On November 3rd, the Publishing and Video production classes participated in ‘Media Day’ at the University of Hartford. Media Day is a day where the School of Communications at UHart puts together different activities to give the students a taste of working in/with the media. The schedule for the day was visiting a FOX 61 student news program, communication skills, podcasting, and broadcasting.
At FOX 61 news students learned the pros and cons of winning news stories that students have made and submitted into a contest. If high school students across the state would like to submit a story to FOX 61, and win, they can earn a $5,000 scholarship to UHart and will be aired on the news station.
Next on the list was communication skills. The students were divided up between their communication styles: Analytical, Intuitive, Functional, and Personal. Using the style they selected, they needed to work together in a group to decide one thing they wanted to change about their high school and one recommendation to improve the situation.
In the next building, the students learned about Public Service Announcements about distracting drivers. The professors also talked about a contest where you can submit a PSA you create by yourself or with a group to win prizes. In the room next door, Susan Cardillo, a professor of Digital Media and Journalism-Sports Media, talks about Sports Productions such as Tv Studio work, Field Production, and Live Game Production. The companies she and other professors work with includes CBS Sport, NBC Sport, ESPN, FOX Sports, MLB, and many others. These companies create a chance for the college students to work with the companies after or even before graduation to strengthen their ability for a working job. Professor Cardillo also gave advice to the high schoolers about the three parts of information you need to give for an interview.
Downstairs, students created a podcast while learning about the different tools used to record good pieces of audio. The professor asked them a few silly questions and they answered through the microphones. Cameras were also on to show how creators record podcasts and post them to youtube or other visual streaming platforms. Down the hall, UHart students in the Student Television Network, or STN2, showed the students how to direct, perform, and digitally manage a news station. Some students were on camera as anchors and some were behind the scenes fixing audio and graphics that appear on the TV screen. They also learned how to use the green screen and how weathermen use the green screen to show the weather.
