Columbia College Chicago: Graduate Reports

Columbia College Chicago

Broadcast Journalism I

This fall, six graduate students at Columbia College Chicago made their foray into the world of broadcast reporting under the guidance of instructors Lillian Williams and Brian Duewel.

The stories they produced ranged from the impact of state budget cuts on community organizations in Chinatown, to the plight of a South Side high school trying to expand its sports facilities, to the recession’s crushing impact on small business this holiday season.

For most of the students, many of whom came from a background in print journalism, these projects marked the first time they had held a camera or utilized editing software.

Such was the case with Jean-Virgile Tassé-Themens, who came to Columbia College from a French newspaper in Ontario, where he covered everything from community affairs to the legislative assembly. “I didn’t really have a lot of background in English reporting,” Jean-Virgile said. “This was a really big experience, to put the theory into practice.” He reported this semester on the impact of the recession on Chicago’s homeless shelters.

Devin Katayama came to the class from a background in radio. He volunteers at Vocalo.org, a community public radio station, where he produces on-air radio pieces. He was fascinated by the stark differences between the radio and television worlds. “It’s harder and faster in the television world,” Devin said. “To get ahead, you really have to stick it in their faces.” Devin reported on the struggles of small business owners to stay afloat this holiday season.

Recently back in the United States after two years teaching English in China, Wendy Wohlfeill chose to report on the Chinese American Service League, a non-profit organization in Chicago’s Chinatown neighborhood. Wendy had previously worked for newspaper, magazine and public affairs agencies in Michigan and California, and found broadcast to be a big change. “There are a lot of different things you have to look for in broadcast, versus in print,” she said.

Josh Newkirk, the one student in the class with television experience, has a background in sports reporting as an intern in Detroit. This semester marked his first experience reporting on public affairs. “It was interesting to have to visually present a story in a public affairs style,” he said. Josh investigated the impact of the state’s liquor tax increase on local bars and liquor stores.

Creighton Hart also came to Columbia with a background in sports reporting; he worked as a senior staff writer for the campus newspaper at Eastern Michigan University and later freelanced as a sports reporter for the Ypsilanti Courier. For his first broadcast project this semester, he reported on the attempts of a South Side high school to expand its sports field so that student athletes can avoid an unsafe, six-block trek from the school to the field at Garfield Park.

Sarah Ostman came to the class after two years writing for a newspaper in California, where she covered city hall, schools and human interest stories. For her first attempt at broadcast journalism, she reported on the impact of Chicago’s new “bubble ordinance” on anti-abortion protesters. “I’ve learned that broadcast reporting is a whole different world,” she said. “Also, that equipment is really heavy.”