Kerrie Beckner, Record Staff Writer
The Record (Bergen County, NJ)
05-22-1991
BROADCASTING THE FORMULA FOR SUCCESS
By Kerrie Beckner, Record Staff Writer
Date: 05-22-1991, Wednesday
Section: SOUTH PASSAIC YOUR TOWN RECORD
Edition: Three Star P
WNBC-TV sportscaster Donald Gould gave a group of students in
Clifton High School's communications and science technology program tips
on making it in the highly competitive world of broadcasting.
CAST, an elective course at the high school, produces programs that
are shown on UA Columbia Cable TV's public-access Channel 19.
At the program's first awards dinner Thursday, Gould discarded his
prepared speech to give students some down-to-earth advice on how to
make their mark in the world of broadcasting.
'In order to get a job in the broadcasting business, you have to be
different, you have to be yourself, and you have to work hard,' Gould
told about 50 students and parents.
Gould noted that he has missed only two days of work in his 19-year
career, because any absence gives another person a chance to do the job
-- perhaps even better.
Punctuating his advice with humor, Gould told the students the
hardest part of a broadcasting career is getting a foot in the door. He
said the best way to break into the field is to 'try to show respect for
the people who are hiring you, try to show them they won't regret hiring
you for the rest of their lives, and show them you are willing to go the
extra mile.'
Students who go the extra mile is what the awards dinner
recognized. More than 25 students received citations for their work in
all aspects of production, from writing to filming to acting. The CAST
students voted to determine who would receive the awards.
James Kelly, the program's instructor, described the CAST students
as 'hard-working, dedicated . . . they have a commitment to the
program.' He compared the quality of the students' shows to network
television. Kelly worked with Gould as a sports producer at WNBC in the
mid-1980s.
Kelly said there are a total of about 75 students in the program's
two divisions, CAST I and II.
Students in CAST I learn the fundamentals of broadcasting, Kelly
said, including broadcasting history and how to produce commercials,
demonstrations, and public-service announcements.
Students in CAST II produce the school's three series, 'Mustang
Magazine,' a news program; 'Sports Ticker,' a sports round-up; and 'Know
Your Schools,' a program covering all of the district's schools.
In addition to the first awards dinner, this school year also
marked the the first live sports coverage -- two school wrestling matches
in January and December -- and the first full day of programming May 13,
Kelly said.
Principal Robert Mooney called the live coverage of sports 'a great
innovation, and something we encourage for the future.'
'We are on the cutting edge, and I see the CAST program as being a
leader' in technology education, Mooney said.
CAST primarily covers school events, but has also covered community
events -- such as the Clifton 5-kilometer run held in May.
Kelly said CAST produces an average of one to two hours of
programming a week for UA Columbia's public-access channel.
Keywords: CLIFTON. SCHOOL. STUDENT. TELEVISION. EDUCATION
Copyright 1991 Bergen Record Corp. All rights reserved.
The Record (Bergen County, NJ)
05-22-1991
BROADCASTING THE FORMULA FOR SUCCESS
By Kerrie Beckner, Record Staff Writer
Date: 05-22-1991, Wednesday
Section: SOUTH PASSAIC YOUR TOWN RECORD
Edition: Three Star P
WNBC-TV sportscaster Donald Gould gave a group of students in
Clifton High School's communications and science technology program tips
on making it in the highly competitive world of broadcasting.
CAST, an elective course at the high school, produces programs that
are shown on UA Columbia Cable TV's public-access Channel 19.
At the program's first awards dinner Thursday, Gould discarded his
prepared speech to give students some down-to-earth advice on how to
make their mark in the world of broadcasting.
'In order to get a job in the broadcasting business, you have to be
different, you have to be yourself, and you have to work hard,' Gould
told about 50 students and parents.
Gould noted that he has missed only two days of work in his 19-year
career, because any absence gives another person a chance to do the job
-- perhaps even better.
Punctuating his advice with humor, Gould told the students the
hardest part of a broadcasting career is getting a foot in the door. He
said the best way to break into the field is to 'try to show respect for
the people who are hiring you, try to show them they won't regret hiring
you for the rest of their lives, and show them you are willing to go the
extra mile.'
Students who go the extra mile is what the awards dinner
recognized. More than 25 students received citations for their work in
all aspects of production, from writing to filming to acting. The CAST
students voted to determine who would receive the awards.
James Kelly, the program's instructor, described the CAST students
as 'hard-working, dedicated . . . they have a commitment to the
program.' He compared the quality of the students' shows to network
television. Kelly worked with Gould as a sports producer at WNBC in the
mid-1980s.
Kelly said there are a total of about 75 students in the program's
two divisions, CAST I and II.
Students in CAST I learn the fundamentals of broadcasting, Kelly
said, including broadcasting history and how to produce commercials,
demonstrations, and public-service announcements.
Students in CAST II produce the school's three series, 'Mustang
Magazine,' a news program; 'Sports Ticker,' a sports round-up; and 'Know
Your Schools,' a program covering all of the district's schools.
In addition to the first awards dinner, this school year also
marked the the first live sports coverage -- two school wrestling matches
in January and December -- and the first full day of programming May 13,
Kelly said.
Principal Robert Mooney called the live coverage of sports 'a great
innovation, and something we encourage for the future.'
'We are on the cutting edge, and I see the CAST program as being a
leader' in technology education, Mooney said.
CAST primarily covers school events, but has also covered community
events -- such as the Clifton 5-kilometer run held in May.
Kelly said CAST produces an average of one to two hours of
programming a week for UA Columbia's public-access channel.
Keywords: CLIFTON. SCHOOL. STUDENT. TELEVISION. EDUCATION
Copyright 1991 Bergen Record Corp. All rights reserved.
