Morgan State hosted its first HBCU Broadcast Journalism Academy last week. Participants included students from Norfolk State University, North Carolina A & T, Savannah State University and Morgan.
The 30 students who attended the “boot camp” improved their journalism and video skills through hands-on news reporting and professional critiques of their work. Working journalists from USA Today, WMAR-TV, WEAA and Maryland Public Television gave insight into the world of news. Beryl Love, Executive Editor of USA Today, spoke about technology and the changing role of journalists while WMAR-TV’s Emmy Award-winning photographer Pete O’Neal gave advice on recording.
“Students were exposed to top professionals giving tips on pursuing education and other skills while in school,” said Morgan Professor E.R. Shipp who coordinated the event. She described the project as the “brain-child” of School of Global Journalism and Communication dean, Dewayne Wickham. Organizers hope to make it an annual event.
Students at the three-day boot camp, lasting from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., worked in teams to create seven separate broadcast news stories. They covered university events such as the Dancing Praise Ministry at the Morgan Chapel and the recent shut-down of campus parties.
“Since I’m a print news major, I learned a lot from the broadcast students at Savannah State about how to run the camera, how to collect B-roll and how there are so many things that go into making one, short three-minute piece,” says Morgan junior Asha Glover. “I would definitely do it again.”
“I would recommend it for people who are maybe sophomores or juniors, not necessarily seniors because I feel like at the point of you being a senior you’ve pretty much learned everything there is to learn,” says Morgan senior Jewelle Carter. “It’s just bettering your skills at this point.”
Morgan Professor Jacqueline Jones, chairwoman of the Department of Multimedia Journalism, spoke highly of the event. “Networking and improving the students’ skills in our field was accomplished.”
