Cooper Manning Virtually Celebrates SJNM Graduates

University of Mississippi School of Journalism and New Media graduate Cooper Manning, who, in case you didn’t know, is also part of a famous football family, is the school’s virtual graduation speaker this year.

The school has also created a virtual graduation page for the Class of 2020.

https://bit.ly/2yJXBEW

Manning said he became a broadcast journalism major after taking a semester of accounting and realizing he didn’t love it.

“I have always been kind of comfortable talking on camera or in front of people,” he said. “You had semesters where you were behind the scenes and working the camera, and you got to learn a different perspective.”

“While I enjoyed being on camera more, I did appreciate my days as a cameraman. I also liked that there were no set hours around journalism. You could go shoot something at night. There was always action. You weren’t tied to a schedule.”

Manning said he’s always had two career paths – a sales job and a media job.

“After college, I had a radio show,” he said. “A big radio guru had a heart attack and was out of commission. They said, ‘Have you ever hosted a radio show? … You’re hired.’ My fun was always being on the air in some fashion. For me, personally, I think if I had made it a full-time career, it might not be as fun.”

Manning is entering his fifth year as a host for “The Manning Hour” on FOX NFL Sunday Mornings, where his broadcast journalism degree comes in handy. However, in his real job, he is senior managing director of investor relations for AJ Capital Partners focusing on new business development and managing and curating investor relationships. There he has been instrumental in raising capital for Graduate Hotels.

Story by LaReeca Rucker