Macy Moreland, a senior in Chi Omega, and Kate Waxler, a recent graduate and alumna of Chi Omega Theta Beta, had the unique opportunity to interview Catt Sadler from
E! News. Sadler is a fellow Hoosier, originally from Martinsville, and was also a member of Chi
Omega at IU. She was generous enough to give 30 minutes
of her time to discuss Greek life, perseverance in the work force and what it
means to be a Hoosier -- even while living in California.
The Odyssey: You are from
Martinsville, Ind. Did you always know that you wanted to become an IU Hoosier?
Catt Sadler: No, I didn’t
actually. It’s funny, because my mom went to IU, my dad went to IU, and my aunt and
uncle went to IU. I think at that time those were the influential Hoosiers in
my life. I didn’t honestly start thinking about college until my junior or
senior year, being from such a small town in Indiana, and my first acceptance
was from Butler. I think once I visited IU, though, I just fell in love. I loved
the campus, I loved that it was 15 minutes from my parents' doorstep. I
think I made the right decision; I had a phenomenal experience! And just to
follow up that question, we’ve lived in California since my oldest son was five
and my baby was one, but they are hardcore Hoosiers fans! They say that’s where
they’re going for college!
The Odyssey: The Odyssey
is a Greek-based news magazine. What made you decide to go through the recruitment process and, ultimately, choose Chi Omega?
Catt Sadler: Well, I didn’t
have any obvious legacies to any houses, but I was in the dorms my freshman
year -- in McNutt -- and the girls that lived on the floor were all like, “Of
course we’re rushing!” So I had a couple friends that were definitely going
through the process and, at that time, it just seemed like the thing to do. I’m
not gonna lie, it was hard work and pretty stressful! It consumed most of my
freshman year. The two houses that it really came down to, for me, were Chi
Omega and Alpha Chi Omega. And here’s a funny tidbit -- the person who was
rushing me in at Alpha Chi Omega was Trista Sutter! She was on the dance team
with me and we were friends, and have been friends ever since! But in the
end, another girl on the team wanted me to go Chi O, and my heart and my gut was
just telling me that Chi Omega was the right house -- and that was that!
O: Did you
always know that you wanted to do broadcast journalism?
CS: Nope,
definitely did not know that, either! Although, when I was a little girl -- and
you have to remember this was pre-iPhone and home cameras, in general -- I did
have a real knack for performing, dancing and the arts. I was in a lot of
plays, I loved interviewing my family and friends and I was always creating.
In my teens, when home video cameras came out, that’s when I started mock interviewing.
I would be constantly interviewing all of my family and friends. I’m not
going to lie, I loved the camera.
When I went to college, though, I didn’t go
with the intent to study journalism; I wanted to keep my options open. I
started studying theater and my grandma was like, "What are you going to do with
a theater major, you’re from Indiana?" So I started looking into journalism,
because Oprah was one of my heroes and so was Katie Couric. By the time I was a
junior, I finally figured out broadcast journalism was what I wanted to do. My
mom kept saying, “How many times are you going to change your major? You’re
meant to do broadcast journalism!”
O: After
graduation, was there a specific job that launched you into your career, or was
there a favorite that you had?
CS: Well, my
story’s kind of interesting because I was still at IU when I got an internship
with FOX59 in Indianapolis. So, I did my internship and I was really, really
hungry. I was constantly talking to the director saying watch this interview or
watch this tape; I would be at crime scenes or in front of a fire. I was
emulating what the reporters were doing and I really wanted to go for it. My
news reporter, at the time, saw my dedication and persistence and they made me an
offer: they asked if I would consider taking my last two classes at IUPUI -- which
they paid for -- and I became the executive assistant, which was more like a
glorified secretary. But they also let me start this segment called Youth
Matters. So, this was my senior year of college and I got to do this segment on
the 10 o'clock news! It was all about really serious youth issues, like social aid
and drug abuse. They said I’d be perfect since I was young and could identify,
to some extent, with them. At the time, this was unheard of since I wasn’t even
21! So that was my “in.”
Right before I graduated, I was on FOX, which was really cool! That transpired to some general assignment reporting on weekends, and going out and doing live shots. However, it was hard news, it was facts and crime and serious issues -- not fashion, arts and the subjects I studied. I learned an immense amount while I was there for that year, but mostly I learned what I didn’t want to do. Interviewing 16 year old girls about losing their babies with impending murder trials didn’t agree at all with my being. So I started getting these random calls from an agent in New York and he said, “What do you want to do?” and I was just this 20 year old girl from Indiana who had never even been to California before. So, I claimed the biggest dream I could possibly dream -- national television -- and that’s how it started.
O: So, what was
it like the first time you were on national television?
CS: Well, that was
10 years later, since I did local news for a very long time, and I already had
kids by that point. I was covering celebrity news and I was going to New York
and LA, getting a taste for the “end-all-be-all,” when I was introduced to E! News. By this point, I knew I didn’t want to live in a cul-de-sac in Indiana anymore, so I started going to auditions in California. I landed the job with E! called
the Daily 10 in 2006. It was my first time being on national television and it
was life changing. It was almost surreal; I couldn’t even believe it was
happening! I was from Indiana and everyone else had done national television
before. However, I had paid my dues: I had done 10 years, six days a week,
18 hours a day, which made it all so much sweeter.
O: What do your
children think of you being on TV? Do they think of you as a celebrity?
CS: I mean, a
little bit. They were really young when I started local news in Indiana, so
they’ve been used to having cameras around; they just think everybody does
this, it’s part of what they know. But, then, sometimes I’ll be recognized and my
kids think it’s pretty funny. Especially when we were in Barbados, they only
have four channels there and E! is one of them, so they treated me like Obama!
They like to make fun of me, though, which is always embarrassing. And, of
course, I’m nobody in LA where everybody is somebody. But it is funny, and we
keep it in check. I think their Indiana roots served them well because they’re
not particularly impressed with any of it.
O: Has there
been a celebrity that has put you in awe?
CS: Oh, of course!
Don’t get me wrong, I am starstruck regularly! And I get nervous still to this
day. I’ve done this, now, since 1997 and I still get the butterflies. Johnny Depp
has always been a favorite; I’ve interviewed him, now, half a dozen times and
he’s really great every time! I also interviewed George Clooney, for the first
time, a year ago. With people that talented you just have to have so
much respect for them. I feel like I’m 12 years old again, but I need to
remain professional and still do my job! I mean this is a job, I have people on the other side saying, “Get it together, Sadler!” I pinch myself all the time, and I’m blessed. The access is really
what’s crazy when you do a job like this. I get to be on the red carpet for the
Academy Awards and I’m put in all these positions that I would never be in
otherwise. It’s pretty remarkable. I’m so grateful, and it really is the dream
job.
O: Ultimately,
how do you think being a Hoosier has impacted you as a person and in your life
today?
CS: I guess there
is just a real grounded-ness that comes with growing up in Indiana; there is realness
in how we talk and there’s a real hospitality in the way we treat each other.
I remember getting my first full-time job in San Francisco, and I would wave at
people and smile in the hallways and hold the door open. I quickly found out in
California a 9 a.m. appointment means 9:30 a.m., and while walking in the hallways, you
don’t have to say hi to everybody. But I credit that to “the Hoosier way.” I
don’t particularly care if you’re the valet, the guy pumping my gas, or the
executive on the fourth floor to whom I owe my job, I like to treat everyone the
same. I think that has served me very, very well. I’ve heard from fans and
people who watch the show that there’s accessibility and realness there, and I
hope that’s true. The majority of the people watching the show are from the Midwest, the Heartland, and I think they appreciate my work in that
sense.
O: What advice
would you give to current college students or recent grads on breaking into the
journalism world?
CS: It’s hard to
give advice because when I did this it was a totally different world. The game
has changed so much. I do tell younger students that there is no excuse for not
doing mock interviews with your iPhone. You can practice by looking at your
work. Were you maintaining eye contact? Did you look comfortable? How did you
formulate that question? How did you make your subject feel? Were you
articulate? You could do this every single day and improve. When I did it, you
had to hire a cameraman and pay a lot of money for one day a week and he would
have to sit with you to see the footage.
You guys have so much access, and
technology has improved so much; you have no excuse! Get good! So, that would be
number one, and experience has served me so well. I know that’s a catch-22, because how do you get the experience without getting hired? But, now, you don’t
need that big job to get experience. The Internet is the future, and it
sounds cliché, but you have to find your voice! Hone in on what makes you uniquely
beautiful and what your strengths are. Find your crush, your real, true
passion, and incorporate that into whatever it is that you want to do.
O: Has there
ever been a time on E! when you completely messed up, or fumbled an interview, and
how did you overcome that?
CS: Yeah, there
have been a couple times. Luckily, none of them were on live TV. There was one
time when I was interviewing Alexander Skarsgard from True Blood, and his
publicist came up to me and told me to ask about his new show. So we’re talking
about Fashion Week and I asked about the wrong show and he just looked at me
and said, “You have no idea who I am do you?” It turns out the publicist was
for a different actor, not Alexander. The problem was, I didn’t recover; I just
stood there and said, “Okay, thanks!” I was so embarrassed, and it was so amateur.
The lesson in that is, that you need to be able to interview anyone about
anything and make it work. If you don’t know exactly who someone is, make the
questions generic and leave them open-ended.
O: Do you have
any other advice for the students in general?
CS: You’ve done
the work, you’ve kicked butt in college, and keep up the hustle. Be kind to
other people and the universe will reward you. It’s really not that complicated
because it is all going to work out. Sometimes, when you’re young -- and I think I was
guilty of this -- you feel all this pressure to graduate and don’t know exactly
where you’re headed. You feel like you have to have everything figured out, but
you really don’t. Give yourself a break, live every moment and be in the present,
and when you’re really open to those opportunities you will be surprised at the
good things that come your way. Celebrate your accomplishments. Don’t be so
stressed about the next, celebrate the now!