In a new series of columns, alums of USC Annenberg share stories of their time at the school, discuss their career, and offer advice to students.

We wrap up our morning editorial meeting at 7:45 a.m. — just two hours and 15 minutes before show time. In those 135 heart-pounding minutes, I have to track down two to three tech experts and convince them to do an interview on national television.

Where do I start?

1. 

   Lauren interviews a guest.

   Courtesy of Lauren Furniss
   My Linkedin connections: LinkedIn is an incredible resource for finding new sources, or remembering old ones you may not have worked with in a while. After every segment I produce, I try to add each guest and any of their PR staff as a connection on LinkedIn. Using the site's highly detailed search tool, I can find guests in a specific region, who used to work at a specific company, or are currently working on a particular type of technology. LinkedIn is especially helpful when I'm working on a story about a large tech company. If Apple, Google, Facebook, etc. aren't providing an executive for us to interview, I can usually find a former executive from one of those companies who can comment.
2. Trusted PR contacts: Skilled and experienced PR representatives don't just do a good job serving their clients, they are also knowledgeable about their fields and extremely well-connected. If I'm stumped on finding guests for a story, I'll turn to a PR contact I trust to ask for ideas. That person may not have clients of their own that can comment — but, they often know of someone at their former agency or someone they met at a party, or wherever else, that could be a fit.
3. My social media following: For some reason, people other than my mom and college roommate follow me on Twitter. This mix of tech PR reps, startup founders and tech aficionados are usually semi-regular watchers of my show and are eager to help if they can. When the window before the show is closing, I'll send out a tweet or even a Facebook status update to see if any of my followers have ideas. This is also a way to make your audience feel more connected to your show or publication — people are thrilled when one of their contacts makes it on air!
4. Professors: As an assignment desk staffer at ATVN, USC professors were my number one resource for interviews. Their contact information was easily accessible online through a university's faculty directory and the USC News staff always helped me track down experts I was looking for. Whether it's Stanford, Harvard or MIT, most schools have a similar system — and even their own TV studios.
5. Industry Groups: In my time at Bloomberg, I've watched interviews with guests from the Association for Unmanned Vehicles International, the Association of Asia-Pacific Airlines and even the Lawn Tennis Association. There is an organization or association for just about every type of interest and career out there. These groups are packed with highly specialized experts who are a) rarely interviewed and b) extremely excited to talk about their fields. Many of these guests have often worked for some of the world's biggest agencies or companies and have valuable experiences they can draw on.