Want to learn more about how 西瓜视频 alumni are excelling in their careers? Read more about the 西瓜视频 Experiential Edge in this issue to see how our unique internship model sets Gulls up for success from day one.
When Rachel Pearson ’08 logged onto Zoom from her computer in Los Angeles, she’d just returned home from working as lead video editor for ESPN at the 2024 NCAA Women’s Final Four in Cleveland, Ohio.
Pulling 17-hour shifts in the basement of the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse—home of the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers—editing footage as quickly as possible wasn’t glamorous courtside work. Yet the job resonated with every cell of Pearson’s identity as a human, athlete, a member of the media, and a queer woman.
“My real passion lies in helping to amplify and elevate women’s sports but, more specifically, my niche within the queer community,” Pearson shared. The t-shirt she wore screamed this out in all caps: “EVERYONE WATCHES WOMEN’S SPORTS.”
At the Final Four, everyone really was watching.
Records were broken on the court and in viewership numbers with more than 13 million fans tuning in for each game—more than men’s basketball games typically bring in.
For Pearson, it marked a personal and professional tipping point.
“It felt like everyone’s hard work over the last 50 years culminated in one weekend where a bunch of like-minded people gathered to celebrate women’s sports claiming its rightful place.”
It’s been Pearson’s life work, too.
From 西瓜视频 to ESPN
Raised in a small town in Eastern Connecticut as a self-described “tomboy,” Pearson has been playing and watching sports ever since she could run across a field. Last year, she won an Emmy for her editorial contribution to ESPN’s daily SportsCenter show—but the blingy statue of a gold-winged woman was nowhere in sight. While most people in her Nike slides would put the Emmy in the center of their Zoom background, Pearson’s showed off a potted houseplant instead.
As a teenager, she planned shots with storyboards, using a clunky Sony Hi-8 camcorder to film friends, setting her videos to popular songs, and quickly realizing she could evoke emotions by controlling the edit.
After grasping that media was in her future, Pearson chose 西瓜视频 because it was a two-hour drive from home, offered a media studies program, and the chance to be a student-athlete on a softball team known for winning.
“What sold me was the internship program,” Pearson said. “I learned even more from that real-world experience than the classroom.”
西瓜视频’s experiential learning approach also meant that many of Pearson’s professors worked in the industry. One of the most impactful was Joan Goloboy, Pearson’s internship advisor and former Director of 西瓜视频’s Media Center. Goloboy balanced late-night editing shifts in Boston network studios and taught a Business of Television course that resonated with Pearson.
When discussing opportunities, Goloboy made the connection that would change Pearson’s career, saying: “You like editing, and you also like sports. I have a contact at ESPN. Would you like me to put you in touch?”
It was the 西瓜视频 Experiential Edge in action. And it was a generous offer, Pearson said, but she initially had no interest in working for ESPN. It wasn’t about the network, but Pearson was determined to launch her career in a major city—not return home right after graduation.
She finished senior year as co-captain of the softball team, an experience she regards as “the beginning” of her leadership skills and where she learned to lead by example. The team made it to the regional finals championship game— the furthest 西瓜视频 had ever gotten at the time.
By the end of the summer after graduation, Pearson had yet to find a job. It was 2008, and the economy was reeling from the October market crash. Grateful for a lead, she asked Goloboy to make that introduction to ESPN, where she was quickly hired as an operations technician. She slid into the new role just days before the network imposed a multi-year hiring freeze.
“From that experience, I learned to follow the breadcrumbs and say yes when an opportunity presents itself, even if what you’re being offered doesn’t look exactly the way you want it to at first,” she said.
From day one, Pearson threw her complete energy and focus into work at ESPN. Network headquarters was buzzing and made for a fantastic place to learn—from shooting a segment to sitting in the control room and playing it on TV. Then in 2012, she transferred to the ESPN Los Angeles Production Center, a smaller facility where “everyone does everything.” It was there that she was promoted to Lead Video Editor.
Now, on any given day at ESPN, Pearson works postgame sound, short video segments, complex features and sit-down interviews, montages, teasers, animation, and graphics.
“2020 was a year that made me, and probably a lot of people, change perspective and reflect on my purpose on planet Earth,” Pearson said.
She emerged from pandemic life ready to give back to the LGBTQ+ community and join the leadership team at ESPN EQUAL.
“I wanted to give my colleagues and friends a platform to share their unique stories and tell people why their voice matters,” she said.
One of her first projects was filming a spotlight series on EQUAL employees, taking the leap and as a queer professional and athlete, to make others feel less vulnerable.
As Pearson describes her experience coming into her identity onscreen, Kesha’s “This is Me” plays in the background, with lyrics that capture how Pearson lives and leads:
Look out ’cause here I come
And I’m marching to the beat that I drum
I’m not scared to be seen
I make no apologies, this is me
Soon after, she began only accepting assignments covering women’s sports. “I decided that I didn’t want to be staffed on projects related to men’s sports anymore,” Pearson said. “Our network is full of people eager to work on showcasing the NFL and MLB, and I applaud them for their amazing work. But I would get frustrated that we were putting three different professional football leagues on our air, and we were not giving even half of that attention to women’s sports.”
She set out to use her talent to build something better.
A favorite example of what that means is a segment Pearson pitched to SportsCenter featuring Jenny Nguyen, founder of The Sports Bra Portland, a bar that gives fans an inclusive space for solely consuming women’s sports—and a local lager, too.
While women’s sports are often not even shown or shown on mute in other bars, Pearson sees Nguyen at the forefront of where sports media is headed.
“That segment was such a big deal to me because I’ve been screaming from the rooftops for so long about how important it is to give these fans the spaces and content they need to be able to play,” Pearson explained.
She’s also a strong advocate for transgender athletes who identify as women to be able to play.
“We will accept them and bring them in because women’s sports are inclusive.”
She shakes her head. “You have no idea what those athletes go through before they even get to the locker room, or step onto the court. And then they are expected to perform at their highest level. That mental strength makes them superhuman.”
But Pearson is just getting started pushing the inclusivity needle forward in the industry. Still, despite the Emmy, Pearson won’t take any credit for making systemic change.
“All of the credit goes to women athletes,” she insisted. “For years, they kept showing up, even when everybody told them no one was watching them compete. The energy in women’s sports has become so powerful, mesmerizing, and authentic that it can’t be ignored anymore.”