Heidi Otway: All right. Tiffany, listen, I am so excited to have you as a guest on the Fluent in Floridian Podcast. You have no idea how much this means to me that you said yes to being on our show. And I want to dig in and let people hear your story and your remarkable journey as a journalist. So I want to kind of plant the flag a little bit and talk about... You're a native Floridian, you're an award-winning journalist, you're a wife, you're a mom, and you're a role model for so many people, so I want to know. How did you get started? What were those first few steps that got you to where you are right now?

Tiffany Greene: Woo! That's a loaded question. First of all, I'm humbled to be here, and thank you from one rattler to the next for just allowing me to grace your airwaves.

But yeah, so it was a flag that was planted probably when I was five years old, said I wanted to be a sportscaster, one egg, one basket. I was that person who was just going at it with reckless abandon throughout my career. And I had some nice guardrails with parents and just influences to help guide me along my way. But from participating in my special school announcements, rather, newspaper, high school, and then in college doing everything I could under the sun to just get out there and get any kind of experience on campus and in the Tallahassee area, that was phenomenal. And then paying my dues, there was a process to all of it. So working in local news for more than a decade and then making the transition over to network was a big jump, but it was one that took a huge, painstaking, if you will, process, but finally went through the grinder and made it to where I am and incredibly thankful for it.

Heidi Otway: Yeah, it is remarkable. But you just said something that made me say, "Oh, we got to go back."You were five years old?

Tiffany Greene: Yes.

Heidi Otway: You decided that you wanted to do this? Okay, what was the spark?

Tiffany Greene: I feel like in some ways I was just born that way. God planted that seed in me from the time that I came out. I was always drawn to sports.

Now I knew that my grandfather played baseball, but we were just outdoorsy kind of folk. My grandmother was a basketball coach in Orlando at Apopka High School, which was Phyllis Wheatley at the time. And I don't know that I necessarily heard a lot from them, but over the years, yes. But it was just something that just naturally spoke to me. I loved watching football. I enjoyed watching basketball, and then playing those sports to the best of my ability, whether it was just throwing up and running under the ball in the backyard or playing at the Boys and Girls Club like sports just always spoke to me, and it went in direct defiance of my mom, who is a bit of a more dainty, perceived very much a lady, and so it probably drove her crazy.

But as a youngest child, I also was just like, "This is my freedom. This is my space," and a chance to be just me. And sports spoke to me in so many different ways because I love the competitive nature and just working towards something in a team element. And over time I grew to love it all the more. So I say that from a sports perspective because when I think about the things that I enjoyed watching, they were sports. And naturally, it tied together for me because I had an example in my household of what was possible. And then everything that I was watching on TV at the time were always games of some sort.

Heidi Otway: Yeah. Now your dad influenced you too because he was a groundbreaker in broadcast news. So talk about the role, what he accomplished, and then how he inspired you.

Tiffany Greene: Yeah. So my dad, Dale Greene, shout out to another rattler, one of my best friends, and a big hero of mine was the first African-American anchor reporter here in the Tampa area. And then he was sporting the fro, he had the film going back in the day, I didn't get a chance to see that because I wasn't born yet. So he worked for Fox 13 for a number of years and then transitioned over to radio. So that's when I had a chance to be introduced to my dad. That's the capacity that I knew him. But I understood the influence that he had on the community and how big of a deal that was, because anytime I would say who I am, "Oh, I know your father. Oh, you're Dale Greene's daughter. Oh, I used to love watching him," and he served as this great inspiration in the Tampa Bay community. And it was the first that anyone had seen of a black male on TV reporting the news. So again, I speak to what was possible, he showed me what was possible. And then he worked in radio for the next 20 plus years. So he showed me not only what was possible, but the longevity that you could have in this career making or creating relationships, just being curious about things along the way, and that if you put all your heart and soul into it, it will repay you.

Heidi Otway: Yeah. So both of us are graduates of Florida A&M University, J School.

Tiffany Greene: Woo-hoo! Let's go.

Heidi Otway: Yeah, let's go. So tell me how Florida A&M University prepared you to become one of its most prolific graduates and well-known graduates from the School of Journalism?

Tiffany Greene: Well, I share that company with so many fantastic rattlers like yourself, like your Peter McKays and Pam Olivers.

Heidi Otway: Pam Oliver.

Tiffany Greene: Yeah, Keisha Lance Bottoms, I think was a J-School grad.

Heidi Otway: Yeah, we were there together at the same time.

Tiffany Greene: Yeah. Marlon Walker, there's so many wonderful rattlers that I got a chance to see while I was there, but family was always in my blood, right? Fourth generation in my family, on my dad's side, third on my mom's side, so we were Rattlers through and through, and I knew that there were some other really good schools that were available. I thought about Howard and Hampton because my goal was to attend an HBCU. That's the type of household, kind of think Cosby show and how we would always see an HBCU represented. That was how my household was. And when I got to FAMU, I knew that I was going to be in great hands because of all that had come before me. And to see, touch, and feel those people and learn from them and hear from them, and their way, they came back to impart that knowledge was just phenomenal. And then I always say this. FAMU taught me everything I needed to know, and especially in J-school, prepared me for this next chapter of the work world. The only thing it didn't prepare me for was office politics. And that's something that you literally just have to learn on the job. But from the care and the concern from the professors to the outlets that were available to you, WANM, FAMU TV [inaudible 00:07:50], Journey Magazine, the FAMU and newspaper...

Then the athletics department, I got a chance to work in as well. Literally such a well-rounded experience, and it really sharpened me, and made me who I am today. I was forged in the FAMU fire.

Heidi Otway: Yeah.

Tiffany Greene: and came out a strong rattler.

Heidi Otway: Yeah, I can attest to everything you just said. So when you graduated from FAMU, what was your first foray into your career?

Tiffany Greene: I was a car salesman.

Heidi Otway: What?

Heidi Otway: I was not expecting you to say that.

Tiffany Greene: I was selling Dodge Rams with Hemis. Five [inaudible 00:08:38] seven liters, 345 torque, 375 horsepower. You weren't ready for that? I know I wasn't. But that's what I was doing for the first, I would say, month-and-a-half or two once I got out of college. In the meantime, there was a startup station called WB38, and they were looking for everybody. They were fielding their team. And I said, "Oh, I'm going to raising my hand clearly. I'm going to be a sports reporter anchor. Why not hire me in a top-20 market out of college?" Yeah, right. But I said I was going to try anyway, and the news director at the time was like, "Okay, so you're not going to get that job, but you can still apply for others." So I got in as a part-time production assistant. And I was doing everything from floor operator to camera to audio operator, you name it. I was raising my hand and I loved it because this is, again, the initiative, the drive, the enterprise that you have, and I learned as a rattler. I used that completely when I was at that station. Okay, part-time production assistant. No problem. I'll raise my hand for everything. I'll take press releases off the printer, and I'll go shoot them for you, shoot the story, I'll write the story for you, anchor. All you have to do is voice it and I'll edit it for you. And while we got a package out of it, I got one for my resume reel.

Heidi Otway: That's right.

Tiffany Greene: And because I want it to be in sports, I was like, "Give me a camera and I will go shoot high school football on Fridays, come back, give you your shot sheet edited," so that's how I got my first true resume reel together outside of college is I developed it that way. And of course, that speaks to the employers about what you're able to do. So it started as a part-time production assistant for six months at WB38 here in Tampa.

Heidi Otway: And then where did you go from there?

Tiffany Greene: From there, I went to Savannah, Georgia, spent three and-a-half years there. And I would always tell anybody that I was interviewing with, "Hey, I want to do sports." Like give me a shot at sports, but there was only a couple of sports jobs and the emphasis obviously was on news. So I was a general assignment reporter, but my first three months on the job at WJCL was a photog, and I had to pay my dues. So I was going in shooting for other reporters, and running a live truck with the mast and-

Heidi Otway: Listen, I did the same thing.

Tiffany Greene: So that experience was eye-opening and humbling because I was like, "I'm so eager, I'm so ready like I can do this. But before you do this, let's crawl before you walk. Let's make sure that you can do this job, do it well, and be able to take whatever direction or position that you're in, and do it to the best of your ability and with a good attitude." That's how I try to approach it. And so my first story was a GBI bust at 4:00 A.M. the morning in Rankin, Georgia.

Heidi Otway: Oh, my God! That is not sports-related.

Tiffany Greene: Not at all. The furthest thing from sports, but I was a news gal. County commission meetings, and fires, and all that stuff.

Heidi Otway: Yeah, so how'd you get your big break where you finally got into your dream career?

Tiffany Greene: Well, that took more time. So I would sprinkle in assignments and do some things in the sports department while there, having the people who support you or just give you a chance means so much. And once they kind of open the door, you just got to run through it and just bust it wide open. So it was three and-a-half years in Savannah, and I probably did 20% sports in that time, I spent across two stations. So then I moved to Orlando, Florida, central Florida News 13, and I'm a feature reporter. Okay, once again, "Hi." I'm like, "I want to do sports. Give me that opportunity." They said, "Okay, well, we'll see how you do in the feature reporting space, and if something's available, you can maybe come over." And I spent probably a year and some change, then they started a sports network, Bright House Sports Network, now Spectrum Sports.

Heidi Otway: Yeah.

Tiffany Greene: And it was a 24-hour sports channel much like the news channel. And so I got to start doing sports. They're like, "Okay, we're going to shift you over. And we're going to take your little feature ideas and move them over here to sports. And if you can tell a news story, you can tell a sports story.

Heidi Otway: Yes, you can.

Tiffany Greene: That was the foundation, really, of me being a really good storyteller-

Heidi Otway: That's right.

Tiffany Greene: ... because I had that opportunity in news to hone that craft, to try to draw you in with my opening line and try to tease you with what was to come. So that was the first big break somewhere in, I'm going to date myself, 2007, 2008-ish.

Heidi Otway: Yeah.

Tiffany Greene: And also in Orlando was the ESPN Wide World of Sports.

Heidi Otway: That's right.

Tiffany Greene: So while covering feature stories, I would plant the seed and say, "Hey, I'm interested in doing any sports. You all host a number of different events every year, holler at your girl, let me in, I'm happy to do whatever."

Heidi Otway: "Pick me! Pick me!"

Tiffany Greene: Right. Pick me! And literally, that's where... We always talk about building relationships, and how important it is, and so I built those relationships at the ESPN Wide World of Sports. But I want to point out that it was my time at FAMU. I was a part of the student chapter of the National Association of Black Journalists, and we got a group and we went up to a job fair. And that was my first time meeting anybody from ESPN, my junior senior year of college. And I nurtured that relationship. And I continued to water it. And while it was not in the department that I was interested in, I kept that relationship going. So by the time that I was at the ESPN wide World of Sports era of my space, I had already met some folks along the way who could say, "Oh, yeah, let's give her a try. Why don't we see how she does calling a volleyball tournament?" Or-

Heidi Otway: They started you with volleyball?

Tiffany Greene: They started you with volleyball. Yep. I had volleyball and basketball.

‍Heidi Otway: Okay, basketball, but... Okay, basketball.

Tiffany Greene: I was like, "That's my space. [inaudible 00:15:35] this. I can do this."

So I feel like that was kind of a big shift or turnover when working for Bright House Sports Network and then connecting that dot to ESPN Wide World of sports. But my biggest break, I would say, after working in a local station environment for now, I don't know, eight, ten years at that point, was the National Association of Black Journalists National Convention. Met with a guy from Fox Sports 1. And I had met all the people that I could meet over the years, and I was a consistent attendee.

And he said, "Okay, well let's sit down, look at your reel," and he was blown away because he was like, "Wait a minute, you're doing play-by-play as a woman? As a black woman? We don't see that very often. We're starting up the Fox Sports 1, and we've got the Big East Women's basketball package. Let's stay in touch. And it was Roy Hamilton, I'll give him that credit.

Heidi Otway: Yeah.

Tiffany Greene: He allowed me to catapult to the national scene and do the inaugural package for Big East Women's basketball on Fox Sports-1. And that, for me, changed the trajectory I feel of my career. Because I've been knocking on the door, I kind of worked my way up, and found some sideline reporting opportunities with ESPN 3 and saying, "Hey, take a look at me. These are the things that I can do," I was calling games with Bright House Sports Network, but this guy was willing to take a chance on me. This network was willing to take a chance on me to help me get to my ultimate goal of making it to the worldwide leader. And sometimes you take some detours along the way, but you go where the opportunity is.

Heidi Otway: Yeah.

Tiffany Greene: And that was what I always considered to be my big break.

Heidi Otway: Wow! That is fan...I want to dig into just the ability to call a game, okay? Because in the last few... This past year in football, it was all about Tom, right? All righty, we're both fans, so-

Tiffany Greene: Yeah, that's right. Well, he want us another one, so...

Heidi Otway: Yeah, so how he going to do, and would he be able to make that transition from being a quarterback to a play-by-play caller? And you honed your career doing this from volleyball to, what was the other sport you mentioned?

Tiffany Greene: Basketball, softball, volleyball.

‍Heidi Otway: It's not easy.

Tiffany Greene: Nope.

Heidi Otway: So tell me, how do you prepare to do this? Because if everyone doesn't know, you broke this barrier and became the first African-American woman to serve as a college football play-by-play commentator for ESPN. No small feat. And the reason why I planted the flag here with the whole how's Tom Brady going to do? How is Tom? He's the goat, right? Well, in my opinion, you're the goat.

Tiffany Greene: Oh, Stop.

Heidi Otway: Because I've heard you. I've seen you. You're so flawless about it. How do you do what you do from preparation to when you're in the booth?

Tiffany Greene: Yeah. Well, I'll tell you, the preparation starts really, for football, say, Monday or Sunday. Monday, right? You're reviewing games and kind of looking through stats and articles about what happened because, obviously, you can only be one place at one time. And then throughout the week, you're having conversations with coaches, you're talking to the sports information directors, you're reading their game notes, you're reading newspaper articles, you're sorting through, you're watching some film to just see tendencies or kind of understand the flow of the system for one team or program to the next, and you're gathering all of this information.

And then as a sports fan, I'm also laying back just watching games, right? And listening to how other people call their games, and how do they weave in information or getting in and out of break. How do you deal with situations? So being a student of the craft is incredibly important, and some of the great ones have this wonderful plan. You kind of try to go into the broadcast with the plan. Certainly your teammates, your producer, the color analyst, the director, you're bringing that all together throughout the week and having conversations, which I think is invaluable because it makes sure everyone is on the same page. And we're searching for those things, and we're trying to hit these themes or points.

And so 11 players on both sides, plus people who are going to be substituting in football is a bear.

Heidi Otway: It is.

Tiffany Greene: And it requires a lot of time, right? And how will you spend that time depends on who you are. But I try to have a set of notes that are running from year to year that remind me of who's coming back or some of the history. And then I organize my thoughts based on trends and recent games, I love stories. And so at anytime that I can promote or share a story about a student athlete, I'm going to dive in like, "Homie, this is your third degree, or you're playing in going to law school, or you're playing for a purpose or with this passion because of X, Y, and Z that happened," and I want you, the viewer, to know that. So I try to dive in and dig into those stories, talk to the players, and then you got to go on site and see how, again, you get a feel or flow. For football, it's a walkthrough. For basketball, which is the season I'm in now, it's a shoot around. And for softball, it's a little bit different because you can choose to go to practice, but you just talk to the coaches and see how they're doing beforehand. But every sport has its different approach, but I would say I spend the most time in prep on football because you have this magnifying glass. And it is such an important sport, the most popular sport in the country.

So yeah, everyone's tuning in, and it matters. It matters to viewers and it matters to all fans of the sport, of the schools across whatever category you're in. Football, basketball, softball, baseball, volleyball, bowling, it matters. So that work week is hectic. So I just, as an example, finish with basketball. Number one team in the country. There are a lot of stats that are coming in because the Texas Longhorns are number one for the first time since 2004, and my coordinating producer, that's the person who oversees me and schedules my games, she is like, "These are some nuggets I want you to touch on," and you've got to find a way to naturally put that in the broadcast and still make it enjoyable and listenable.

Heidi Otway: Yeah.

‍Tiffany Greene: So I don't even know if I can quantify the amount of hours that I put in, but on average, it would be, I guess, an average work day with some breaks in between. But then you add the travel component, and then the pregame and game, it all adds up. So it's quite tedious, but I love the details of it.

Heidi Otway: Yeah. Well, I can tell when you're in the booth, you're having fun.

Tiffany Greene: Yes.

Heidi Otway: Because I watch and I listen. And if you ask my husband about when I hear the commentators when I'm watching my favorite teams, I'm yelling at them. "Why didn't he just say it?" I'm one of those passionate, crazy fans. And so that's why I was just so excited to hear you talk about the experiences that you've had, how you prepare, and what that means, because for us sports fans, it's a lot. We rely on you.

Tiffany Greene: Yeah.

Heidi Otway: We rely on you to guide us through what just happened, why he acted like that, what his mom said, all those things.

Tiffany Greene: Right.

Heidi Otway: She probably said-

Tiffany Greene: You want to know.

Heidi Otway: I want to know, so I just love that. So in your career, you just explained all of this, but you're a wife and you're a mom. How do you juggle that, doing the thing that you love and then also being there for your family?

Tiffany Greene: I always credit my village. I am not here without them. And so an incredibly supportive husband, we have two really great young boys. I'm going to shout my husband, Aaron, and my sons Bryson and Aaron out because they're seven and four. And they're trying to figure out why mommy's gone. They're thrilled when mommy comes back, but they're sad when mommy leaves, there's a guilt that I feel, and there's an emptiness or a longing that they have that I'm not there. And sometimes nobody can do it like Mommy. Like nobody's going to make that oatmeal like mommy. Nobody's going to rub you or hug you the same way. There's certain things that mommy does, and I'm so grateful to have just...God has blessed me with a wonderful unit. And then that extends out to the village of... We're, again, very fortunate and blessed to have both sets of parents here, and that kind of in that sandwich feeling right, taking care of young people, but also kind of looking after our folks as well, which is an awesome responsibility, but it's a chance for the family unit to be as strong as ever. And I don't do this without them. I make it very clear.

So when games come across and I'm assigned things, "Hey, guys, can we do this," when things pop up because there's a lot of that where if I told you my schedule for the month of March, you'd just be like, "Nevermind, I'm tired."

It's like that because you get home on a Sunday after being gone for a week, and now it's NCAA tournament time, and you're waiting Sunday to hear where you're going Wednesday or Thursday.

Heidi Otway: Right.

Tiffany Greene: So it's the village. And we stay prayed up.

Heidi Otway: Of course.

Tiffany Greene: Prayed up because that's how the balance honestly happens. I try to be swoop in and be super mom, which is tiring as all [inaudible 00:26:44], it's not always very glamorous.

Heidi Otway: Yeah.

Tiffany Greene: But I am thankful for the understanding of everybody and the support of everyone who knows that this is my dream.

Heidi Otway: Yeah.

Tiffany Greene: And they're helping me to live it.

Heidi Otway: Yeah.

Tiffany Greene: And then I got great girlfriends in the process who balance me out, who tell me, "Girl, you need to wear something better this time." Like the real ones, real with you.

Heidi Otway: I love that.

Tiffany Greene: Yeah, and they're tight too. So it makes me want to elevate or make sure that I'm maintaining because they're great in their own rights too. And they too, provide that just level of like, "That a girl! You got this. Come on now." Black girl magic, yeah.

Heidi Otway: I love it. So you're in a really... I was looking at some stats and not a lot of women are doing what you're doing in the professional sports industry or the collegiate sports industry. So for anyone who is listening and watching this, and I remember when I was younger, I wanted to be in sports. I wanted to be a sports broadcaster, but I was like, "I don't see anybody that looked like me. I don't see anybody doing this," and so I did print, and then I went into broadcast, and I wound up just doing news, but I tried to dabble in sports when I could like you did.

So a lot has changed. When I turn on ESPN, I'm seeing more women calling the games across all sports. This year when, the Olympics were hiring their commentators for the 2024 Paris Olympics, 40% were women, which is amazing. So for anyone who's listening and just wondering, "How do I break in? How do I get in," what is your advice? I heard you earlier say it's tenacity, it's passion, it's doing what it takes to learn and grow and say, "Put me in, coach." But from your perspective was what's the one piece of advice that you would say?

Tiffany Greene: Woo! There's so much to throw at someone, one that you have worth, and that what you bring to the table is one enough. And because it is different doesn't make it wrong or bad, it just fills a void or introduces a new space or way to look at things that other people aren't doing. It's cool for you to kind of follow the norm and see what's happened and what's worked before, but there's only one you.

Heidi Otway: That's right.

Tiffany Greene: And because you are one of one, you provide that greatness, that ingenuity, that creativity, that uniqueness, that awkwardness, even, that other people don't possess. You see in a different way than the next person. And it's okay to use your background, and upbringing, and I guess influences, all that make up who you are to express what it is that is happening in front of you. So be you. Be authentic. You hear that all the time. But how do you do that, embracing and accepting that what you offer is good enough? Because all that other stuff is going to take care of itself. You're going to hear a lot of, "Go after your dreams and be relentless," and we talked about the tenacity, you're going to hear about the importance of networking, and all of those things are incredibly important. You have to believe in you. And this is a business where it will cut you down. It is subjective, people will have their opinions of you. So in the process of you doing those other things, you've got to make sure that you build yourself up too, because there are enough critics out there.

Heidi Otway: Right.

Tiffany Greene: There's also self-doubt that you're dealing with. So building yourself up and believing that you can do it, and that you do belong there. And if you don't see someone there, like Heidi, you didn't see many people there. I didn't see anybody there, right? There was Jane Kennedy, there was [inaudible 00:31:10] Roberts, but it's like sprinkle here and there.

Heidi Otway: Yeah.

Tiffany Greene: So you have to be bold and courageous and say, "Shoot, I can do that too!" And do it.

Heidi Otway: And do it, and that's what you did. What's next for you? What's the future look like for you? You're breaking barriers, breaking glass ceilings, doing new things, what's next?

Tiffany Greene: Well, you mentioned the Olympics, right? So that's a broadcaster's bucket list for sure. I would love to call Olympic coverage before my career is over. I'm believing, that I'm speaking that, [inaudible 00:31:54].

Heidi Otway: I'm with you. I got your background that one. Can't wait to see you there.

Tiffany Greene: Yes. Would also like to...So I'm in Tampa and there's a woman by the name of Gail Serens, which was the first woman to call an NFL game right back in late '70s. And so I just got a chance to present her with a Breaking Barriers or Beyond Barriers award. So I want to be able to call NFL games in the future and would love to work for an NBA or WNBA team and be their full-time announcer. Maybe create a little bit more stability, home a little bit more, because work-life balance, life is very important. Family is at the heart of who I am, and so that's where I want to be present most ultimately. And the outside influence gets the benefit or gets some of my best, but I want to make sure that I also save the best for at home also over time. So trying to pace myself along the way.

‍Heidi Otway: Wow. Tiffany, I'm so inspired. There are so many things you said that I'm like, "Man, this sounds a lot like my career," and it's like iron sharpening iron. And I really just want to thank you so much for being a guest on our Fluent in Floridian Podcast. And I hope that all of our listeners and viewers that are watching are inspired by your story, and they'll be rooting for you, and praying for you to get and achieve everything that you desire. So thank you so much.

Tiffany Greene: Thank you. Appreciate you, one time rattler. Wait a minute, hold on. I got to hold it up. Show it proudly.

Heidi Otway: Florida A&M all day.

Tiffany Greene: That's right. All day. 

Heidi Otway: Yes.