Miles to Go

As cheesy as it sounds, the amount I've learned from freshman year to now is insane. I've grown as a person, a student and a journalist, and I have ATVN to thank for a lot of that. I remember my first day of ATVN as a freshman spring admit, coming in for my first shift with Evan Budrovich as my sports anchor. I was given a camera and asked to go to an interview at tennis practice. Now that may have been my worst interview ever, but I was given a chance, and since then I have only improved.

Taking this production class has taught me so much. I had many different positions at ATVN, but I always looked up to the producers and EPs as such put together, mature people. No matter what question I had, they were always there to help me and teach me. Now as a producer, I have the chance to teach other freshmen, and bestow on them the wisdom that was passed on to me. It makes me so happy when a reporter asks me for help with their script, or when a freshman wants me to teach them how to  edit something or fix the sound on a SOT.

Producing has showed me a different side of the newscast. I've always been a reporter, but I've never been on the other side, and I have so much respect for producers now. I've learned more about communicating than any COMM class, which is such an important lesson. Learning to talk to my other producers, to tell each other the things we were working on in terms of graphics and videos, and keep each other in the loop about reporter packages was crucial to my development as a journalist. Being a reporter is its own set of hardships and difficulties, but producing is a whole other level. 

I've also learned so much about working with others. In a newsroom, it is key to be able to work with other people; to be able to take orders, share ideas and work together to create the best newscast possible. As a producer, I've had to not only deal with difficult reporters, but also I've had to learn to encourage MJs to contribute ideas and have them feel comfortable talking to me. I had to learn how to not necessarily have everyone like me, but have everyone feel like ATVN is a safe environment where they can grow and learn. Being a producer isn't about me; it's about everyone coming together to create the best work we can, about having the anchors have good work for their reels, about having reporters and MJs learn something new everytime they come in.

So I've learned a lot in the three years I've been at ATVN. And as I go into my senior year I know I'll keep learning more, whether as an anchor or reporter. But producing has been such an amazing learning experience for me, and the lessons I've gleaned from ATVN I know I'll hold for the rest of my journalism career.