Day 2 July 10, 2017
Today was my first full day at camp. The morning started off with the keynote speaker Mike Bass who discussed developments in sports reporting. In its beginnings, reporting was focused on the game itself- what happened, who won, who lost, who got angry, who had a lucky game, etc. Nowadays, people access news on multiple media platforms- TV, social media, online newspapers, and more. It's likely that several news agencies will cover the same stories, so it's important that writers look for a different angle in their stories.
Next, there were two more lectures focusing on sports media platforms and fake news. C.L. Cole, professor of media and cinema studies at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, spoke about the impact of Major League Baseball regarding its many partners (including Disney, ESPN, HBO), advancements in live streaming, game packages and its statcast. Journalism professor Nancy Benson and graduate student Ash Miller spoke about fake news and we were able to vote in partners to determine if certain headlines were fake news or real news. I worked with my roommate Kate and we quickly determined that the answer was almost always the opposite of what we though... though we did know though HIV cannot be transmitted through bananas.
By far, my favorite part of the day was going to the broadcast station. I love doing the newscast for my school newspaper and it was such an amazing experience getting to anchor in the college's professional studio. First, we were introduced to all the camera equipment and the specific broadcast programs offered at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign for its students. Then the real fun began when I was the entertainment anchor for the broadcast; it was really nerve-wracking for me to have such large cameras pointing directly at me and trying to read all the words on the teleprompter before they disappeared. At the end of the broadcast we were supposed to ad-lib which just turned into me expressing my love for ice cream and lack of correct answers during the fake news quiz earlier that morning. I absolutely loved getting to be on camera! I ran the teleprompter for the next anchors, basically meaning that I just had to move the up and down keys to scroll through the script at the speed of the speaking anchors. "Basically" is the key word here as my perfectionist attribute came into effect as I constantly pressed the keys to ensure the most accurate speed for the anchors. It was nerve-wracking like being an anchor, except that if I messed up the teleprompter, I'd confuse the anchors and they'd probably have to start over.
Videos from the broadcast session can be found at: https://vimeo.com/225265078 After a podcasting seminar where Lisa Bralts, Brian Moline and John Steinbacher discussed their podcast Bandwagon, it was time to head back to the location of our very first assembly of the week, David Kinley Hall, for the seminar How to Watch a Movie. We watched Dr. No, the first James Bond movie, and were asked to look for key elements in certain scenes. It was a really fun way to both enjoy watching a movie and view it critically.
With today being the first full day of camp, I felt very busy all day. I really liked all of the sessions I attended, especially the broadcasting, and I cannot wait for tomorrow full of drones, GoPros, and photography! My quote of the day is "If it doesn't challenge you, it doesn't change you" from teacher/trainer Fred DeVito. Although he was talking about fitness, I think this quote applies to my experiences today as well. Running the teleprompter at the broadcast studio was stressful, but now when I get back to school I will have better knowledge to help my school's broadcast improve |
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