know you. Messages about your appearance, or how stupid you just sounded. But we are real people with feelings. After some time, I gained my confidence and ignored the haters.

I was at KGUN9 for two years. I did everything from report to anchor and even fill in for weather. I covered breaking news to in-depth reports on the U.S.-Mexico border, and Arizona’s growing opioid epidemic. One of my memorable pieces was “An inside look at border drug tunnels” in Nogales and Douglas where I went underground with U.S. Customs and Border Patrol’s tunnel team to uncover the latest technology used to keep drug smugglers from Mexico out of the U.S.

After those two years, KVOA News 4 Tucson hired me as their weekday noon and 4 pm anchor and MMJ. I couldn’t be more excited to continue my journey in Tucson and tell the stories that will impact the community!

Has it been a smooth road?
I have faced many struggles along the way to get to where I am today. I worked my butt off to get into my dream school, only to be rejected. Then, that made me work even harder the following year and I got in. I applied for my dream internships in New York, only to also be rejected from those as well many times. But what I didn’t realize was that it led me to land other internships where I gained amazing mentors that are dear friends to this day and continue to help me navigate through my career.

Although it may look like a glamorous job, there is nothing glamorous about the news industry. You are running around carrying heavy equipment (camera, tripod, mics, etc.) and making many calls hoping someone will speak to you about your story. Then you are writing and editing it all together… all while working under intense deadlines to make your slot and look presentable on TV. When you are looking for jobs, you have to send your reel out and are competing with hundreds of other candidates. I have definitely received many “no’s” and rejections in my life. But every pushback always motivated me more and pushed me to work harder.

Some advice for women starting their journey no matter what they want to do… just picture your end goal and then work towards it. Don’t give up! Work hard, stay focused, and you will find that one person who believes in you that will give you a shot.

Nothing in life comes easy. When you work hard for something, you just need patience and it will come when you are ready for it. All my rejections in life so far have made the person I am today. In many of these instances when something was very difficult or it didn’t go the way I would have hoped, I don’t say “Why me,” I say “Try me!”

Please tell us more about what you do, what you are currently focused on and most proud of.
I am a weekday anchor at KVOA News 4 Tucson. I anchor the noon and 4 pm show, while also reporting for the later shows.

I love that I can tell people’s stories that are truly making a difference in other people’s lives!

Are there any apps, books, podcasts or other resources that you’ve benefited from using?
I am currently reading Stress Less, Accomplish More by Emily Fletcher and it is great!

I also have an app on my phone called Motivation. The app sends me an alert every morning with an inspirational quote and it is a great way to start the day!

Contact Info:

• Email: pcasper@kvoa.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/priscillacasper/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PriscillaCasperTV/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/priscillacasper

 

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