About this Event
From shaping a region’s global reputation to navigating today’s rapidly evolving newsroom, Media Mashup 2026 is built around the conversations defining Central Florida’s communications industry.
This year’s program explores how Orlando is positioning itself as a global sports destination, how to create conditions for creative ideas to actually break through, how to manage media relations results with your leaders, and what media relations success looks like in today’s evolving media landscape.
🌟 Featured Sessions
Breakfast Keynote:
Positioning Orlando as a Sports Host City
Orlando has long been known for its theme parks, but a new story is taking shape. The region is making a strategic push to position itself as a premier destination for major sporting events, and communications plays a central role in that effort.
Local leaders are pursuing high-profile opportunities such as the NBA All-Star Game, Olympic qualifiers and other global competitions. With support from the Orange County Tourist Development Council and billions of dollars in potential sports business under consideration, Orlando is working to expand how it is seen on the national and international stage.
This session will explore how communications professionals are helping drive that shift. From aligning stakeholders across tourism, government and sports to developing compelling pitches for event organizers, the conversation will focus on the strategies behind the message.
Moderator: Sharon Line Clary, SVP, Community Impact & Partnership Engagement at AdventHealth
🎙️Jason Siegel, President & CEO, Greater Orlando Sports Commission
🎙️Jacklyne Schottmiller, Director of PR, Visit Orlando
🎙️Jessica Beers, Executive Director of the Kissimmee Sports Commission, Experience Kissimmee
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Breakout Session One:
Building the Personal Habits and Organizational Conditions for Breakthrough Creative Thinking
Every PR and communications professional has watched a great idea get buried: by bureaucracy, by risk aversion, by a decision-maker who wasn't in the room until it was too late. We say we want bold, breakthrough ideas; research says otherwise.
Behavioral science tells us two uncomfortable truths: novel ideas are required to break through because they trigger neurological responses that familiar content simply cannot. But we are also psychologically wired to reject these very same ideas. Loss aversion is real, it's subtle, and it affects everyone in the approval chain.
The solution isn't better ideas. It's better conditions.
This session delivers a practical, two-part framework for PR and communications professionals at every level.
Grounded in research from Cornell University, Google, and the University of Illinois, and road-tested on both sides of the client relationship, this session will give you tools to apply immediately, whether you’re generating your next campaign idea or creating the conditions for your team to do it.
🎙️Doug Boemler Wareing, Founder/CEO, Nomad Flamingo
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Breakout Session Two:
Managing Expectations for Media Relations Results With Your Leaders/Clients
We all know the drill: your boss comes in excited about a new initiative and assumes it’s destined for instant headlines. And it's your job to make it happen. Meanwhile, we are over here thinking, Hmmm, not so much!
That’s why setting expectations early and clearly helps us to protect our own credibility, gain trust, and create open dialogues for smarter and more collaborative strategy.
In this presentation, we will talk about how to navigate honest conversations with your leadership, how to redirect unrealistic asks, and how to help leaders understand what success looks like. You will also leave with some real-world tips on how to develop relationships with reporters and earn the media your organization deserves
🎙️Elisha Pappacoda, Director of Communications, Town of Lady Lake
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Lunch Keynote:
State of the Newsroom
The media landscape is evolving quickly, and understanding how newsrooms operate today is critical for communications professionals.
This session brings together leaders from local broadcast, print, digital and radio outlets to share a candid look at the current state of the newsroom. From shrinking newsrooms and faster deadlines to shifting audience habits and platform priorities, panelists will discuss how these changes are shaping the way local stories are covered.
Attendees will gain practical insights they can apply immediately, along with a better understanding of how to build stronger relationships with media and deliver stories that resonate with both journalists and their audiences.
Moderator: Jennifer Marcial Ocasio, Deputy Communications Director, Equality Florida
🎙️Roger Simmons, Executive Editor, Orlando Sentinel
🎙️Steven Ryzewski, Managing Editor, Orlando Business Journal
🎙️Stephen Ostrosky, Managing Editor, WESH 2 News
🎙️LaToya Dennis, News Director & Managing Editor, Central Florida Public Media
🎙️Miguelangel Lopez, Regional Vice President of News & Content, Telemundo
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Speed Networking with the Media
Meet face-to-face with local media journalists in our popular speed networking session.
- Michelle Spitzer, USA Today 10 Best
- Allison Walker Beacham, Spectrum News 13
- Matt Trezza, FOX 35 Orlando
- Caitlin Marlow, FOX 35 Orlando
- Trey Devitt, FOX 35 Orlando
- Christina Watkins, WESH 2 News
- Kennedy Mason, WESH 2 News
- Nick Georgoudiou, The Community Paper
- Brendan O'Connor, Orlando Shine
- Scottie Campbell, Orlando Shine
- Sandra Carrasquillo, iHeart Radio (Spanish)
- And More To Be Announced!
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A breakfast buffet from Zaza Cuban Comfort Food and a hot boxed lunch from Rosario’s Kitchen is included with the purchase of a Media Mashup ticket. You will be prompted to submit your box lunch order upon registering for the event.
Thank you to our sponsors, Seminole State College, Zaza Cuban Comfort, and Field Pros for helping make this event possible!
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Parking is available on campus in Lots 16 & 18. Please see here for a campus map.
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Seminole State College, 100 Weldon Boulevard, Sanford, United States
USD 60.54 to USD 113.89
