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New television studios give students more opportunities for hands-on learning

Two brand-new, state-of-the-art television studios are now giving students in Liberty University’s Department of Digital Media and Journalism experience on national-network-quality sets as they produce original content for the classroom, competition, social media, and work on-set with live, professional sports and event coverage.

“There’s a commitment to making sure students have the best possible firsthand experiential learning environment through premium facilities, equipment, and training that will translate into jobs later,” said John Rost, department chair.

Studios A and B stand side by side in Marie F. Green Hall and both serve various academic uses, including student-run productions and classroom instruction. Additionally, Studio B serves the Liberty Flames Sports Network (LFSN) as it produces live coverage of Liberty’s NCAA Division I Athletics contests and various Club Sports events, as well as the weekly ‘Game On’ television sports show and daily Flames video features. LFSN is a professional network, operated by a full-time staff of industry professionals — many of whom have years of experience in live television production.

 

 

Photos by Jessie Rogers/Liberty University

Both studios have professional-grade sets with digital backgrounds and a green screen, as well as connection to a top-of-the-line control room with all of the amenities necessary to run live television programming. Production Control Room B is connected via fiber-optic cable to a number of campus venues for live sports productions, many of which are carried by local television networks and even ESPN. Production Control Room A is slated for future connection to Studio A.

“The wide range of things students can do in the studios as they control numerous athletic and other venues on campus provides students with different kinds of experiences without ever having to leave Green Hall,” Rost said.

Studio A is currently awaiting the installation of its studio lighting equipment and control systems (similar to those already installed in Studio B). A large window allows passers-by in Green Hall to see students in action as they produce content.

The studio suite, where LFSN’s staff offices are located, also includes a show-prep/writer’s room for students. The long-term goal, according to Rost, is for students to use the studio to produce original news, talk shows, and other content.

Students are taking note of Liberty’s investment in their career preparation.

“Liberty is telling me that they care about the education,” said junior digital media major Jason Johnson. “To actually put this much money and resources and staff time into a professional studio where students get to work with shows that they are willing to take that next step to prepare us for the job market. It gives me the right to say, ‘Hey, I’ve used this equipment that you are using.’ I can go into job interviews at studios and say, ‘I’m familiar with this, I’ve worked with this in college, and I’ve run productions on it.’”

Many students, like Johnson, gain experience on two fronts — in the classroom with faculty who boast years of television experience and side by side with LFSN’s professional staff, under Liberty’s Broadcast Communications Department. There are also opportunities through the department for students to gain broadcast experience with the professional Event Production team, covering live campus events, like Convocation, the world’s largest weekly gathering of Christian young people. Convocation is held Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and is usually streamed live online.

“There are a lot of extra-curricular activities that I can get involved in, like LFSN, Event Production, and doing live sports games that ESPN covers,” Johnson said. “To get your name in that system and work on these professional shoots and productions is awesome.”

Junior Julie Schlenker, who’s also studying digital media, aspires to work in a live television studio. The opportunities with LFSN, as well as the hands-on classroom instruction, are what drew her to Liberty.

“Having that hands-on experience, I’m able to show what I learned in textbooks in real-life situations,” she said. In one class, each student writes their own television segment, which is shot live in the studio with students rotating through each crew position as they assist each other’s projects. “It (the classroom and LFSN experience) gives me a demo reel so I can actually show off my work. Instead of just telling people, ‘I know how to do it,’ I can say, ‘I used this equipment, and this is what I learned with that.’ … It makes me look better to a future employer, and it just gives me the confidence that I know what I’m doing.”

Liberty’s program is succeeding in making graduates attractive to employers. Rost said that approximately 95 percent of recent graduates have found career jobs within six months of graduation “because we are training them with the products and skills that are in demand in the marketplace right now.”

The Department of Digital Media and Journalism is part of the School of Communication & Digital Content, which offers undergraduate degree programs in communication, journalism, social media management, strategic communication, and digital media with concentrations in audio, performance, writing for digital media, and video, as well as a Master of Arts in Strategic Communication and Master of Arts in Communication.

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