Radio-Television News Director’s Association Convention 2002:
New Teacher Ambassador Program brings educators and professionals together in Las Vegas
by Gary Clites
Originally published in the Dow Jones Newspaper Fund's Adviser Update, Summer 2002
I arrived in Las Vegas early in the afternoon of June 6. An hour later, having picked up my rental car from Alamo, I was tooling up the Vegas strip in the bright desert sun. Stopping at a light a block down from the Stardust Casino, I looked to my left to see the most impressive car I’ve every encountered. A long, low roadster from the twenties, it was gold, with bright chrome pipes down the side. I looked the car up and down, then up and down again, and noticed the driver looking at me. I nodded to him to say, “Nice car.” He turned full round at me then, with a big grin on his face and gave me a thumbs up.
It was Wayne Newton: “Mr. Las Vegas”. That was the kind of week it was.
My adventure really started a few months earlier with an e-mail from Carolyn Terry of the Radio-Television News Director’s Foundation, the non-profit arm of the Radio-Television News Director’s Association (RTNDA). Sent to teachers and advisers of secondary broadcast education programs across the country, it invited me to apply for a new honor. RTNDA, in an effort to become more involved in high school education, was looking for teachers to apply to become Teacher Ambassador’s to the organization.
I applied, as did nearly 300 other teachers from across the nation. A month later an e-mail arrived saying that I, along with 13 other teachers, would be flown all expenses paid to the RTNDA national convention in Las Vegas. RTNDA’s convention was held this year as part of the larger National Association of Broadcaster’s (NAB) Convention, one of the largest professional get togethers in the world bringing together over 100,000 TV and radio professionals including the broadcast news directors who’d invited us.
The ambassadors arrived at our rooms in the Riviera Resort Casino on Saturday, April 6, and gathered that evening at Quark’s Bar in the Hilton’s Star Trek Experience for drinks and introductions. From the first, a remarkable thing happened. The teachers, from different types of schools from every corner of the nation (see sidebar), but chosen due to their solid commitment to scholastic broadcasting, formed an instant bond and became, over the six days in the desert an almost inseparable group.
The actual RTNDA Convention began on Monday, but the organization scheduled a full day-long program on Sunday specifically for the Teacher Ambassadors in a conference room at Caesar’s Palace. During the day, sessions were led by Gary Wordlaw, president and general manager of WTVH-TV in Syracuse, New York, who discussed developments in the business of television news and career opportunities for our students; Mark Goodman, executive director of the Student Press Law Center, who covered scholastic press law as it applies to student broadcasters; and veteran Peabody-award-winning investigative reporter Dale Russell from Fox station WAGA in Atlanta who, in sessions on Sunday and on Tuesday, discussed ways student journalists can plan, shoot and structure stories for in-school broadcasts.
The Sunday sessions were tremendously useful and kicked off most of a week of the best professional development I’ve ever experienced (and I get around). Monday through Wednesday, teachers rubbed elbows with anchors, reporters and news executives from radio and television stations across the country as well as top professionals from networks, cable and the Internet. Sessions were led by people like Gwen Ifill from Washington Week in Review, Sam Donaldson from ABC News, and FCC Chairman Michael Powell, to name only a few. Sessions covered everything from the future of local news, to news writing methods and techniques to the effects of September 11th on the news industry and were uniformly superb.
“I've been to a lot of conventions and conferences over the years, but this one was the most valuable I have ever attended. The opportunity to listen and talk with industry professionals has added a whole new dimension to what I know and pass on to students. (It was a) fabulous event,” said Cynthia Schneider, an ambassador from John F. Kennedy High School in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Nor were Teacher Ambassadors treated as second class citizens. We were invited to every event of the convention from special interest breakfasts to industry luncheons and special event dinners. On Monday, the entire cast of Laugh-In was inducted into the Broadcasting Hall of Fame at the All-Industry Luncheon and NBC anchor Tom Brokaw was given the prestigious Paul White Award at a spectacular awards dinner. The opportunity for teachers to attend and rub elbows with the broadcasting elite from across the nation was an amazing honor. The program was funded through a grant from the John S. and James L. Knight foundation through the RTNDA’s Foundation (RTNDF).
And the event was not all business, with the teacher group (and our adopted mascot Dale Russell, the Fox reporter who had come to speak to us on Sunday and then stayed with the group for the entire convention) making after hours trips to casinos, shows and restaurants. Being broadcasting teachers, the group also enjoyed assembling a humorous package on the event using my digital camcorder, with Russell reporting on the behavior of a bunch of teachers set wild among thousands of professional broadcasters in Vegas. Particularly memorable was an interview I got with Leeza Gibbons from Extra who spent two minutes warning my students to run from a professional career in broadcasting.
The most amazing thing about the event, however, was the relationship that grew up among the selected teachers and the way they took advantage of the opportunities the convention offered. Leslie Nicholas of Wyoming Valley West High School in Plymouth, Pennsylvania said, “The most encouraging aspect of the program was becoming aware that I am not alone. It was heartening to find dedicated instructors from throughout the country who were facing the same difficult issues and fighting the same exhausting fights that I was in Pennsylvania. My feelings of isolation faded also because I became aware that professionals in the field are appreciative of educators’ problems and, through the RTNDF program, are reaching out to help.”
Even the RTNDA staff seemed amazed at how well the group bonded and remained focused on what we could gain from broadcasting professionals. Carolyn Terry, High School Journalism Project Manager for RTNDF, stated, “The success of the program surpassed our expectations because it was truly an experiment, it wasn't specified in the grant... The professional journalists at our convention were genuinely surprised at the level of the broadcasts and packages the students are producing. From all the feedback I've received, the teachers are a welcome addition to both RTNDA's and NAB's meeting.”
The Teacher Ambassador program indicates a growing willingness of the broadcast industry to get more involved in high school communications. A visit to the vast NAB exhibit halls pointed out why this is so crucial. The halls buzzed with one development that is transforming broadcasting: The move from analog broadcasting to digital. As consumers, we all know that High-Definition Television (HDTV) is coming sometime in the future. But we’ve also gotten used to the idea that the changeover is coming slowly. With no impetus to spend billions buying new equipment, TV stations nationwide are dragging their feet in moving to digital broadcasting.
The NAB halls proved that ready or not, that changeover is happening. Spanning literally miles of display space, the convention’s technology showcase displayed 100-percent digital equipment. How definite is the move to ones and zeros? A colleague of mine recently tried to buy a new camcorder for her program and was shocked to hear from her supplier that no more VHS camcorders are available and none are being produced. Manufacturers have moved entirely to digital.
That’s good news in terms of quality. Digital video is much clearer and crisper and generally handles audio better. Digital editing, also known as Non-Linear Editing (the hot buzzword for 2002), employing high-speed computers and hot new programs like Final Cut Pro and Avid Editing is much more efficient and will allow students to do a much more professional job. But these new technologies come with a hefty price tag which most cash-starved school programs can ill afford. And at a time when many grant-funding entities are suffering due to the downturn in the markets.
The broadcast industry, which ultimately profits from young people being turned on to the field, needs to step up and shoulder some of those costs. RTNDA is working to develop programs that will bring high school broadcasting programs together with TV and radio broadcasters nationwide.
Regarding the future of the program, Terry noted, “If the project receives multi-year funding, we'll continue to bring high school journalism educators to the annual convention, but also sponsor others at regional meetings and maybe pay for them to
attend specific training workshops. We also plan to help start new programs and assist or revive schools that offer courses in electronic journalism.” This year’s Teacher Ambassadors are being kept together as an advisory group for the organization and Terry noted that their input will help guide planning.
RTNDA’s Teacher Ambassador program is a valuable addition to the world of scholastic education which should be noted and lauded by everyone in the field. As for myself, I cruised out of Vegas that Wednesday evening with a bag full of information and contacts with broadcasting professionals nationwide; a group of friends in broadcast education who have already proved invaluable in helping me to develop my school’s program; and a 13-minute report on digital video about my visit to sin city about which my students are still talking. Plus, I’ve got this great true story about arriving in Vegas only to be given the “thumbs up” by Wayne Newton himself.
George: Consider boxing the list of winners as a sidebar to the article:
2002 RTNDA Teacher Ambassadors
· Gary Clites, Northern High School, Owings, MD
· Dave Davis, Hillcrest High School, Springfield, MO
· Steve Galyon, Henry County High School, New Castle, KY
· Michael Jackson, John C. Fremont High School, Oakland, CA
· Tara Jones, Suitland High School, Suitland, MD
· Janet Kerby, Roane County High School, Spencer, WV
· Joseph Meersman, Toppenish High School, Toppenish, WA
· Gregg Neilson, Nathan Hale High School, Seattle, WA
· Leslie Nicholas, Wyoming Valley West High School, Plymouth, PA
· Timm Pilcher, Hoover High School, Des Moines, IA
· Linda Profetto, Bremen High School, Midlothian, IL
· Larry Raykovics, Estero High School, Estero, FL
· Cindy Schneider, John F. Kennedy High School, Cedar Rapids, IA
· Krista Smith, King High School, Tampa, FL
© Gary Clites, 2002
