Journalist Savannah Sellers enjoying quick rise at NBC
26-year-old already has an Emmy on her shelf
Our series “How I became a …” digs into the stories of accomplished and influential people, finding out how they got to where they are in their careers.
Editor’s note: This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.
At 26, Savannah Sellers’ career is on fire. The young journalist, an Emmy winner and the host of NBC’s Snapchat show “Stay Tuned,” has made her way up from intern to executive assistant to NBC correspondent.
USA TODAY caught up with Sellers to talk about everything from doing more than your job description to trusting in your path.
Question: Who has been your biggest mentor?
Savannah Sellers: Of course, who doesn’t say their parents, because they taught you to do everything first?
(And) at my first job, I was the assistant to two correspondents, one of whom was (NBC TV journalist) Harry Smith, and he’s just the best. And Phil Griffin – I was also his assistant, he’s the president of MSNBC.
Q: What does your career path look like, from college to now?
Sellers: Right out of school I joined the NBC Page Program in New York. It’s the coolest experience. It’s these crazysmart kids who for the most part have just moved to New York and they’re getting to run around 30 Rock and work “Saturday Night Live”and “Late Night With Jimmy Fallon”and ride elevators with celebrities.
My first job after the Page Program was the assistant to Kate Snow and Harry Smith, two (NBC) correspondents. The two of them were such good guides for the beginning of my career because they did not care that my title was assistant, and they did not care that I was 22. They let me travel the country with them. It was Kate’s heroin series that I was the producer on and won the Emmy for. The thought there was kind of like, “If I want to be on-air, working for these two people who are on-air seems like a good next step.”
After that I became the executive assistant to Phil Griffin, who is the president of MSNBC. During that time I started doing a bunch of digital projects on the side. Then, what really happened was in January of 2017, right after (President Donald) Trump’s inauguration, MSNBC extended their weekend programming hours. ... So I basically started being an executive assistant weekdays and then MSNBC reporter on the weekends. Seven months later, NBC launched the Snapchat show, and I think the fact that I had been on-air helped me be a better candidate for the position.The Snapchat show started, and then everything totally changed. It’s opened so many doors, and now I’m 26 years old and they’re letting me on “The Today Show” and I’m pitching stories and they’re green-lighting them, and it’s been really cool to work at a place that’s so interested in digital endeavors and what I bring as a younger person.
Q: What does a typical day look like for you?
Sellers: If I’m in New York, we have a morning call around 9 or 9:30, then I go to hair and makeup, and then I go over scripts. And then we go up and have a taping at 11, and then the middle of the day is usually full of a bunch of meetings or lunches or working on a “Today Show” piece. Then we have another shoot at 4:30 – so again we’ll pick the rundown for that show later that day, I’ll re-write the scripts, and then I go to that shoot. Somewhere in there I change my outfit.
Q: What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned in your career?
Sellers: Always try to know what you don’t know. Own if you need to learn something.
Q: What advice would you give to someone who wants to follow in your steps career-wise?
Sellers: My path has been unconventional. So, just doing your own thing. Don’t try to mimic somebody else’s career path. Let yourself relax and take the path that’s going to work out for you.
You should also always be doing more than what your job description says. That’s the biggest thing that has worked out for me. I’ve basically had a day job and a side hustle within NBC always.