Off Deadline

Melissa DiGianfilippo, Proof Publicity
  • 5.0 (10)
  • Society & Culture
  • Updated Weekly

Off Deadline goes beyond the headlines to reveal what really happens when the cameras stop rolling and the deadlines pass. Host Melissa DiGianfilippo, Founder and CEO of Proof Publicity, creates a rare safe space where top journalists drop their professional guard to share the moments that changed everything—the ethical crossroads that kept them awake, the sources that most surprised them, the stories that broke them, and the victories no one will ever write about. From the hilarious disasters to the heart-stopping close calls, veteran journalists share the wild, unforgettable moments that never made it into their reporting. These are the behind-the-scenes confessions, the career-defining chaos, and the human moments that remind us why journalism is equal parts calling and complete madness. This isn't about breaking news—it's about the people who lived through the craziest moments while chasing the story, and the experiences they'll never forget. If you've ever wondered what it really takes to be a storyteller in our chaotic world, Off Deadline delivers the raw, unfiltered truth behind journalism's most compelling voices. Watch on YouTube and listen wherever you get your podcasts!

  1. Oct 6 ·  Video

    Jeremy Duda of Axios Phoenix on 150 Boxes of Don Bolles Files, Rural Sports & Bizarre Politicians

    Send us Fan Mail A printout of an email from April 2014 with a few case numbers jotted in the margin, stuck in a drawer and forgotten. That was the first step in a ten year journey through roughly 150 banker's boxes of attorney general case files to write the definitive book on the Don Bolles assassination. Jeremy Duda did it with a full time job, and had two kids along the way. Jeremy is a reporter at Axios Phoenix, the first hire when the morning newsletter launched in June 2022. Most of his 23 year career has been spent covering politics and government in his home state of Arizona, at the Arizona Capitol Times and Yellow Sheet Report and then the Arizona Mirror, which he helped launch. He started out covering high school sports in Hobbs, New Mexico, and reported in Provo, Utah before coming home. He is the author of two books: If This Be Treason (2016) and Murder in the Fourth Estate: The Assassination of Investigative Journalist Don Bolles (2026). On this episode of Off Deadline, Melissa DiGianfilippo, founder of Proof Publicity, sits down with Jeremy to get into: The Friday staff meeting where Don Bolles popped into his headWriting the book he wanted to read, and why a treason book came out firstThe attorney general's personal sign-off and 150 boxes of case files photographed one page at a timePicking journalism as a college freshman right before the bottom fell out of the industryWhy he tells every journalism student to cover high school sports in a small townHiring freezes and layoffs that killed every interview, and the plan to deliver pizzas back in ArizonaThe worst feeling in the business: a morning newsletter that is out and not coming backPoliticians are just people, and the average voter would be stunned by some of themThe New Mexico developer who offered him a beer at 11:30 in the morningAlmost cashing in his chips for a PR job in 2018, and the lunch that started the Arizona MirrorThe Receipt: the April 2014 email that started the Bolles bookHis superpower: institutional knowledge that former House speakers still call him forThe Shakespeare placeholder headline his editors left inCalling the chief of staff when a spokesperson won't call backAdvice to his first-year self: learn public records earlyFollow Jeremy Duda on X: @jeremyduda Read Axios Phoenix: https://www.axios.com/local/phoenix Follow the host, Melissa DiGianfilippo: @melissadflip 📺 Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@proof-publicity 🔗 Check out Proof Publicity → https://proofpublicity.com Produced by Turnkey Media: https://www.turnkeymediaaz.com 📺 Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@proof-publicity 🔗 Check out Proof Publicity → https://proofpublicity.com

  2. Sep 29 ·  Video

    Hailey Frances of STN on the Station Sale That Flipped Her Life, Red Carpets & Chris Kattan

    Send us Fan Mail She was standing alone at a pond with her camera gear, a police helicopter overhead, waiting on a shooter who was moving from house to house. That was the moment Hailey Frances asked herself, what are we doing here? Years later she was leading content at Phoenix's CW station, had just told her husband to go chase his pilot's license while she carried the family, and then the station was sold. Hailey is an Arizona native and Cronkite School graduate with more than 15 years in broadcast journalism. She anchored and reported in Phoenix, Houston, Grand Rapids and Charlottesville, led content at KASW, Phoenix's CW affiliate, produced a documentary with iHeartRadio that aired in dozens of markets and hosted Positively Arizona. Today she is Director of Operations at STN, The Social Television Network, where the work is community journalism that connects nonprofits and corporate partners. She lives in central Phoenix with her husband, their son and their husky mix, Prin. On this episode of Off Deadline, Melissa DiGianfilippo, founder of Proof Publicity, sits down with Hailey to get into: The high school studio audition that made a 14 year old decide this was her lifeMailing $10 VHS tapes to 30 stations and hearing back from oneWhy she wanted to be a political reporter near D.C., and why that lasted a year and a halfThe Golden Globes red carpet and LA press junkets that never filled her upAlone at a pond with a police helicopter overhead: the assignment that broke somethingThe station sale that landed a couple of months after her husband left TV to become a pilotA Friday call home: I just need some joy, let's go to DisneylandGetting typecast as an anchor when she wanted to leadFour years away from TV before finding her way to STNThe introvert who is fine on camera but hates a full roomThe Receipt: a wedding photo and the newsroom coworker she refused to befriendChris Kattan sitting in her lap for an entire interviewThe unwritten rule: put in the time and you earn the respectAdvice to her first-year self: follow your inner compass, not what is expectedLearn more about STN: https://stntv.com Follow the host, Melissa DiGianfilippo: @melissadflip 📺 Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@proof-publicity 🔗 Check out Proof Publicity → https://proofpublicity.com Produced by Turnkey Media: https://www.turnkeymediaaz.com 📺 Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@proof-publicity 🔗 Check out Proof Publicity → https://proofpublicity.com

  3. Sep 22 ·  Video

    Bahar Anooshahr, Arizona Republic Restaurant Critic, on Quitting Oral Surgery & Never Eating Free

    Send us Fan Mail She used to sit in her car after work in tears and could not explain why, because there is no crying in oral surgery. A wellness retreat in Baja California gave her the answer she did not want: she was done being a surgeon. Today Bahar Anooshahr is the restaurant critic for The Arizona Republic, and the first thing with her new title printed on it is her proof of how far that decision carried her. Born in Iran, Bahar followed the path her family expected and became an oral and maxillofacial surgeon before walking away to write. She freelanced for Eater and Phoenix New Times, joined the Republic as dining and nightlife reporter in 2022, and was recently promoted to restaurant critic. She is a member of Les Dames d'Escoffier, which supports women leaders in food, beverage and hospitality. Her favorite meal is dessert. On this episode of Off Deadline, Melissa DiGianfilippo, founder of Proof Publicity, sits down with Bahar to get into: The retreat where she realized she did not want to be an oral surgeon anymoreHow a breakup and a love of Michelin star dinners turned into a food writing careerWhy she ignored the Republic's first email about the job, and what changed her mindWhat her parents said when she left surgery, and what her dad says nowThe negative review of a woman owned restaurant that gave her nightmaresLearning to sit in discomfort when a critic's opinion gets pushbackThe difference between a dining reporter and a restaurant criticWalking 103,000 steps in one day just to beat a stranger on FitbitThe Receipt: her new title in print, and the Ruth Reichl book that started it allThe story she wrote through tears when a restaurant tied to her late husband closedThe unwritten rule: critics pay for every meal, zero giftsAdvice to her first-year self: don't take no for an answerFollow Bahar Anooshahr: @baharcreative Follow The Arizona Republic dining team: @azcdining | @azcentral Follow the host, Melissa DiGianfilippo: @melissadflip 📺 Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@proof-publicity 🔗 Check out Proof Publicity → https://proofpublicity.com Produced by Turnkey Media: https://www.turnkeymediaaz.com 📺 Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@proof-publicity 🔗 Check out Proof Publicity → https://proofpublicity.com

  4. Sep 15 ·  Video

    Patrick O'Grady on 30 Years in Arizona Newsrooms, X-Acto Knives to Digital & Selling the Story

    Send us Fan Mail He keeps every thank-you note a reader has ever mailed him, because journalists mostly hear the other kind of feedback. Patrick O'Grady has spent 30 years in Valley journalism, from the X-Acto knife and waxer days to tracking newsletter open rates, and he has strong opinions about what it takes for local news to survive. Patrick began as a reporter covering everything from bake sales to billion dollar economic deals across Glendale, Surprise and the renewable energy beat. Today he is editor in chief of Independent News Media's Arizona division, leading award winning teams through the industry shift from print to digital. Off the clock he is chasing good music and good food, and he has been playing guitar longer than he has been a journalist. On this episode of Off Deadline, Melissa DiGianfilippo, founder of Proof Publicity, sits down with Patrick to get into: Starting at Independent in 1993, covering Sun City West, and coming back decades later to run itWhy everything online should be for sale, and why journalists hate hearing itThe annual water series his team started before everyone wanted to talk about waterWriting the data centers and water story a year before it was a big topicDigital first, SEO and the stories you wish you could pull backHow he can tell when a reporter does not care, or does not understand the storyForty years of guitar and a college band that played 80s new waveThe Receipt: a stack of thank-you notes from readersAdvice to his first-year self: take the meeting, take the call, take the coffeeFollow Independent News Media: @yourvalley | yourvalley.net Follow the host, Melissa DiGianfilippo: @melissadflip Produced by Turnkey Media: https://www.turnkeymediaaz.com 📺 Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@proof-publicity 🔗 Check out Proof Publicity → https://proofpublicity.com

  5. Sep 8 ·  Video

    Amy Silverman on Three Decades Covering Phoenix, the Arpaio Wedding Rumor & a Ronan Farrow DM

    Send us Fan Mail Sheriff Joe Arpaio spent years telling people he was at her wedding. He was not. Amy Silverman covered him too long and too well for that rumor to survive, and it is not even the strangest story in this episode. Amy Silverman is a journalist, writer and teacher who has covered her hometown of Phoenix for more than three decades. She spent 25 years at Phoenix New Times and is now executive producer of The Show on KJZZ, the Phoenix NPR station. A three-time Arizona Press Club Journalist of the Year, she has reported on Arizonans with disabilities for ProPublica, with work appearing in The New York Times and on This American Life. Off the clock she co-teaches Mothers Who Write and co-curates the Bar Flies reading series at Valley Bar. On this episode of Off Deadline, Melissa DiGianfilippo, founder of Proof Publicity, sits down with Amy to get into: The juvenile corrections investigation two colleagues handed off, which led to a DOJ investigation and real reformsFiling that project on July 1 and giving birth to her first daughter on July 10The New Year's Day story that broke while she stood in line at DisneylandA year with ProPublica on disability services in Arizona, and why that coverage is personalArizona: a great place to be a journalist and a lousy place to be a human beingThe Receipt: a gold heart necklace engraved with a Talking Heads lyricThe Cost Plus ritual she cannot explainThe Ronan Farrow DM that surfaced a story she forgot she wrote, headlined Die HardAdvice to her first-year self: trust yourselfFollow Amy: @amysilverman on Instagram | amysilverman.com Follow KJZZ: @kjzzphoenix Follow the host, Melissa DiGianfilippo: @melissadflip Check out Proof Publicity → https://proofpublicity.com Produced by Turnkey Media: https://www.turnkeymediaaz.com 📺 Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@proof-publicity 🔗 Check out Proof Publicity → https://proofpublicity.com

  6. Sep 1 ·  Video

    Aiesha Beasley on Building Arizona Places, Brand Deal Regrets & the Industry Plant Rumor

    Send us Fan Mail She was furloughed for three months during Covid, started throwing videos at TikTok for fun, and Arizona Places happened by accident. Six years later she is full time, and the advice she gives anyone chasing it is blunt: a hobby mindset gives you hobby results. Aiesha Beasley is a Tucson native and Phoenix based content creator, entrepreneur and podcast host who has spent more than a decade building community online. Known to her audience as Arizona Places, she showcases the best of the state, from restaurants and hotels to the hidden gems most locals miss. She co-hosts the Thriving Loudly podcast, and her platforms have grown to 175K on TikTok and 156K on Instagram with partnerships spanning major brands, tourism organizations and media outlets. On this episode of Off Deadline, Melissa DiGianfilippo, founder of Proof Publicity, sits down with Aiesha to get into: Why a hobby mindset gives you hobby results, and a business mindset gives you business resultsSigning with management, the 20 percent, and how contracts actually 10X a creator's incomeThe early yeses she regrets, including five year usage and one year exclusivity she did not understandWorking with Wells Fargo, then spending months fighting to get her content pulled when a scandal hitBurnout, the hamster wheel, and reinventing after a decade onlineThe rumor that she was an Arizona industry plant spreading state propagandaThe big money brand deals and political campaigns she turned downThe Receipt: her first camera, and the shy kid who found a creative outlet onlineHer real superpower, a color coded Google Calendar and a filming scheduleThe POV video that got a million views and a pile of hate for nothingFollow Aiesha: @aieshabeasley and @arizonaplaces_ on Instagram Follow the host, Melissa DiGianfilippo: @melissadflip Learn more about Proof Publicity: https://proofpublicity.com Produced by Turnkey Media: https://www.turnkeymediaaz.com 📺 Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@proof-publicity 🔗 Check out Proof Publicity → https://proofpublicity.com

  7. Aug 25 ·  Video

    Joe Huizenga on 22 Years in Radio, Losing 100 Pounds With Crohn's & Why He Won't Play Gotcha

    Send us Fan Mail A doctor told him at twelve that if he treated Crohn's disease like a death sentence, it would become one. Twenty years later Joe Huizenga lost 100 pounds during Covid and ran a marathon almost entirely alone, no crowd, no finish line medal. It is still the thing he is proudest of, and it is not on his resume. Joe Huizenga has been in broadcasting since 2004, the year he graduated from ASU's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism. He came to Phoenix from Ann Arbor to call sports, was part of the first crew to broadcast ASU hockey when it was still a club sport, and got pushed into news by a program director who told him he was too smart not to do it. He joined KTAR News in 2008 and has been a producer, executive producer, assistant program director, weekend host and now co-host of Arizona's Evening News alongside Becky Lynn. He is drawn to public safety, the border, housing and the economy, and to the kitchen table version of all of it. On this episode of Off Deadline, Melissa DiGianfilippo, founder of Proof Publicity, sits down with Joe to get into: Losing 100 pounds during Covid and the doctor's line he never forgotRunning a marathon with no crowd and no medal, and why that one counts mostWhy he refuses to play gotcha, even when he admires the interviewers who doThe Martha Stewart interview that went in a direction he did not wantManaging on-air talent, or as he calls it, adult babysittingThe dinner with his boss where he was certain he was about to be firedHow close he came to leaving radio for a psychology degreeThe Receipt: his medal from his first marathon, on the Las Vegas strip at nightThe unwritten rule of broadcasting: be a Swiss Army knife or be goneThe comment about his looks that ate at him for yearsTwenty-five years in, the part he loves most is not talking. It is listening. Follow Joe: @joehuizenga on Instagram Follow KTAR News: @ktarnews Follow the host, Melissa DiGianfilippo: @melissadflip Produced by Turnkey Media: https://www.turnkeymediaaz.com 📺 Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@proof-publicity 🔗 Check out Proof Publicity → https://proofpublicity.com

  8. Aug 18 ·  Video

    Kyle Unfug on 20 Years on The Johnjay & Rich Show, Shwanding & the Rumor She Had to Live Down

    Send us Fan Mail Kyle Unfug blew off radio. She took the internship to get it out of the way, decided radio was the worst, and planned to go do television instead. Twenty-five years later she is still there, and she has co-hosted The Johnjay & Rich Show since 2008. Kyle went to the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State, interned at a Phoenix radio station, and got hired to co-host nights. Overnights, weekends and middays came next. Then the 3 a.m. phone calls started, asking her to fill in on the morning show. She filled in for a full year, working mornings and middays at the same time, before she finally told them to commit. They told her it had always been her. She also appears weekly on Your Life Arizona with entertainment and pop culture updates. On this episode of Off Deadline, Melissa DiGianfilippo, founder of Proof Publicity, sits down with Kyle to get into: Why she wrote radio off during her internship, and the night host who changed her mindThe year of 3 a.m. phone calls that split her career into a before and an afterSchwanding: the word she coined for show plus bonding, and why she is proud of itWhy tension behind the mic is something listeners can hear even when nobody names itThe Tim Ballard interview on child sex trafficking she still gets sick thinking aboutGetting recognized in her 20s and the accountability that came with itWhy she never considered quitting work after her kids, and the guilt she almost carriedThe Receipt: a printed photo with Hulk Hogan from the 2005 Teen Choice Awards, her first red carpet aloneTelling John Cena on that red carpet that she wanted to have his babiesThe celebrity who genuinely surprised her, and the two rumors she had to hear about herselfThe on-air moment she will never live downHer advice to her first-year self, and the laptop full of career photos she never got backRadio makes people feel less alone. That is the whole reason she stayed. Follow Kyle: @unfug Follow The Johnjay & Rich Show: @johnjayandrich Follow the host, Melissa DiGianfilippo: @melissadflip Learn more about Proof Publicity Produced by Turnkey Media #OffDeadline #KyleUnfug #JohnjayAndRich #PhoenixRadio #ProofPublicity Watch this episode on YouTube 📺 Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@proof-publicity 🔗 Check out Proof Publicity → https://proofpublicity.com

    Kyle Unfug on 20 Years on The Johnjay & Rich Show, Shwanding & the Rumor She Had to Live Down
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
10 Ratings

About

Off Deadline goes beyond the headlines to reveal what really happens when the cameras stop rolling and the deadlines pass. Host Melissa DiGianfilippo, Founder and CEO of Proof Publicity, creates a rare safe space where top journalists drop their professional guard to share the moments that changed everything—the ethical crossroads that kept them awake, the sources that most surprised them, the stories that broke them, and the victories no one will ever write about. From the hilarious disasters to the heart-stopping close calls, veteran journalists share the wild, unforgettable moments that never made it into their reporting. These are the behind-the-scenes confessions, the career-defining chaos, and the human moments that remind us why journalism is equal parts calling and complete madness. This isn't about breaking news—it's about the people who lived through the craziest moments while chasing the story, and the experiences they'll never forget. If you've ever wondered what it really takes to be a storyteller in our chaotic world, Off Deadline delivers the raw, unfiltered truth behind journalism's most compelling voices. Watch on YouTube and listen wherever you get your podcasts!

Information

  • Creator
    Melissa DiGianfilippo, Proof Publicity
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    38
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Off Deadline
  • Show Website
    Off Deadline