Extra! Extra!
COM Alumni Spotlight
Brandon Bodow, COM’06
Booker, Good Morning America
New York, New York
At the College of Communication, Brandon Bodow operated at quite a clip. He volunteered as a peer advisor, served as a resident assistant on the COM floor in Warren Towers and worked as a teaching assistant in Professor Garland Waller's Production I class. In his “spare” time he was the music correspondent and producer at Nitebeat with Barry Nolan, a production assistant on Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve and interned at Good Morning America. While he finished his senior year, GMA held a job for him (a rarity at a national network) and after graduating, he relocated to the Big Apple to work as a booker on the morning show. While he produces live news and entertainment segments, books talent and coordinates GMA's summer concert series, Brandon also hobnobs with A-list celebrities and stays connected to the Boston University community.
COM: How did COM prepare you for this job?
BB: Thanks to my television professors—especially Garland Waller, Cathy Perron and Sue Sprecher—I was able to streamline my goals and determine exactly what I wanted to pursue after graduation—the producing side of live television.
COM: What has been your favorite segment and who has been your favorite guest?
BB: Such a tough question. I booked a feature story this week that I love about a 20-year-old girl from Hesperia, California, who is raising her four younger sisters alone while both of her parents are serving in Iraq. Favorite guest.I really liked Pat Monahan from the band Train, Morgan Freeman. Oh, and the Pussycat Dolls.
COM: What are your long-range career goals?
BB: I'd love to executive produce a television show at some point. In fact, I'm developing some concepts for new shows that I hope to pitch in the future. Meanwhile, I absolutely love my job at GMA and look forward to growing as a producer here at ABC.
COM: Staying so busy, do you ever have a chance to reminisce about your time at COM? What are some of your favorite memories from Commonwealth Avenue?
BB: There are just so many.from my first week on the COM floor in Warren Towers where I met some amazing people that I still consider my best friends.to a trip to Las Vegas to cover a TV convention for an independent study.to creating a documentary with professor Garland Waller. to an amazing senior year where two neighboring Student Village apartments turned into the set of a year-long episode of Friends.
COM: So if you can’t relive your glory days in Boston, how do you stay connected to BU?
BB: Events sponsored by the Alumni Club of New York, such as its skating event in Central Park, are a great way to reconnect with people from COM. I’m in constant contact with my BU friends—e-mail, cell phone, Instant Messenger, Blackberry, Facebook. I can't believe it’s been almost a year since we graduated!
To get involved, reconnect and share your updates, contact Ryan Bersani, COM senior staff coordinator, at comalum@bu.edu. Perhaps the COM Alumni Spotlight will shine on you next!
