Life After TV News

A lot of people are getting out of TV news, either being pushed or by choice.

Many of them land their next job in PR.

The pay is often better, and the hours are definitely better, although, to me, a PR job seems boring.

Ron Pivo is one of those that left TV news but not by choice. He was laid off at KNBC (LA) at the time NBC was making cuts due to COVID.

Pivo started his TV career at KPIC-TV in Roseburg, Oregon. He had stops at KMTR and KGW in Portland, before landing at KNBC.

At KNBC, he met Brett Martzke, who worked previously at Fox Sports, The Golf Channel, and CNN/SI, before going to KNBC.

The two have now launched a podcasting network and it is getting good traction.

Pivo posted about his next venture on his social media.

Last summer right after the NIL (name, image likeness) legislation was approved I sent a text to my friend, Brett Martzke. We worked together in the KNBC-TV Sports Department and we always loved talking about the business of sports. My short text basically said, "Do you think a Podcasting Network featuring college athletes would work ?" Brett is always quick on the response, but this time the text came back quicker than ever and it said, "Hell Yea." (I paraphrase). So we went down the path of creating the first every Podcasting Network hosted exclusively by College Athletes. I won't get too into the details of what it takes to build a a business from scratch, but those who've done it know it's an up at dawn and never ending quest. But when you believe in your product, those people you're working with, it's more than a job, it's a passion. When we got our plan together we had a conversation with the people at IHeart Radio/Media and they couldn't have been more excited about the network which we would name The College Athletes Network. We then partnered with IHeart Radio and started focusing our energies on a lot of things, but mainly getting the right athletes involved. And that's where we stand today. We launch our network today (Wednesday) with Noah Buono and his Podcast called "Walkie TalkieZ". Noah has been a walk-on Basketball Player at two different colleges, most recently Duquesne. And he does a great job of talking to other athletes about why one would walk-on, what are the sacrifices, benefits, etc. But Noah is just the first of many athletes and Podcasts to come. A full News Release is being released this morning, but it's been a pleasure to scour the country for the best voices to put on our network. I have found these college athletes to be remarkably smart, witty, creative, passionate, and really driven. I can't wait to share their stories and their voices on The College Athletes Network. Please look for all our Podcasts on the IHeart Radio App, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you download Podcasts. Thanks for reading.