Amanda Petty

Media maven: Amanda Petty

School/College: Klein College of Media and Communication
Degree/Year: BA, advertising, account management concentration, 2019
Hometown: Princeton, New Jersey
Current Job Title: Paid media manager
Current Employer: The Walt Disney Company, National Geographic

Six billion people access the internet every day, and companies spend about $800 billion annually to reach them through advertising. Amanda Petty, KLN ’19, is at the center of it all as a paid media manager for The Walt Disney Company, the world’s second-largest entertainment company. Working primarily for National Geographic, Amanda leads influencer partnerships and digital advertising, managing multi-six-figure budgets and using data to help drive magazine subscriptions.

Diversity U. Amanda’s father is African American and her mother is Filipino American, so attending a college with ethnic diversity was important. She ultimately selected Temple, which offered a robust academic scholarship and the chance to be closer to home while learning in a diverse setting.

“My junior year I was running social media for all these celebrities during the day, and fortunately Temple offered classes that I could take at night. It was definitely a grind, but that set me up so much for success and really instilled a work ethic in me.”

— Amanda Petty
Paid media manager

Amanda Petty poses in front of a National Geographic magazine cover..

Photography by Ryan S. Brandenberg

Amanda benefited from a strong support network at Temple. Lauren Bullock, director of the sports media program at Klein, gave Amanda a key early opportunity as a social media marketing intern in Temple’s Office of Leadership Development, where she spent a year creating digital content and strategy. Career coach Karen Demmler met with Amanda regularly to discuss internships and her transition to full-time work. Additionally, Assistant Professor Katherine Bex inspired Amanda during her senior capstone class and invited her to speak last fall, while Associate Professor Dana Saewitz mentored her and approved her senior honors speech.

At Temple, former Klein Director of Career Services Lu Ann Cahn had a “huge influence,” Amanda says, as the Emmy-winning journalist modeled what working in the fast-paced world of media looks like. Later, Cahn facilitated an internship with Universal Music Group, where Amanda ghostwrote social media posts for celebrities including Alicia Keys, Chloe x Halle and Ice Cube. Amanda parlayed that experience into a summer fellowship with the International Radio and Television Society Foundation, a renowned organization developing future media leaders.

A magical world. Amanda’s undergraduate experience helped her land a role at Disney’s New York City offices right out of college, starting as an associate account manager and earning four promotions over six years.