Trip to WCIA Station

Hearing about the trip to the WCIA Television Station in Champaign, I was already very excited to be going. As a Broadcast Journalism major working hands on and visiting news rooms interests me a great amount and is exactly what I was looking for. What I got to see was amazing and now I see what it takes to be behind the camera as well as being the one filmed. Upon entering the studio I inhaled all that the studio had to offer, the green screen that the weatherman had to stand in front of as well as all the cameras that surrounded the studio.

We then split up into two groups to see how everything works in front of the camera and behind the cameras. The topic that was getting filmed was already interesting; it consisted of simple things that could be used for Halloween. For example, a fake cut that you can put on your face that gave the same appearance as a real cut. Also a wide variety of masks as well as smoke machines. At first we went into the Control Room where a man would give orders to the camera man. I thought this was fascinating due to the fact the man would give orders to film close up to his hand (where he had a fake severe cut) and then the man would tell him to get both of them on camera. The camera man not only records the broadcast but also has the earpiece where he takes orders from the control room to further fix the angle of the camera. I was amazed how how simple it could be to mess up the broadcast.

What was perhaps my favorite consisted of the second part of our trip, when we got to see the broadcast live. The host of the show could see all of us watching her as well as the guests. It astonished me how it could be so simple as to drop something or trip or perhaps say the wrong thing live on the air and humiliate yourself in front of thousands of people. However, I felt the excitement that one could get from having to think of questions during interviews or what to say on the spot. There was a great amount of difference between the control room as well as the live broadcast and it was astounding on how they both worked together to deliver it to the public. I could only imagine how the FOX and CNN studios are. How much bigger and hectic they are. I'm excited to see where my major in Broadcast Journalism will take me because from this tour I like the looks of the direction I'm heading in.