My name is Garrett Davis Schwartz, and I'm a 21-year-old student at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. While born in West Orange, NJ, I moved just months later to Boca Raton, FL, where I was raised by my parents, Tracey and Jay. I maintain a very close relationship with my family, including my two younger brothers, Carson and Griffin. Currently, I'm studying Broadcast & Digital Journalism at the Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism.
Ever since I was 11 years old at Camp Manitou, an overnight summer camp, I knew that I wanted to be a sports journalist. Deprived of technology and, more importantly, New York Yankees baseball at camp, I needed to find a way to get my sport's fix for the summer. Consequently, I invented “SchwartzCenter,” my personal take on SportsCenter, in which I read the previous day's sports scores aloud to the entire camp each morning.
I began exploring journalism at Pine Crest School, where I became involved with the high-school paper, Type One. At the paper, I served in multiple roles, including as a reporter, sports editor, and, ultimately, editor-in-chief. While dabbling with “journalism” at summer camp, it was in high school where I really understood why I wanted to become a reporter. I loved the culture and camaraderie of working at a newspaper; the rush of being the first to get my hands on information; and, most importantly, engaging, informing and entertaining my readers.
In college, the majority of my reporting experience has been for Annenberg Media News , USC's student-run news publication. As a multi-media journalist, I've worked across the mediums of print, web, radio and television, and I've covered a wide range of topics, including breaking news, national news, world news, politics and sports. More specifically, my reporting has included coverage of Los Angeles' new Major League Soccer team, Pulitzer Prize-winner Rob Kuznia, and mayor Eric Garcetti.
More recently, my journalistic focus has gravitated toward the medium of radio. This semester, I'm working as a producer for Annenberg Radio News, where I produce a daily, ten-minute newscast covering the local, Los Angeles area. In my role, I'm responsible for pitching and assigning stories, assembling and managing a team of student journalists, and producing a live newscast on deadline.
Furthermore, I also co-host a radio show at USC's student-run radio station, KXSC. My sports-talk radio show, In The Trenches, embraces debate on the most pressing topics in professional, collegiate and USC sports. On the show, I also feature guest contributors to provide varying commentary, opinions and analysis. This semester, my show plans to host Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr.
Based on my reporting experience, my career aspiration is to become a sports-talk radio host. In the modern media industry, however, I understand the importance of being proficient across a variety of mediums. One of my favorite professional role models is sports journalist Bill Simmons, who has displayed this versatility across multiple platforms at The Ringer and HBO.
In addition to reporting, I'm also heavily involved with my fraternity, Beta Theta Pi, where I engage in social, philanthropic and career networking opportunities. In my two years as an active member, I've served both as the fraternity's Scholarship Chairman and New Member Advisor.
I anticipate graduating from USC in May 2018 and contributing in the workforce as a professional journalist.