Guinness World Record Holder  ·  Former NBC, ABC & FOX Producer  ·  20+ Years Training Executives Speak with Jess
About Jess Todtfeld

The media trainer physicians and healthcare leaders trust when patient access and public credibility are at stake.

Healthcare media training is the preparation that gets physicians, hospital leaders, and health-system spokespeople ready to communicate about patient stories, quality outcomes, and crises on camera. Jess Todtfeld spent 13 years as a television producer at NBC, ABC, and FOX, booking medical experts, researchers, and health-system spokespeople, watching which ones earned trust on camera and which ones lost it. He has since trained hundreds of physicians, hospital communications teams, pharmaceutical spokespeople, and public-health officials to deliver their message with authority, compassion, and precision in any media environment.

Guinness World Record Holder CSP: Top 1% of Speakers Globally Author of Media Secrets Former NBC · ABC · FOX Producer
Work with Jess
Jess Todtfeld, Media Trainer
🏆
112
Guinness World Record
Most Media Interviews in 24 Hours · 96 officially certified
June 2009 · full story
20+
Years training senior executives
112
Guinness World Record story (96 certified)
13
Years producing NBC, ABC & FOX Television
500+
Customized programs for executives and teams
Client results

What Healthcare and Medical Professionals say about working with Jess

I learned how to improve my body language, reduce self-consciousness, and control the interview. By the end of the training, I was able to answer any question with confidence.
Franklin House, M.D.Physician
This whole session was extremely helpful. I needed work in all areas: body language, getting my message together, and creating sound bites. I really can see my improvement on-screen. This will also help me tremendously professionally.
Stuart Seale, M.D.Board Certified Family Physician
With Jess Todtfeld's Media Training I was able to feel confident on the TV interviews and TEDx talks I did to promote my International Bestselling book. Jess has many techniques that he teaches you to use to make your presentations powerful and fun for any audience.
Dr. Rose G. MainaPhysician and Speaker
Everything was very helpful. Jess' training was a complete knockout! This would be very beneficial for physicians.
Dr. Michael AzizPhysician
This training felt very worthwhile. He demonstrated how his techniques worked by showing me the opposite of what worked, and then showing his technique. My recall was 2% in bad methods and 100% in good methods.
Dr. GibsonMedical Professional
The background

Why executives trust Jess (and not just any media coach)

Most media trainers were never in the room where it happens. Jess was. For 13 years, he worked as a television producer and booker at NBC, ABC, and FOX Television: the person deciding which guests made air, which messages landed, and which executives came across as credible under pressure.

That background shapes everything about how Jess trains. He doesn't teach theory. He teaches what actually works in front of a camera, a reporter, or a room full of skeptical stakeholders, because he's spent years on the other side of the lens deciding who gets the benefit of the doubt.

"The goal isn't to make you sound polished. It's to make you sound like yourself, at your best, under pressure."

In June 2009, Jess helped set a Guinness World Record for most media interviews given in 24 hours: 112 radio interviews, 96 officially certified in a single day. It wasn't a stunt. It was a demonstration: mastering the art of delivering a sharp, credible message in any format, any context, repeatedly, without losing clarity or composure. Read the full story behind the record.

Jess holds the Certified Speaking Professional (CSP) designation, placing him in the top 1% of professional speakers worldwide. He is the author of multiple books on media and communication, including the international bestseller Media Secrets: A Media Training Crash Course.

Credentials

What sets Jess apart

  • Guinness World Record holder for 112 media interviews in 24 hours, 96 officially certified
  • 13 years as TV producer and national media booker at NBC, ABC, FOX Television
  • CSP (Certified Speaking Professional), awarded to the top 1% of speakers globally
  • Author of multiple books on media, communication, and messaging
  • Clients include Google, JPMorgan, American Express, LinkedIn, ASPCA, and the United Nations
  • Programs delivered live and virtually across 12+ core industries
  • New York City training studio on Madison Avenue, available for intensive programs
HSP: High Stakes Presenter Methodology

How Jess trains, and why it works

Every program Jess delivers is built around one belief: communication under pressure is a skill, not a talent. It can be learned, practiced, and owned by anyone willing to work at it.

The approach is practical from minute one. No lengthy theory sessions. No generic frameworks that could apply to any industry. Every tool is tested against real scenarios your team will actually face.

  • 01

    Diagnose first

    Every engagement starts with understanding your specific situation: the interview, the audience, the risk, the message. Nothing is generic.

  • 02

    Build the message architecture

    Jess's proprietary Sound Bite System gives executives a repeatable framework for structuring any answer under any conditions.

  • 03

    Practice under pressure

    Real exercises with hostile questions, off-topic pivots, and camera situations that mirror what your executives will actually face.

  • 04

    Walk away ready

    Every participant leaves with specific, personalized talking points and a set of tools they can use immediately, not someday.

Healthcare media training: what do clinical and hospital leaders ask most?

What does media training for healthcare leaders cover?

Media training for healthcare executives prepares hospital CEOs, health-system leaders, and physician leaders to communicate about patient stories, quality outcomes, mergers, payer negotiations, and crises. It emphasizes HIPAA awareness, compassionate precision, and on-camera composure. Translating clinical language into plain, quotable English is a core skill in these sessions.

Is the training HIPAA-aware?

Yes. Healthcare media training is built around patient privacy from the start. Practice exercises use de-identified or fictional scenarios, and spokespeople learn how to discuss outcomes, incidents, and clinical questions on camera without disclosing protected health information or speculating beyond what your legal and compliance teams have approved.

Can physicians and clinical leaders learn to explain complex medicine on camera?

Yes. Translating clinical language into plain, quotable English is a core skill in these sessions. Physicians practice explaining trial results, treatment risks, and safety updates in recorded exercises, then review the footage. Most see a dramatic improvement in clarity and confidence within a single session.

Can training be held on-site at a hospital?

Yes. On-site delivery is common, including mock press briefings in actual hospital communications centers. Remote training over Zoom also works well for academic faculty and clinicians with limited clinic time, delivered with live on-camera reps and recorded playback. Most healthcare executives reach strong on-camera performance after a one-day intensive.

Who leads the training?

Every session is led by Jess Todtfeld, founder of Success in Media. Jess spent 13 years as a television producer at NBC, ABC, and Fox, and holds the Guinness World Record for the most media interviews given in 24 hours: 112 completed, 96 officially certified. He has trained physicians, hospital executives, and healthcare spokespeople for more than two decades.

How much does healthcare media training cost?

Media training typically ranges from $1,000 to $15,000 per engagement depending on group size and scope. A focused session for one spokesperson sits at the lower end, while multi-day team workshops with recorded practice sit higher. See our media training questions page for a full breakdown of what drives pricing.

See what this would cost your team

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