Alumni Spotlight #7: Jake Slane, '08

Today’s “Alumni Spotlight” shines like the lights of Hollywood onto 2008 Communication Studies graduate Jake Slane.  My intro should give you a hint as to what Jake has been up to, but here’s a few more: You can find Jake on the red carpet at awards shows, but you probably won’t see him while you are watching E!  Jake has worked with Debbie Reynolds and RuPaul, but you won’t find him on TV.  What’s the answer to my riddle?  Jake is a publicist for VH1 and Logo TV!

Now, those of you who know me well, know that I am a fan of celebrity news (don’t judge me, a lot of people are!).  So when Jake came by to see me recently, I peppered him with questions about his work.  And here is what I found out.  Jake’s work as a publicist centers on building relationships with the media.  His role is to facilitate relationships between the press and celebrities.  In this role, he writes a lot of press releases, pitches stories, and puts together media kits, including the biographies of celebrities on TV shows that are featured on VH1 or Logo.  He also puts together screenings of shows and attends premiere parties and red carpet events.  He is the person that you sometimes catch a glimpse of who is ushering celebrities down the red carpet and introducing them to reporters along the way.  In the past he has reported live from behind-the-scenes at awards shows and he says that he really likes the fast-paced environment.  He recently worked at the Critics Choice Movie Awards and the VH1 Divas concert.  One of his first tasks when he started a few years ago was to escort the “Golden Girls” to the TV Land Awards!  What a great story to bring out at family functions (“Have I ever told you about the time I escorted the Golden Girls to the TV Land Awards?  Betty White was so funny and you wouldn’t believe what happened when…!”).     

Jake started off interning at Nickelodeon while he was an undergrad in our department.  He then went back as a freelancer to help with the Kid’s Choice Awards and then he met someone from VH1, and the rest, as they say in the “biz,” is history. 

You can follow Jake on twitter here: http://twitter.com/slanejake.  Jake says he uses twitter quite frequently with his job as a way to keep in touch with journalists. 

'08 grad Jake Slane (left) on the red carpet at the Critics Choice Movie Awards with two of his fellow publicists

Next up for Jake is travelling to Atlanta to work on a scripted series starring Queen Latifah.  Congratulations to Jake on his exciting position!  Also a special shout-out to Jake for his frequent comments on my blog!

Does Jake’s job sound like something you would be interested in?  According to Jake, they are always looking for great students to hire as interns in their press department.  He would especially love to have someone from our department at USF during the summer if you are from the Southern California area or are able to temporarily move to Santa Monica/LA.  According to Jake, “The only requirements are junior or senior standing and that they receive college credit.  We also look for people who are good writers and have an outgoing and professional personality.”  If you are interested, contact me at edoohan@usfca.edu and I can put you in touch with Jake.  Look at our alumns looking out for our current students!  Beautiful!