By Cam Alsbrook
CU News is a broadcast program serving as a part of Cameron’s Journalism and Media Production (JRMP) curriculum.
The broadcast team offers opportunities for students of all academic walks to learn how to work any position in a professional studio setting.
People involved in CU News collaborate to broadcast live newscasts which cover student activities and events across campus.
Senior JRMP major Katie Hall said that CU News helps give JRMP majors a real taste of media production experience.
“It gives other students the opportunity to keep up with what’s happening around them at Cameron,” Hall said. “Attending so many campus events is my favorite reason to work with CU News.”
“Before I joined the staff,” Hall said, “I hardly went to anything on this campus. Now, not only do I learn more about what campus life has to offer, but I get to share that with my peers while doing what I love: creating videos and taking photos.”
Senior JRMP major Danielle Carson joined CU News as part of the Media Practicum course requirement for JRMP students.
“Honestly, I enjoy working in the studio, doing interviews, being on camera, editing — all of it,” Carson said. “I never thought I would because I never knew about it before I came to Cameron. But I’m glad that I looked into it.”
According to JRMP senior Stephanie Roberts, CU News can be daunting initially, but the resources available are plenty.
“And Dr. Matt Jenkins is always willing to help,” Roberts said.
Carson said that those resources help create a friendly atmosphere for CU News.
“The friendships that I’ve made thanks to CU News have been like no other,” Carson said. “We’ve learned to work as a team, and we’ve all inevitably had to learn each other’s strengths and weaknesses in the studio. But because we’re discovering these things with each other, we’ve also figured out how to lift each other up when needed — and how to encourage the good stuff without focusing on the bad.”
This spring serves as Roberts’ last semester at Cameron, and she said she has enjoyed her time on staff.
“Although it can be stressful,” Roberts said, “I have had so much fun learning how to shoot a live news show, meeting different people in the program, and my time as a journalist.”
Hall initially joined CU News as part of her academic requirements, taking part in the broadcast side of practicum, while also working with the Collegian staff as one of the newspaper’s go-to photographers.
Carson said that anchoring is her favorite role for CU News.
“I talk for a living,” Carson said, “so the only difference would be that I have to put some effort into the way I look; otherwise, it’s just as fun as working behind the mic.”
Hall said that the role of CU News is to aid in Cameron feeling like a home for students — building the campus community.
“CU News is here to connect us,” Hall said. “Cameron is not just a place to go to school and get a degree; it’s also somewhere to meet friends and expand your knowledge through unique experiences that you may not have ever encountered had you not been here on campus.
CU News shines the light on what keeps everyone connected.”