Breaking the mold: ESPN Has a 26-Year-Old Senior Publicist

At 26 years old, most people are in the infancy stages of their career, having just landed an entry level job at a company or risking it all to start their own business. It is rare to be considered one of the most successful and accomplished in your field at such a young age, even more so in a field that you didn’t necessarily see yourself in. Well when it comes to 26-year-old Gianina Thompson – a senior publicist at ESPN, you can throw all of that out the window. So how does someone so young land a prominent position with the biggest sports media company in the world? Thompson, in a recent interview with Black Enterprise, says, “that’s probably a better question for my boss, ha!”

Thompson mentioned that she initially did not set out to have a place in sports, rather she was setting her sights on working for a women’s fashion and lifestyle magazine. Having completed both her bachelors and masters by age 21, it is safe to say whatever Gianina would have set her mind on, she would have accomplished. She credits her team at ESPN for “constantly being on a hustle and flow,” which in turn elevates her grind level.

While most big businesses today are dominated by wealthy, older business people, it is refreshing to see a big company give a position of power to a young woman. Thompson says she is not looking to follow in anyone else’s footsteps, rather use the “clues that success leaves behind” to create her own story. Safe to say, the name Gianina Thompson will be one we hear about for a very long time.