November 20, 2025 • 25 mins
In this episode of Inside Recreation, host Carmen Berrios Martinez speaks with 13-year old George Johnston IV and his father George III about the former's sports broadcasting journey that has led him to covering the Super Bowl and the Olympics as well as being featured on Nickelodeon's 'SlimeTime', 'The Kelly Clarkson Show' and more.
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Episode Transcript
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Carmen Berrios Martinez (00:04):
Thanks for tuning in to another episode
of Inside Recreation.
I'm your host, Carmen VariosMartinez, and we have got some
special guests joining us today.
We've got George Johnson, thefourth.
He is a 13-year-old student atRosa Park Middle School who
continues to make big waves as asports reporter.
He's covered sports at thelocal level here in Montgomery
(00:25):
County for the last few years,as well as major events
including the 2024 SummerOlympics in Paris and the Super
Bowl.
He's also made appearances onNickelodeon and the Kelly
Clarkson show.
His dad, George III, is alsohere to share his perspectives
and the sport he and the rest ofthe family have provided George
on his journey.
Thank you both so much forjoining us.
(00:46):
How are you guys?
George III (00:47):
So well.
Thank you.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (00:48):
It's so great to have you guys.
So, all right.
So when the crew told me thatwe were gonna do this podcast,
I'm like, all right, who's thiskid?
You are so famous.
You're all over YouTube andGoogle.
Like, how did you know, right,that this is what you wanted to
do, that your passion was sportsand sports reporting?
George Johnston IV (01:08):
So I think at a young age, first of all, I
wasn't really an athlete likegrowing up.
I mostly just did likedevelopmental leagues, like
soccer, T-ball.
Um, it wasn't really untilSuper Bowl 53, and this was
mostly because I like lovehistory.
And Super Bowl 53 was thePatriots versus the Rams.
Then I made that connection,like Patriots and the American
(01:30):
Revolution, and that kind ofkick-started my love for
football.
And then as the next coupleyears went on, I started playing
Madden a lot, like doing uh myown commentary on Madden,
started watching a lot morefootball.
And then it got to a pointwhere I wanted to go to the
Super Bowl, and I didn't realizeit, but Super Bowl tickets are
very expensive, as he told me.
(01:51):
He was like, if you want to go,you have to work your way up.
Then I was like, how?
And then YouTube came up, andthen I started asking him for a
YouTube channel, but it neverreally came to fruition until
like two years after that SuperBowl when he finally let me.
And then I started my YouTubechannel and video by video, I
got better at sports casting.
(02:11):
And that's kind of how I foundmy passion through that one
Super Bowl.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (02:14):
That's amazing.
That's such a great story, Dad.
Right, like so your kid, I feellike every kid wants to be an
influencer, right?
A social media influencer.
So when George is asking you,like, hey, dad, I want a YouTube
channel.
What were you thinking?
George III (02:28):
I don't know what to do.
That was the thing.
I I am uh first of all, uh I'mnot a big sports person.
So he was entering newterritory with that.
Um, and then I definitely amnot a media person.
So that was an uphill battlefor me.
So it was just like confusion.
What am I going to do aboutthis?
And so really that two-year gapthat he was talking about was
(02:49):
because I was like, no, you'retoo young, or I don't know what
to do.
And so, but you know, as aparent, you do what you do, you
try to support them and figureit out along the way.
So it was uh roll up oursleeves and figure out how we
can support his interest.
And that that's really what itwas all about.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (03:06):
That's what parenting is all about for
sure.
George Johnston IV (03:08):
I'm just learning some of this stuff for
the first time, too.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (03:10):
We're about to say a lot of stuff you
don't know yet about what yourparents went through to get you
here.
Absolutely.
So, George, so you have thesports for uh this passion for
covering sports.
Your parents are like, okay,let's do this YouTube channel.
Like, once they said yes, whatdid you do?
Like, how did you make thishappen?
George Johnston IV (03:30):
Well, it started with my first video,
which was I I think it was aSuper Bowl prediction video for
the next Super Bowl, which wasthe Chiefs versus the
Buccaneers.
And then I started doing moreand more videos.
And I think my first fivevideos, except one of them was
all about that one Super Bowl inthat playoffs.
And then as I went on, Istarted making more videos.
(03:53):
I got a following.
And then, like maybe June, um,I did an interview with my
principal at GreenwoodElementary School for um it was
the uh Greenwood's 50thanniversary, and they had me
interview her about some of thestuff about the school.
And she knew a woman, MissIrene Johnson from NBC Four, who
(04:15):
was a producer at NBC Four.
And she talked to her, she'slike, This kid's amazing.
Well, I don't even know whatshe said, but I'm just gonna
guess that what that's what itwas.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (04:24):
That's probably what it was.
George Johnston IV (04:26):
After that, I got to be on NBC Four and they
interviewed me, and I did asurprise interview with the then
commander's president at thetime, Jason Wright.
And then after that, thingsjust kept on like going higher
and higher.
I got to be on the KellyClarkson show.
And then later that September,I got the news asking if I
wanted to be on NFL Slime Time.
(04:46):
So, really, in those first sixmonths of me having a YouTube
channel, it was like things wentfrom like zero to 60 in like a
pretty short time.
And it was pretty surrealbecause, you know, as I was like
watching these players and Igot to talk to so many these
great people, and it happened sofast, I just like can't even
(05:06):
explain what it was like.
But it was really just asurreal moment to be able to do
all of this in such a shortperiod of time.
And I was only eight years old,I was still learning my
multiplication and division.
So that was just surreal.
So tell me, what was it like tocover Slime Time?
I think it's it's really coolto see like the production
behind it, and really because Iwas filming on Sundays and then
(05:30):
I got to see the episodes onWednesdays.
So yes, I was filming and Iknew the script, but I didn't
really know what the finalproduct was until the when until
Wednesday night when I watchedit just with everyone else.
So I was also really aspectator to the show as much as
I was part of the show.
And it was really cool gettingto see uh some of the props when
I went up to the actual studioto see them film an episode and
(05:52):
just overall getting to see whatit was like to do that, it was
just amazing.
And that's something that I'mgonna hold for a pretty long
time.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (06:00):
That's great.
So, like all of this seems tohave happened fairly quickly,
right?
We kind of we paused two yearsin order to make sure we're
comfortable with putting ourchild out on the internet,
right?
And then it snowballs.
So, how how did you guys dealwith that kind of mounting?
Um Yeah, yeah.
George III (06:19):
Yeah, I'll I'll tell you, it was um uh it was
learning on the go.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (06:25):
Yeah.
George III (06:25):
It it all started off with he already mentioned
how uh Miss Irene Johnson, uhthe producer, linked up with
him.
Um, and she was a producer forMulette Green, and she was the
one that interviewed George onthat first episode.
And the first thing I did whenNickelodeon called was I reached
out to Mollette Green andasked, Hey, do you have an
agent?
(06:45):
Because we got a contract inour hands and I don't know what
to do with this.
Sure.
You know, and um andfortunately she linked us up
with her agent, uh Brian Jacobs,he was in New York area and
knew the casting director, whichwas a wonderful person.
Um that uh uh DanielPratzfelder Demchick, she's a
(07:06):
casting director at the time forNickelodeon, and everything
worked out, right?
They they negotiated, did allthis stuff behind the scenes,
and then from there, once thecontract's signed, you're really
holding your breath because yougot television appearances
coming up, you got all thesethings that you've never seen
before, screen actors guild,paperwork that you gotta deal
(07:26):
with.
There's a lot of stuff that thefirst time we we're just you
know fearing, like what are wegetting ourselves into.
Right.
Um, but it all worked out.
And I I think the biggest thingwas it was always what's next.
Uh because when you startedoff, it was just a three uh
episode guest appearance, whichwas on the contract and had
(07:47):
options for extensions and allthese optics and things like
that.
So three episodes turned intothree seasons with like 70 plus
appearances.
And so every time you justyou're not knowing what's next.
So newfound attention wasreally holding our breath,
wanting to make sure we don't wemake the right steps, you know,
(08:08):
schools first.
So that was always like themain thing first.
And this television stuff wasreally second for us.
So we were really just tryingto do our best.
So there was really no formulato it, um, especially since he's
not an actor.
Yeah, you know, and that's athing which a lot of these kids
that are on these televisionshows it could be a sports show,
(08:31):
it could be any show.
They're actors first orentertainers or or actual um
influencers that get on theseshows, and he is a kid that is a
a journalist, a sportsjournalist.
So it was a whole differentdynamic.
So we were rather unprepared,but we did our best.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (08:48):
Yeah, I mean, that's I think really
what we all try to do, right?
Every day.
So I heard that recently you'vebeen thinking about shifting a
little bit from reporting towriting.
Tell me a little bit aboutthat.
George Johnston IV (09:01):
So I think I'm definitely still doing a lot
of reporting, but I thinkdefinitely the shift to uh doing
more writing and more writingmore articles was because of
like how I've been doing a lotmore athletics recently.
Uh but like I said earlier, Iwasn't really an athlete growing
up.
And only about two to threeyears ago is when I started
(09:23):
started playing tackle football,and that's really become a huge
part of my life because uh Ithink it gives me an edge that
not a lot of sports journalists,not just at my age, but
overall, have.
Because now not only can I talkabout sports, but I have the
background knowledge of playingthem.
So I think that's really been ahuge part of how I've sort of
(09:48):
molded how I speak, write, talkabout sports.
Um, but I think definitelyhaving less time during the week
because I'm playing more sportsthan I used to be, definitely
impacted why I'm writing morethan I used to.
But I think that this isoverall gonna help me in the
(10:08):
long run because now I have uhbackground knowledge on all
sports that gives me an edge.
Because a lot of times,especially for me when I'm
playing football and watching,there's a lot of things about
not just football, but in allsports that you can't really
understand unless you've playedit.
And I think that that gives mean edge over a lot of people.
(10:29):
And that's why that's whypeople like Tom Brady are
getting paid so much to uh besports broadcasters on things
like Fox News, because he hasthe background knowledge of not
only playing in the NFL, butbeing successful in the NFL that
more people will want to tuneinto.
And I think that's somethingthat can help me in the future.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (10:46):
Yeah, absolutely.
Um, so when you write, do youdo you prepare differently for
writing versus reporting on thesidelines?
Or is kind of your preparationprocess the same?
George Johnston IV (10:59):
I think at least so writing, usually when I
was make when I'm making videosand when I'm reporting, usually
I try to get an outline and dosome research on whatever I'm
gonna be talking about or whoI'm gonna be speaking to.
And I don't think it's reallythat far from just writing
articles.
Because really, um, me and mydad have been uh my dad's been
(11:22):
telling me when I'm writing anarticle, he's like, you can turn
this into a video reallyeasily.
And he's right.
Because really the way youwrite an article, not only is an
article, it's really an outlinefor doing a video.
Yeah.
So whilst it's uh prettydifferent, because normally for
videos, I'm not actually writingan article, I'm just writing
notes and questions or somethingthat I want to talk on.
(11:44):
Uh, but I think it's prettysimilar in the preparation in
the research.
But of course, filming a videoand getting ready for that is a
lot different than just writingan article and posting it.
But I think they're they're notas different than a lot of
people think.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (11:58):
So you talked about playing tackle
football, um, but you play someother sports too.
So I mean, you're keepingyourself really busy.
What other sports are youplaying?
George Johnston IV (12:08):
So I think I want to go by like throughout
the year.
So fall, of course, right nowI'm doing tackle football, but
I'm also doing stroke and turnat my local uh aquatic center to
uh get conditioned.
And that's really justyear-round from like now, just
starting October to really May.
So I do that.
Uh winter, I do housebasketball.
(12:28):
And of course, I like just playbasketball throughout the year,
but winter is just housebasketball.
And then spring, it reallydepends.
But for the past couple ofyears, I've definitely been
doing flag football uh duringthe spring and just rinse and
repeat.
Summer, uh, I don't really playanything during the summer,
just get conditioned and getready for the football season.
(12:49):
But I think keeping myselfactive throughout the year and
getting a wide variety of sportsthat I'm playing, uh it really
helps.
Because another thing my dadtalks to me about, he takes
things from one sport and talksabout how they can apply to
football because that's my mainsport.
So, like, say how swimmingtrains your legs and your whole
(13:11):
body can help you with football.
Because you're using your legsa lot, you use your legs a lot
in football, and yeah, and thenthe cardio and basketball
applies to football because Iplay running back and
linebacker, so I'm doing a themajority of the running on the
team.
So I think honestly, uh thevariety of sports that I do
throughout the year, not justfootball, it really helps me
(13:34):
with football and also the othersports that I play.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (13:37):
Yeah, so Dad, Montgomery County
recreation, right, seems to havebeen a big part or is a big
part of um Georgia's kind of uhsports, you know, career here.
How has Montgomery Countyrecreation played a role?
George III (13:51):
It it's been pretty much there from day one for us.
Like we the aquatic center'salways been a big draw for us.
Um whether it was lessons, youknow, like their level one,
level two, level three lessons.
Um that all was really where hegot started with swimming, um,
but not at the competitive leveluntil we got to you know,
(14:14):
middle school and start puttingit into the into the summer swim
leagues.
Um but it was there.
And then of course, uh flagfootball was always something
that we gravitated to.
So we would be um down here atWheaton High School, uh playing
there on Sundays, uh, which wasa really great thing for us
scheduling wise.
(14:34):
Um, we we did other leagues aswell, but that was probably the
most accessible for us.
And that was a huge helpbecause um he really didn't know
this.
But the the reason he reallydidn't get started late um with
athletics was because of ourwork schedules.
You know, I I would have to Iwould have an hour and a half
(14:57):
commute um each way easily,sometimes two hours.
Couldn't get him to these, youknow, travel soccer, travel
basketball, all these otherthings midweek.
And uh my wife uh had anequally demanding schedule as
well.
So i it it really was becauseof that, that ability to have
those flexible and accessibleopportunities that even got, you
(15:22):
know, started at that age.
I mean um so like I said, thatwas probably a a huge
differentiator for us uh is justhaving that access.
So we do think accounting forthat for sure.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (15:34):
Yeah, ex accessibility um is something
that we focus on so much,right, in trying to offer
programs when people need them,not when they are easiest or
most convenient for thedepartment, particularly.
So, George, uh dad mentionedearlier, right, school comes
first, but how do you balanceeverything that you're doing,
right?
For other kids who arelistening, right?
(15:54):
You do school, you do sports,then you've got this other gig
on top of it, right?
How do you balance everything?
George Johnston IV (16:01):
So, of course, when I'm coming home,
like you said, school comesfirst, so I have to get my
homework done before I can doanything.
Um, sometimes I don't reallyhave enough time.
So I just get ready, take myhomework, and do in the cars of
going to practice.
But of course, I have to bedoing my homework before I do
anything else.
And usually when I'm doingresearch for these articles,
videos, interviews, whatever,it's either after I come back
(16:24):
from any practice or just whileI'm eating dinner or like late
at night.
And really, I don't I don'thang out much with friends
during the week.
My parents don't, they don'tusually let me hang out during
the week, uh, just really on theweekends.
So week, I have a lot of timeto practice, do my homework, and
do my research or uh whatever.
(16:46):
So really it's just aboutmaintaining my academic
strengths.
So I have time to do uh prettymuch everything else that I need
to.
But it really is a rush,especially when I have sports or
other commitments that I haveto do during the week.
Uh also like clubs that I haveat school.
Uh so just balancing all that,it is hard, but it's definitely
(17:08):
manageable when you put youracademics first and get your
homework out of the way beforeanything.
Because honestly, if I didn'tdo like my homework or anything
before, uh that'd probably it'dprobably make my schedule worse.
And also, my parents give meextra homework during the week.
And while I don't like it, Imean I it's necess it's
(17:30):
necessary because that's how Ihave uh strong academics in the
classroom.
So I think the key to managingall of it is just keeping my
academics first, and then I havea bunch of time throughout the
week to do anything else that Ineed to.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (17:44):
Yeah, it sounds like you have a solid
foundation helping you out.
That's awesome.
Who are some of your uhinspirations, right?
Like I know you started bywatching the Super Bowl and
football, but who are the peopleyou look up to?
George Johnston IV (17:58):
Well, going back to that Super Bowl, Tom
Brady was definitely the playerwho I gravitated towards
instantly.
Um, of course, I play footballand I said running back and
linebacker.
So I think players like B.
John Robinson and like AshtonGenty currently, I try to model
my game off of just because ofhow like how hard it is to
tackle them and how like theirgames, while they aren't really
(18:20):
like quick, their game speed'samazing.
So that's what I try to modeloff of.
And I think in terms of likebroadcasting and reporting,
Jameis Winston, because he'sdoing something that a lot of
other players and reportersaren't doing.
He's playing at a high level,he's a and he's an NFL player,
and he's also doing sportsreporting on the side, which I
(18:42):
think is something that I'm inthat same situation and
something that I want to modeloff of.
And of course, like I said, Imentioned the NFL players
earlier and Tom Brady.
But I think Jameis Winston andme are in like that same
situation.
I'm uh he's playing footballand he's doing broadcasting,
which is something that I'minspired to do the same.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (19:01):
That's awesome.
So, Dad, if someone's listeningand they're like, gosh, my kid
has this dream, right?
And I'm just not sure if I'mokay with all these things that
I don't know anything about,what would you tell them?
George III (19:13):
It was really reaching out and trying to
connect with people that atleast know a little bit more
than you.
And I'll I'll just kind ofpreface this by um something
that I did.
Um, you know, I talked torandom people about, you know,
cameras and microphones andwhatnot.
And you just play around withit.
And his first videos wererough.
(19:33):
I mean, we had awful audio,terrible lighting, but it didn't
matter as long as you start itsomewhere.
You know, and so just try it,you know.
I mean, and and I know I'msaying that after delaying for
two years, but when we finallydid get started, I started
learning a little bit more aboutediting, started learning a
(19:54):
little bit more about equipment.
And and you can go through andand see the progression of of
the things we helped them outinitially.
And then when you get to acertain point saying, I need
help, you know, like I linked upuh with the editor uh uh later
on, Sash Suja, who uh iswonderful, and he helped out
(20:14):
with some videos when I couldn'tlike manage that workload.
Um and then when we got to thepoint where it was uh what's
next, I talked with otherparents that we were um coming
in contact with.
Uh when we were out in um LosAngeles for the uh Nickelodeon's
Kids' Choice Awards, we werebackstage and all this stuff
(20:35):
like that in the green room, andI talked with um some parents
of some of the other Nickelodeonactors.
It was uh Elijah Cooper'sparents, uh Hero Mirror Hunter's
parents, and Young Dylan'sparents.
And all three of them reallyhelped me um understand ins and
(20:56):
outs of the industry that I hadno idea about.
And so not being afraid to askpeople for their advice was key
and not, you know, and um andnot trying to I don't know,
gatekeep success or anything.
You know, like we would inviteother kids that you know wanted
(21:17):
to be a part of different videoswith him and just try to grow
your own little community.
Um so that that was anotherthing that we we try to do, but
but really just ask for help,learn from others, and start
somewhere, even if it's veryrough in the beginning.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (21:32):
I mean, that's great advice for so many
things in life, right?
Not just kind of how to getyour kid on a YouTube channel or
something like that.
George, you're 13.
You've done so much already,right?
Most kids at 13, I mean, I'mtrying to think what I was
planning for at 13, right?
It definitely wasn't probablywhat you were planning for.
What are your goals for thefuture?
(21:52):
What do you want to do in thenext five, 10 years?
George Johnston IV (21:55):
I think honestly, I haven't really
thought about what my plans arefor the future, but I think it
definitely is gonna be somethingwith sports, you know.
Um playing football, especiallyat a high level.
I think playing high school andthen maybe college football, if
I have that opportunity, issomething that I really want to
do.
But also expanding my onlinecommunity, you know, uh hitting
(22:19):
a thousand subscribers onYouTube is something I want to
do for a long time.
That's something that I think Ireally want to accomplish in
the next couple of years.
But honestly, just improving myskills and getting to meet to
meet and interview even moreamazing people over the next
couple of years is somethingthat I really want to do.
But just learning more aboutthe sports world and getting to
(22:41):
be involved in it is really mymain focus.
And I think I think whereverthat comes, not just broad uh
sports casting or playing, butalso maybe being in the front
office, like being a scout or ageneral manager, that's
something that I've recentlybeen uh interested in.
So where wherever uh whereverthe world takes me in the sports
(23:04):
world is where I'm gonna go.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (23:06):
Sounds like you have a good plan, Dad.
What are your what are yourgoals for him?
What are your wishes for him inthe future?
George III (23:12):
You know, you know, you know, w we we have no
expectations except to make surethat he thoroughly um explores
it.
So I you know, I he doesn'thave to go into sports
broadcasting um as a profession.
Um, but we want to make surethat while he's doing it, he
does it right and he sees itthrough and and tells us when he
(23:36):
doesn't want to do it anymore.
So we know that whatever hedoes decide to do, he can take
those experiences and go take itto anything else.
Um at this point, we don't havea real major, you know, defined
vision as long as he does go tocollege.
I was gonna say education.
Uh that's a must.
(23:56):
Yeah.
I know there's for for a lot ofpeople that's not the way for
them.
Uh but in our family that is.
Um so go to college, um, makethe most of his experience that
he has now, um, and and just,you know, commit to whatever he
does want to go into.
So we'll see what he does.
(24:17):
And if it's sports broadcastingor playing professionally or
working in the industry umbehind the scenes in the in in
the in the front officesomewhere, we're fine with that.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (24:29):
Yeah, I think you have some pretty
incredible, uh, a prettyincredible journey ahead.
So you talked about hitting athousand subscribers.
So let's tell people how theycan follow you on YouTube.
What's your do YouTube channel?
George Johnston IV (24:41):
All right.
So YouTube, I am at g4 sportstalk, but you can also uh search
up at g4 sports talk onInstagram and TikTok.
And I also have a websitecalled g4sportstock.com where
you can pretty much findeverything I've done on
g4sportstock.com.
So all my handles are at g4sports talk, and then I have the
(25:01):
g4sports.com website.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (25:03):
All right.
Well, we're all rooting for youhere at Montgomery County
Recreation.
And to learn more about some ofthose programs that George
participates in throughMontgomery County Recreation,
you can visit us atwww.mocorec.com.
Guys, thanks so much for beinghere with me.
This was so much fun.
I am rooting for you.
Thank you.
I think a lot of us are rootingfor you.
Um, we're gonna be looking outfor you over the next couple of
(25:24):
years and see all the amazingthings you do.
Thanks again for being with us.
And thank you for joining usand listening to Inside
Recreation.
We hope you join us again soonfor the next episode.
Bye.
George Johnston IV (25:36):
Bye.
Announcer (25:42):
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Connect with us via cable,Facebook, Instagram, or YouTube
by searching for County CableLocal.
Thanks for tuning in to another episode
of Inside Recreation.
I'm your host, Carmen VariosMartinez, and we have got some
special guests joining us today.
We've got George Johnson, thefourth.
He is a 13-year-old student atRosa Park Middle School who
continues to make big waves as asports reporter.
He's covered sports at thelocal level here in Montgomery
(00:25):
County for the last few years,as well as major events
including the 2024 SummerOlympics in Paris and the Super
Bowl.
He's also made appearances onNickelodeon and the Kelly
Clarkson show.
His dad, George III, is alsohere to share his perspectives
and the sport he and the rest ofthe family have provided George
on his journey.
Thank you both so much forjoining us.
(00:46):
How are you guys?
George III (00:47):
So well.
Thank you.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (00:48):
It's so great to have you guys.
So, all right.
So when the crew told me thatwe were gonna do this podcast,
I'm like, all right, who's thiskid?
You are so famous.
You're all over YouTube andGoogle.
Like, how did you know, right,that this is what you wanted to
do, that your passion was sportsand sports reporting?
George Johnston IV (01:08):
So I think at a young age, first of all, I
wasn't really an athlete likegrowing up.
I mostly just did likedevelopmental leagues, like
soccer, T-ball.
Um, it wasn't really untilSuper Bowl 53, and this was
mostly because I like lovehistory.
And Super Bowl 53 was thePatriots versus the Rams.
Then I made that connection,like Patriots and the American
(01:30):
Revolution, and that kind ofkick-started my love for
football.
And then as the next coupleyears went on, I started playing
Madden a lot, like doing uh myown commentary on Madden,
started watching a lot morefootball.
And then it got to a pointwhere I wanted to go to the
Super Bowl, and I didn't realizeit, but Super Bowl tickets are
very expensive, as he told me.
(01:51):
He was like, if you want to go,you have to work your way up.
Then I was like, how?
And then YouTube came up, andthen I started asking him for a
YouTube channel, but it neverreally came to fruition until
like two years after that SuperBowl when he finally let me.
And then I started my YouTubechannel and video by video, I
got better at sports casting.
(02:11):
And that's kind of how I foundmy passion through that one
Super Bowl.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (02:14):
That's amazing.
That's such a great story, Dad.
Right, like so your kid, I feellike every kid wants to be an
influencer, right?
A social media influencer.
So when George is asking you,like, hey, dad, I want a YouTube
channel.
What were you thinking?
George III (02:28):
I don't know what to do.
That was the thing.
I I am uh first of all, uh I'mnot a big sports person.
So he was entering newterritory with that.
Um, and then I definitely amnot a media person.
So that was an uphill battlefor me.
So it was just like confusion.
What am I going to do aboutthis?
And so really that two-year gapthat he was talking about was
(02:49):
because I was like, no, you'retoo young, or I don't know what
to do.
And so, but you know, as aparent, you do what you do, you
try to support them and figureit out along the way.
So it was uh roll up oursleeves and figure out how we
can support his interest.
And that that's really what itwas all about.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (03:06):
That's what parenting is all about for
sure.
George Johnston IV (03:08):
I'm just learning some of this stuff for
the first time, too.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (03:10):
We're about to say a lot of stuff you
don't know yet about what yourparents went through to get you
here.
Absolutely.
So, George, so you have thesports for uh this passion for
covering sports.
Your parents are like, okay,let's do this YouTube channel.
Like, once they said yes, whatdid you do?
Like, how did you make thishappen?
George Johnston IV (03:30):
Well, it started with my first video,
which was I I think it was aSuper Bowl prediction video for
the next Super Bowl, which wasthe Chiefs versus the
Buccaneers.
And then I started doing moreand more videos.
And I think my first fivevideos, except one of them was
all about that one Super Bowl inthat playoffs.
And then as I went on, Istarted making more videos.
(03:53):
I got a following.
And then, like maybe June, um,I did an interview with my
principal at GreenwoodElementary School for um it was
the uh Greenwood's 50thanniversary, and they had me
interview her about some of thestuff about the school.
And she knew a woman, MissIrene Johnson from NBC Four, who
(04:15):
was a producer at NBC Four.
And she talked to her, she'slike, This kid's amazing.
Well, I don't even know whatshe said, but I'm just gonna
guess that what that's what itwas.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (04:24):
That's probably what it was.
George Johnston IV (04:26):
After that, I got to be on NBC Four and they
interviewed me, and I did asurprise interview with the then
commander's president at thetime, Jason Wright.
And then after that, thingsjust kept on like going higher
and higher.
I got to be on the KellyClarkson show.
And then later that September,I got the news asking if I
wanted to be on NFL Slime Time.
(04:46):
So, really, in those first sixmonths of me having a YouTube
channel, it was like things wentfrom like zero to 60 in like a
pretty short time.
And it was pretty surrealbecause, you know, as I was like
watching these players and Igot to talk to so many these
great people, and it happened sofast, I just like can't even
(05:06):
explain what it was like.
But it was really just asurreal moment to be able to do
all of this in such a shortperiod of time.
And I was only eight years old,I was still learning my
multiplication and division.
So that was just surreal.
So tell me, what was it like tocover Slime Time?
I think it's it's really coolto see like the production
behind it, and really because Iwas filming on Sundays and then
(05:30):
I got to see the episodes onWednesdays.
So yes, I was filming and Iknew the script, but I didn't
really know what the finalproduct was until the when until
Wednesday night when I watchedit just with everyone else.
So I was also really aspectator to the show as much as
I was part of the show.
And it was really cool gettingto see uh some of the props when
I went up to the actual studioto see them film an episode and
(05:52):
just overall getting to see whatit was like to do that, it was
just amazing.
And that's something that I'mgonna hold for a pretty long
time.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (06:00):
That's great.
So, like all of this seems tohave happened fairly quickly,
right?
We kind of we paused two yearsin order to make sure we're
comfortable with putting ourchild out on the internet,
right?
And then it snowballs.
So, how how did you guys dealwith that kind of mounting?
Um Yeah, yeah.
George III (06:19):
Yeah, I'll I'll tell you, it was um uh it was
learning on the go.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (06:25):
Yeah.
George III (06:25):
It it all started off with he already mentioned
how uh Miss Irene Johnson, uhthe producer, linked up with
him.
Um, and she was a producer forMulette Green, and she was the
one that interviewed George onthat first episode.
And the first thing I did whenNickelodeon called was I reached
out to Mollette Green andasked, Hey, do you have an
agent?
(06:45):
Because we got a contract inour hands and I don't know what
to do with this.
Sure.
You know, and um andfortunately she linked us up
with her agent, uh Brian Jacobs,he was in New York area and
knew the casting director, whichwas a wonderful person.
Um that uh uh DanielPratzfelder Demchick, she's a
(07:06):
casting director at the time forNickelodeon, and everything
worked out, right?
They they negotiated, did allthis stuff behind the scenes,
and then from there, once thecontract's signed, you're really
holding your breath because yougot television appearances
coming up, you got all thesethings that you've never seen
before, screen actors guild,paperwork that you gotta deal
(07:26):
with.
There's a lot of stuff that thefirst time we we're just you
know fearing, like what are wegetting ourselves into.
Right.
Um, but it all worked out.
And I I think the biggest thingwas it was always what's next.
Uh because when you startedoff, it was just a three uh
episode guest appearance, whichwas on the contract and had
(07:47):
options for extensions and allthese optics and things like
that.
So three episodes turned intothree seasons with like 70 plus
appearances.
And so every time you justyou're not knowing what's next.
So newfound attention wasreally holding our breath,
wanting to make sure we don't wemake the right steps, you know,
(08:08):
schools first.
So that was always like themain thing first.
And this television stuff wasreally second for us.
So we were really just tryingto do our best.
So there was really no formulato it, um, especially since he's
not an actor.
Yeah, you know, and that's athing which a lot of these kids
that are on these televisionshows it could be a sports show,
(08:31):
it could be any show.
They're actors first orentertainers or or actual um
influencers that get on theseshows, and he is a kid that is a
a journalist, a sportsjournalist.
So it was a whole differentdynamic.
So we were rather unprepared,but we did our best.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (08:48):
Yeah, I mean, that's I think really
what we all try to do, right?
Every day.
So I heard that recently you'vebeen thinking about shifting a
little bit from reporting towriting.
Tell me a little bit aboutthat.
George Johnston IV (09:01):
So I think I'm definitely still doing a lot
of reporting, but I thinkdefinitely the shift to uh doing
more writing and more writingmore articles was because of
like how I've been doing a lotmore athletics recently.
Uh but like I said earlier, Iwasn't really an athlete growing
up.
And only about two to threeyears ago is when I started
(09:23):
started playing tackle football,and that's really become a huge
part of my life because uh Ithink it gives me an edge that
not a lot of sports journalists,not just at my age, but
overall, have.
Because now not only can I talkabout sports, but I have the
background knowledge of playingthem.
So I think that's really been ahuge part of how I've sort of
(09:48):
molded how I speak, write, talkabout sports.
Um, but I think definitelyhaving less time during the week
because I'm playing more sportsthan I used to be, definitely
impacted why I'm writing morethan I used to.
But I think that this isoverall gonna help me in the
(10:08):
long run because now I have uhbackground knowledge on all
sports that gives me an edge.
Because a lot of times,especially for me when I'm
playing football and watching,there's a lot of things about
not just football, but in allsports that you can't really
understand unless you've playedit.
And I think that that gives mean edge over a lot of people.
(10:29):
And that's why that's whypeople like Tom Brady are
getting paid so much to uh besports broadcasters on things
like Fox News, because he hasthe background knowledge of not
only playing in the NFL, butbeing successful in the NFL that
more people will want to tuneinto.
And I think that's somethingthat can help me in the future.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (10:46):
Yeah, absolutely.
Um, so when you write, do youdo you prepare differently for
writing versus reporting on thesidelines?
Or is kind of your preparationprocess the same?
George Johnston IV (10:59):
I think at least so writing, usually when I
was make when I'm making videosand when I'm reporting, usually
I try to get an outline and dosome research on whatever I'm
gonna be talking about or whoI'm gonna be speaking to.
And I don't think it's reallythat far from just writing
articles.
Because really, um, me and mydad have been uh my dad's been
(11:22):
telling me when I'm writing anarticle, he's like, you can turn
this into a video reallyeasily.
And he's right.
Because really the way youwrite an article, not only is an
article, it's really an outlinefor doing a video.
Yeah.
So whilst it's uh prettydifferent, because normally for
videos, I'm not actually writingan article, I'm just writing
notes and questions or somethingthat I want to talk on.
(11:44):
Uh, but I think it's prettysimilar in the preparation in
the research.
But of course, filming a videoand getting ready for that is a
lot different than just writingan article and posting it.
But I think they're they're notas different than a lot of
people think.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (11:58):
So you talked about playing tackle
football, um, but you play someother sports too.
So I mean, you're keepingyourself really busy.
What other sports are youplaying?
George Johnston IV (12:08):
So I think I want to go by like throughout
the year.
So fall, of course, right nowI'm doing tackle football, but
I'm also doing stroke and turnat my local uh aquatic center to
uh get conditioned.
And that's really justyear-round from like now, just
starting October to really May.
So I do that.
Uh winter, I do housebasketball.
(12:28):
And of course, I like just playbasketball throughout the year,
but winter is just housebasketball.
And then spring, it reallydepends.
But for the past couple ofyears, I've definitely been
doing flag football uh duringthe spring and just rinse and
repeat.
Summer, uh, I don't really playanything during the summer,
just get conditioned and getready for the football season.
(12:49):
But I think keeping myselfactive throughout the year and
getting a wide variety of sportsthat I'm playing, uh it really
helps.
Because another thing my dadtalks to me about, he takes
things from one sport and talksabout how they can apply to
football because that's my mainsport.
So, like, say how swimmingtrains your legs and your whole
(13:11):
body can help you with football.
Because you're using your legsa lot, you use your legs a lot
in football, and yeah, and thenthe cardio and basketball
applies to football because Iplay running back and
linebacker, so I'm doing a themajority of the running on the
team.
So I think honestly, uh thevariety of sports that I do
throughout the year, not justfootball, it really helps me
(13:34):
with football and also the othersports that I play.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (13:37):
Yeah, so Dad, Montgomery County
recreation, right, seems to havebeen a big part or is a big
part of um Georgia's kind of uhsports, you know, career here.
How has Montgomery Countyrecreation played a role?
George III (13:51):
It it's been pretty much there from day one for us.
Like we the aquatic center'salways been a big draw for us.
Um whether it was lessons, youknow, like their level one,
level two, level three lessons.
Um that all was really where hegot started with swimming, um,
but not at the competitive leveluntil we got to you know,
(14:14):
middle school and start puttingit into the into the summer swim
leagues.
Um but it was there.
And then of course, uh flagfootball was always something
that we gravitated to.
So we would be um down here atWheaton High School, uh playing
there on Sundays, uh, which wasa really great thing for us
scheduling wise.
(14:34):
Um, we we did other leagues aswell, but that was probably the
most accessible for us.
And that was a huge helpbecause um he really didn't know
this.
But the the reason he reallydidn't get started late um with
athletics was because of ourwork schedules.
You know, I I would have to Iwould have an hour and a half
(14:57):
commute um each way easily,sometimes two hours.
Couldn't get him to these, youknow, travel soccer, travel
basketball, all these otherthings midweek.
And uh my wife uh had anequally demanding schedule as
well.
So i it it really was becauseof that, that ability to have
those flexible and accessibleopportunities that even got, you
(15:22):
know, started at that age.
I mean um so like I said, thatwas probably a a huge
differentiator for us uh is justhaving that access.
So we do think accounting forthat for sure.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (15:34):
Yeah, ex accessibility um is something
that we focus on so much,right, in trying to offer
programs when people need them,not when they are easiest or
most convenient for thedepartment, particularly.
So, George, uh dad mentionedearlier, right, school comes
first, but how do you balanceeverything that you're doing,
right?
For other kids who arelistening, right?
(15:54):
You do school, you do sports,then you've got this other gig
on top of it, right?
How do you balance everything?
George Johnston IV (16:01):
So, of course, when I'm coming home,
like you said, school comesfirst, so I have to get my
homework done before I can doanything.
Um, sometimes I don't reallyhave enough time.
So I just get ready, take myhomework, and do in the cars of
going to practice.
But of course, I have to bedoing my homework before I do
anything else.
And usually when I'm doingresearch for these articles,
videos, interviews, whatever,it's either after I come back
(16:24):
from any practice or just whileI'm eating dinner or like late
at night.
And really, I don't I don'thang out much with friends
during the week.
My parents don't, they don'tusually let me hang out during
the week, uh, just really on theweekends.
So week, I have a lot of timeto practice, do my homework, and
do my research or uh whatever.
(16:46):
So really it's just aboutmaintaining my academic
strengths.
So I have time to do uh prettymuch everything else that I need
to.
But it really is a rush,especially when I have sports or
other commitments that I haveto do during the week.
Uh also like clubs that I haveat school.
Uh so just balancing all that,it is hard, but it's definitely
(17:08):
manageable when you put youracademics first and get your
homework out of the way beforeanything.
Because honestly, if I didn'tdo like my homework or anything
before, uh that'd probably it'dprobably make my schedule worse.
And also, my parents give meextra homework during the week.
And while I don't like it, Imean I it's necess it's
(17:30):
necessary because that's how Ihave uh strong academics in the
classroom.
So I think the key to managingall of it is just keeping my
academics first, and then I havea bunch of time throughout the
week to do anything else that Ineed to.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (17:44):
Yeah, it sounds like you have a solid
foundation helping you out.
That's awesome.
Who are some of your uhinspirations, right?
Like I know you started bywatching the Super Bowl and
football, but who are the peopleyou look up to?
George Johnston IV (17:58):
Well, going back to that Super Bowl, Tom
Brady was definitely the playerwho I gravitated towards
instantly.
Um, of course, I play footballand I said running back and
linebacker.
So I think players like B.
John Robinson and like AshtonGenty currently, I try to model
my game off of just because ofhow like how hard it is to
tackle them and how like theirgames, while they aren't really
(18:20):
like quick, their game speed'samazing.
So that's what I try to modeloff of.
And I think in terms of likebroadcasting and reporting,
Jameis Winston, because he'sdoing something that a lot of
other players and reportersaren't doing.
He's playing at a high level,he's a and he's an NFL player,
and he's also doing sportsreporting on the side, which I
(18:42):
think is something that I'm inthat same situation and
something that I want to modeloff of.
And of course, like I said, Imentioned the NFL players
earlier and Tom Brady.
But I think Jameis Winston andme are in like that same
situation.
I'm uh he's playing footballand he's doing broadcasting,
which is something that I'minspired to do the same.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (19:01):
That's awesome.
So, Dad, if someone's listeningand they're like, gosh, my kid
has this dream, right?
And I'm just not sure if I'mokay with all these things that
I don't know anything about,what would you tell them?
George III (19:13):
It was really reaching out and trying to
connect with people that atleast know a little bit more
than you.
And I'll I'll just kind ofpreface this by um something
that I did.
Um, you know, I talked torandom people about, you know,
cameras and microphones andwhatnot.
And you just play around withit.
And his first videos wererough.
(19:33):
I mean, we had awful audio,terrible lighting, but it didn't
matter as long as you start itsomewhere.
You know, and so just try it,you know.
I mean, and and I know I'msaying that after delaying for
two years, but when we finallydid get started, I started
learning a little bit more aboutediting, started learning a
(19:54):
little bit more about equipment.
And and you can go through andand see the progression of of
the things we helped them outinitially.
And then when you get to acertain point saying, I need
help, you know, like I linked upuh with the editor uh uh later
on, Sash Suja, who uh iswonderful, and he helped out
(20:14):
with some videos when I couldn'tlike manage that workload.
Um and then when we got to thepoint where it was uh what's
next, I talked with otherparents that we were um coming
in contact with.
Uh when we were out in um LosAngeles for the uh Nickelodeon's
Kids' Choice Awards, we werebackstage and all this stuff
(20:35):
like that in the green room, andI talked with um some parents
of some of the other Nickelodeonactors.
It was uh Elijah Cooper'sparents, uh Hero Mirror Hunter's
parents, and Young Dylan'sparents.
And all three of them reallyhelped me um understand ins and
(20:56):
outs of the industry that I hadno idea about.
And so not being afraid to askpeople for their advice was key
and not, you know, and um andnot trying to I don't know,
gatekeep success or anything.
You know, like we would inviteother kids that you know wanted
(21:17):
to be a part of different videoswith him and just try to grow
your own little community.
Um so that that was anotherthing that we we try to do, but
but really just ask for help,learn from others, and start
somewhere, even if it's veryrough in the beginning.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (21:32):
I mean, that's great advice for so many
things in life, right?
Not just kind of how to getyour kid on a YouTube channel or
something like that.
George, you're 13.
You've done so much already,right?
Most kids at 13, I mean, I'mtrying to think what I was
planning for at 13, right?
It definitely wasn't probablywhat you were planning for.
What are your goals for thefuture?
(21:52):
What do you want to do in thenext five, 10 years?
George Johnston IV (21:55):
I think honestly, I haven't really
thought about what my plans arefor the future, but I think it
definitely is gonna be somethingwith sports, you know.
Um playing football, especiallyat a high level.
I think playing high school andthen maybe college football, if
I have that opportunity, issomething that I really want to
do.
But also expanding my onlinecommunity, you know, uh hitting
(22:19):
a thousand subscribers onYouTube is something I want to
do for a long time.
That's something that I think Ireally want to accomplish in
the next couple of years.
But honestly, just improving myskills and getting to meet to
meet and interview even moreamazing people over the next
couple of years is somethingthat I really want to do.
But just learning more aboutthe sports world and getting to
(22:41):
be involved in it is really mymain focus.
And I think I think whereverthat comes, not just broad uh
sports casting or playing, butalso maybe being in the front
office, like being a scout or ageneral manager, that's
something that I've recentlybeen uh interested in.
So where wherever uh whereverthe world takes me in the sports
(23:04):
world is where I'm gonna go.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (23:06):
Sounds like you have a good plan, Dad.
What are your what are yourgoals for him?
What are your wishes for him inthe future?
George III (23:12):
You know, you know, you know, w we we have no
expectations except to make surethat he thoroughly um explores
it.
So I you know, I he doesn'thave to go into sports
broadcasting um as a profession.
Um, but we want to make surethat while he's doing it, he
does it right and he sees itthrough and and tells us when he
(23:36):
doesn't want to do it anymore.
So we know that whatever hedoes decide to do, he can take
those experiences and go take itto anything else.
Um at this point, we don't havea real major, you know, defined
vision as long as he does go tocollege.
I was gonna say education.
Uh that's a must.
(23:56):
Yeah.
I know there's for for a lot ofpeople that's not the way for
them.
Uh but in our family that is.
Um so go to college, um, makethe most of his experience that
he has now, um, and and just,you know, commit to whatever he
does want to go into.
So we'll see what he does.
(24:17):
And if it's sports broadcastingor playing professionally or
working in the industry umbehind the scenes in the in in
the in the front officesomewhere, we're fine with that.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (24:29):
Yeah, I think you have some pretty
incredible, uh, a prettyincredible journey ahead.
So you talked about hitting athousand subscribers.
So let's tell people how theycan follow you on YouTube.
What's your do YouTube channel?
George Johnston IV (24:41):
All right.
So YouTube, I am at g4 sportstalk, but you can also uh search
up at g4 sports talk onInstagram and TikTok.
And I also have a websitecalled g4sportstock.com where
you can pretty much findeverything I've done on
g4sportstock.com.
So all my handles are at g4sports talk, and then I have the
(25:01):
g4sports.com website.
Carmen Berrios Martinez (25:03):
All right.
Well, we're all rooting for youhere at Montgomery County
Recreation.
And to learn more about some ofthose programs that George
participates in throughMontgomery County Recreation,
you can visit us atwww.mocorec.com.
Guys, thanks so much for beinghere with me.
This was so much fun.
I am rooting for you.
Thank you.
I think a lot of us are rootingfor you.
Um, we're gonna be looking outfor you over the next couple of
(25:24):
years and see all the amazingthings you do.
Thanks again for being with us.
And thank you for joining usand listening to Inside
Recreation.
We hope you join us again soonfor the next episode.
Bye.
George Johnston IV (25:36):
Bye.
Announcer (25:42):
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Montgomery, your source for newsand information from the
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