Future of radio says goodbye to beloved broadcast mentor

A cold Sunday night just before the new spring semester brought together a room of warmth at PCC. Students, faculty, and colleagues gathered to celebrate the life of Lancer Radio advisor and broadcasting instructor Scott Carter, a beloved father, friend, mentor and teacher.

Carter was in the broadcast field for over 25 years. At age 12 he began taping his own shows and would later study broadcasting at USC and worked as an audio editor and producer for KUSC-LA special broadcasts, according to a PCC Students In Broadcasting Facebook blog post.

He went on to work at KFAC-AM & FM and KUTE-FM in Los Angeles. Then after a time at San Francisco State moved on to KINK-FM in Portland, Oregon where he had “one of the highest rated evening shows in Portland radio.”

During his time as a broadcaster, Carter was known to have “conducted over 7,000 interviews in 2 years” prior to teaching at PCC in the TVR field, according to the Facebook blog post. Carter also produced “Scott’s LA,” a self-guided audio tour CD.

For the evening memorial, Lancer Lens and Lancer Radio engineer Gina Harris used Facebook and contacts to mobilize a crew of Carter’s students, Lancer Lens staff, and Lancer Radio producers in order to organize and broadcast the memorial event live on “KKSC Radio”—Klassic Scott Carter—for the evening.

In a unique turn as broadcaster, Harris hosted for the evening and on air. Guests spoke and lightened the mood with anecdotes to keep the tears at bay. And audio clips from Carter’s interviews, as well as some of his music favorites such as Jimi Hendrix’s “Purple Haze” and Janis Joplin’s “Piece of My Heart” added to the reflective program.

Numerous PCC students came and shared their stories of him, lessons learned, and the many successes that were brought to them from his mentorship.

Former PCC student and El Monte councilwoman Victoria Martinez recalled her first meeting with Carter at a car dealership where she worked and reflected on a new friendship that began with a startling invitation.

“He says to me, ‘I’d like to invite you to my house and sit you in front of a microphone and see how you’d like it.’ So I’m thinking, ‘Where are you going with this?,’” she laughed. “You know what he told me? ‘I’m not doing this get laid. I’m not doing this to get paid. I’m doing this because I believe in you.’”

Former PCC student Nicky G, formerly at Power 106 and now social media director at Sway’s Universe, also said Carter was beyond supportive.

“After taking his classes, and getting his feedback, and moving on, I did a show in Palm Springs and he came all the way down just to see me,” she said. “Then I found out he was talking about me [in his classes]. He made it seem like anything is possible … He made you feel important.”

Former PCC Courier staff member and E! Online News Editor Bruna Nessif recalls the support Carter gave her when she was feeling anxious in her first semester in broadcasting.

“You have that fire in your belly. I see it. And you’re going to do great, just keep going,” said Nessif. “He was one of the first people I told when I got my first job.”

Elliot Gold, a returning student who worked for 35 years in the emerging teleconferencing technologies, reviewed classes at various universities before deciding that “the most professional instructors were here at PCC.”

Both Harris and Gold recalled Carter as famously saying in radio, “If you’re not early, you’re late.”

Many said that Carter boasted about past students with faculty, colleagues and students. Words like passion, heart, and hilarious were used often used to describe him and that when he talked, he always elevated spirits. Two students who frequently worked together talked on his power to uplift.

“So often we take the best parts of our lives for granted. Getting to learn our relationships where we live,” said former PCC student Dot Cannon, quoting Carter. “Scott knew that none of that is guaranteed, or guaranteed to last, so he encouraged his students to recognize and appreciate what’s good in their lives today, and he lived that lesson.”

“With me, he would stop me in the Hallway with, ‘Oh wait! Wait just a minute! I’ve got something to tell ya!’ Hold up’,” Harris said. “And afterwards there would be this story that was hilarious!”

Colleague and friend Mike Sakellarides of 94.7 The WAVE, formerly of KQIV 106.7 in Oregon, recalled Carter’s radio call during his “Lights Out” program at 101.9 KINK radio in 70’s.

“At 11:00 o’clock he’d say ‘perhaps you’ll want to light a candle,’” Sakellarides said Carter would say.

Sakellarides recalled that one night a young lady lit such candle across the alleyway—a woman who would not long after become Carter’s wife.

Looking over to Carter’s son, Sakellarides said, “So Matt, you are the product of a broadcast.”

Having the benefit of calling Carter both his teacher and his father was his son, former PCC student and novelist Matt Carter, who spoke in the final of the close of the memorial.

“My dad looked upon all of his students, and all of their successes, as if you were all my brothers and sisters and we were all one big family. I’ve got to say, I even got jealous of you guys!,” Matt laughed. “A thing I’ve always said was one of the greatest things about my dad was that you could always read his mind because it was coming out of his mouth.”