Nick Creegan rose to stardom from oxtail gravy

Nick Creegan took the risk of leaving behind a steady job with steady pay in sports journalism to pursue a lifelong dream of his: acting. Creegan, an SJI alum, introduced his story by talking about oxtail gravy at a Jamaican restaurant — a captivating story that led to kickstarting his acting career. However, Creegan’s experience in SJI always had him prepared for anything. Whether it was preparing for an audition or networking in the industry, he told the class to “stay ready, so you don’t have to get ready.” 

He emphasized to the class that, as young journalists, we have an advantage with our age. News organizations these days are navigating the Gen Z audience nowadays with more short-form and digital platforms. He told us that we, as Gen Z, are bringing in an audience that they want. So when we want to pitch show, podcast, or story ideas to our editors or producers, keep in mind the audience that you’re targeting in your pitch. When Creegan worked at Fox Sports, he worked hard to get his ideas out there so that his producers knew that they could count on him for fresh, new, and innovative ideas every time. 

This was something that stood out to me during our conversation with Creegan because I think it’s important to push your ideas out there, no matter if they get rejected or not so that I’m staying on top of the latest trends, what would receive the most clicks or views and what our audiences would enjoy consuming. One of the biggest takeaways from our talk with Creegan was that I must try oxtail gravy in my lifetime.