By Max Prinz
A pair of Rams returned to their old stomping grounds Tuesday for Fordham’s first ever News-Brunch.
Alice Gainer, FCRH ’04, and Dick Brennan, GSB ’83, reporters at WCBS and co-anchors of WLNY-TV’s News at Nine, spoke Tuesday morning to celebrate National News Engagement Day.
The event, hosted by the communication and media studies department and the communication honor society, Lambda Pi Eta, drew a large, standing-room only crowd to McGinley 235. Brennan and Gainer, New York’s only all-Fordham news team, gave students advice and spoke fondly about their time at Rose Hill.
“This place here is very special,” Brennan said. “When I walk through here in the fall, it’s the greatest feeling in the world.”
Gainer shared similar feelings about her alma mater. She was one of the founders of Fordham Nightly News and also spent time at WFUV, getting critical hands-on experience.
“I remember covering something at City Hall next to Marcia Kramer, who’s a legend at CBS,” Gainer said. “And now I work with her and that’s amazing and fantastic.”
Brennan, too, told a story of getting caught tongue-tied in front President Jimmy Carter as an 18-year-old freshman working for WFUV.
“He comes up and he stops and I was like ‘Uhhh’,” Brennan said. “But, I learned always have a question ready. At that moment, I said, ‘Wow this is pretty cool. I can get to talk to the president’.”
Dr. Beth Knobel, a communication and media studies professor and advisor of the Fordham Ram, helped organize the event and moderated the discussion between the two newscasters.
“We thought it would be great to dedicate a whole day to the news and why it matters,” Knobel told the assembled students.
Both Gainer and Brennan spoke about the current state of news and the media. They stressed the importance of letting go of the obsession to be first and instead focusing on being right.
Gainer recounted a story where a cargo container on a ship was thought to have a person inside it. She reported the facts as she knew them, but her executive producer called her and told her to report a fact she had not confirmed as true.
“She said ‘Just say it now, we can retract it later,’” Gainer said. “I almost quit on the spot. I said to her ‘I’m not going to do that’ and got off the phone with her. Ultimately it’s my face out there, it’s my name and my reputation. Turns out it was totally wrong.”
Gainer was proud not to have had to retract anything in her career.
“It’s so much more important to be right,” said Gainer.
Brennan referenced CBS lead-anchor Scott Pelley when talking about the current problems the news business is facing.
“Everybody’s a reporter and nobody’s an editor,” Brennan said. “Nobody will remember who was first. Nobody will forgive you if you’re wrong.”
He also attempted to discount the notion that the news business is incredibly political, stressing the importance of remaining neutral in reporting.
“That’s not what we do,” Brennan said. “We’re professionals, we try to call it. Nobody believes that, but if I could only take you into a newsroom and show you how things work. We’re only trying to get it right.”
Gainer agreed that remaining impartial was critical.
“You have to get both sides or they won’t run the story,” Gainer said. “If you don’t, they’ll come after you.”
The two co-anchors also took questions and doled out a great deal of advice, telling students to remain passionate and dedicated.
“You really have to want this and know that you’re good at it,” Gainer said. “It’s a tough business and it’s getting even more competitive.”
“Everybody thinks they want to be in TV because it’s fun,” Brennan agreed. “It’s hard work. You’ve got to have some passion.”
Brennan also mentioned that it was OK to try and fail.
“Have an idea of what you want to do, but don’t be too worried about it,” Brennan said. “When you’re in your 20s you can fail all over the place. Try all those things and don’t be afraid to fail.”
Max Prinz is The Fordham Ram Sports Editor.