Person Profile: Sara Pecora

Name: Sara Pecora

Age: 20

Birthplace/Current Location: Pittsburgh, PA/Mars, PA

What stations have you worked at? I currently work at college station WPTS, running their local department. I also was a member of the broadcast team at Mars High School, producing their morning broadcast. Finally, I was a production intern at WYEP this past semester, creating promos and editing promos such as Discumentary and RPM.

Have you had any other jobs outside the broadcasting industry? I’m a docent at the University of Pittsburgh’s Nationality Rooms and a research assistant at the University of Pittsburgh’s Office of Experiential Learning.

Who are your mentors/inspirations? For one, the local musicians around here are a big inspiration. They work their tails off, trying to produce great music and getting that music heard. Sometimes they split their fingers open from playing too hard, sometimes they have gigs in poduck venues with no audiences. And yet, they don’t give up; they continue to trudge through with a can-do attitude. Even when they don’t succeed, they continue on, and that’s extremely admirable to me.
My parents are another example: both of them had parents die when they were around my age and yet they both managed to perservere and create happy lives for themselves.
My mentors have varied, but so are all people who have helped me become successful. Because of them, I’ve had places to unwind and just sort myself out when things have seemed completely crazy. My friends are the best example, taking me under their wing like a surrogate sibling. Two in particular stand out for their helpfulness and kindness. Both have inspired me to continue with my local show and further my broadcast career, despite obstacles that I have faced and for that I can’t thank them enough.

Tell us about your family. I’m the oldest of four kids – we’re all so different that it can get a little crazy sometimes, but they’re still great.

What’s one item we might find in your refrigerator on a regular basis? Pasta. My family and I are half-Italian so pasta is a staple in many of our dishes.

You could be considered a “newcomer” to radio because, according to the recent article in City Paper, before joining WPTS, you didn’t really consider radio as a career? What led you to WPTS and how has it changed your life? I have always dabbled in broadcast, so I felt that radio would be an interesting experience. I went to the student activity fair and signed up right there and then, which later led me to become the WPTS Local Director. It’s changed my life for a couple of reasons: firstly, it’s obviously gotten me some notoriety that I would have never had before. There’s also the fact that I feel like I now have something that can help the local music community. I’m working with the musicians to get college kids to realize that we have an amazing music scene here and so that’s something that I wouldn’t be doing without radio.

Who would you like to see interviewed for Person Profile? Has Rosemary Welsch been interviewed yet? If not, definitely her! Women in radio are so rare and she’s been doing it a lot longer than most!