Episode 32: Mighty Joe Sampson – the student has become the teacher

Joe Sampson joined 97X as a Miami University student intern (a.k.a. “Breakfast Club co-producer”) in 1993 and stuck around as a weekender after he graduated before moving on to short stint as a writer for CityBeat, and a 12-year career as a news producer at Channel 19 and later Channel 9 in Cincinnati. He now has come full circle as a Miami U. professor. We chat with “Mighty Joe” about his late nights with “Mama Jazz,” 97X softball teams, and his undying love for both Steve Baker and another 97X student intern.

Joe is now a Senior Clinical Professor of Journalism (sounds fancy!) at Miami University. His students have won several regional and national journalism awards over the years.

As far as we can tell, Joe and his wife Alison are the only former 97X Breakfast Club co-producers who are now married to each other. Alison was a co-producer for Dave and Rictile in the mid-90s as “Connie Consuelo.”

Rumblings from the Big Bush was NOT Joe’s podcast debut. He and another MU prof created a podcast about “being Muslim in the Midwest” as part of a cultural exchange program with the Goethe Institut in Germany.

Lest you think Joe is all work and no play, here’s a photo of him posing with a bunny.