Starting out my career in TV News

Oh the horror!  I want to be a feature film director.  I want to be sports reporter.  I want to do anything but work in news!
Heard this before?  I sure did when I attended college.  Some kids would’ve rather sold insurance than stay in the TV field at a news station.  Why, you ask?  Because many perceive news to be a right brained, uncreative sort of medium, that has little to do with the entertainment industry.  In many ways that’s true, but my first experience in TV was at WOFL in Orlando, and what I found was a great experience.

I was given an internship opportunity by my professor, Joe Hall, who is interviewed on this site.  He said the magic words to me at the time, “Paid internship.”  That sold me.  Having wanted to be a news or sports journalist at one time in my life, I had since switched to the production side, therefore I didn’t have the negative attitude towards working at a station, that some of my more creative friends did.

The station basically taught me everything I didn’t learn in school, right down to wrapping cable, which friends of mine still give me grief about.   I made lasting friendships with news reporters who let me shoot teases on professional cameras; directors who taught me how to use a video switcher and communicate effectively with the crew, and editors who taught me how to use the Avid and how to put together a story in a hurry.

I started as a camera operator for the 10pm news, and practiced  studio camera movements that many never get a chance to learn.  To this day, I can zoom in and focus up on someone in 2 seconds.   Coming in from breaks and bumping off of various studio elements were the hightlight of my day.

Quickly, I became promoted to floor director, where I feel my talents were best used.  In this position, I could use my attention for detail and personality to corral a wild group of talent and camera ops.  I learned how to communicate effectively and efficiently.  I have to admit I enjoyed the hell out of my time in this position.  The floor director position is the one I held on 9-11, and with our wall-to-wall coverage, I felt like I was in the center of the storm.  Then, I was literally in the center of the storm for 3 or 4  hurricane coverages.  I lost count.

From the floor I moved on to the audio operator position, and got an understanding of audio mixers and wireless mics that was priceless.  I got to work with some of the top of line audio equipment at the time, and I felt the adrenaline of a live newscast every night in the booth.  Reporters connecting IFB’s, live shots tuning in, mixing in music, it all added to the excitement.  Sure, at the time my blood pressure was at unsafe levels, but looking back, I am better off for the experience.
Aside from the work at the station, I formed relationships with many crew members and even got to run boom audio for a short film  a director friend of mine produced that debuted at the Brouhaha festival.  I also went out to the live events, like the Daytona 500 and ran remote camera and audio.

Final thoughts

So, to those of you that are thinking about a possible internship at a TV station, I’ll say this…definitely give it a consideration, as mine was the time of my life.