Reed Alexander Dissects His Career from Age 13 to Now — Child Star from ‘iCarly’ Turned Reporter at Insider

Born in Boca Raton, Florida, Reed Alexander is a man of many talents. He is a journalist, author, and former child actor best known for his role as Nevel Papperman in Nickelodeon’s sitcom iCarly. He also reprised the role of Nevel on an episode of Sam & Cat and the Paramount+ revival of iCarly.

In addition, the 26-year-old, who is a full-time finance writer now, has been actively contributing to the media industry since the age of 13.

Reed Alexander’s Transition from Actor To Journalist

In his recent interview with Business Insider, Alexander was asked how he ended up as a journalist since he already had a career as a child actor. Responding to the question, he recalled getting obsessed with international news when he was around 12.

“It started when I was traveling overseas, sometimes for work and sometimes for fun, but I was glued to international news channels like CNN International, BBC World News, and Sky News,” he added.

That’s not everything. Even when Alexander was at home in the US, he used to keep one news channel on the TV in his living room while streaming another on a laptop at the same time — all day.

Alexander simultaneously had a thing for writing, because of which he was able to co-write, pitch, and sell a concept for a television show to a kids’ network at the age of 13. He later published his first book about childhood nutrition and wellness when he was 18.

In between that, his growing love for the media industry also led him to his first appearance on NBC’s show Today.

In 2013, he took his first steps into the journey to journalism when he chose to major in business and concentrate on journalism studies at New York University.

He subsequently moved to Hong Kong in 2016, where he found an opportunity to write for CNN International in their Hong Kong bureau.

Afterward, he served for various media houses and, parallelly, completed his master’s degree in journalism from Columbia Journalism School last year.

A Finance Writer at Insider Now

At present, Alexander is settled as a business writer for Insider, the media publication house he joined after his graduation in the summer of 2020.

When I first joined Insider as a fellow...I covered the culture of financial services and the life and times of young professionals on Wall Street, whether that meant banks, private-equity firms, or hedge funds.

As a reporter on the finance team, he claimed in the interview that he had identified a wealth of opportunities for banking coverage.

He also said he had explored the intersection of mergers-and-acquisitions banking and private wealth, and looked inside firms to answer big questions like whether the banks are taking meaningful steps to support younger talent during a year of crushing workloads.

When asked what advice he would give to someone looking to make a career shift like him, he advised that one should consider bulking up on their credentials and tactile knowledge of the industry by pursuing an academic degree.

He also added that the young aspirants must be willing to tag along and shadow mentors who are open to showing them the ropes.