BYU”s broadcast journalism students have a picturesque studio to work from.
Dean Paynter, NewsNet”s news director, said the new location was necessary to the success of the integration efforts.
“We had to move to make the integration work. The only way we could do so was to be in the same area of the same building,” Paynter said.
With the help of former co-worker Louise Kingston, Paynter designed a news set for the newsroom on the fifth floor of the Wilkinson Student Center.
The newsroom advisors decided the best place for the set would be on the north side of the newsroom, using the view of Utah Valley from a large window as the background.
“Mount Timpanogos and the Carillon Bell Tower provide a perfect background because people associate those sites with BYU,” Paynter said. He also said the changes in season add variety and beauty to the set”s background. A storage room adjacent to the area was made into a control room.
Paynter said one of the unique aspects of the set is its circular design so a camera can shoot a picture from one side of the set to the other. This design allows refreshing camera angles during on-set interviews in which the newsroom can be seen in the background. Paynter said students aren”t the only ones who enjoy the new set.
“I”ve heard one of the local media professionals say it was the best-looking set in the market,” Paynter said.
It isn”t the first set Paynter has helped design. Paynter and Kingston, who worked together at KUTV News in Salt Lake City, redesigned that news set and received Emmy awards for their set design.
The news set isn”t the only new addition to NewsNet. NewsNet reporters are equipped with state-of-the-art JVC Pro digital cameras. Paynter said thecameras take a great picture and make the editing process much easier.
“We are better equipped than any college in the country and better equipped than most small, commercial news stations in the country,” Paynter said. He hopes students will not take the technology for granted and that the new cameras will help students focus on good, truth-seeking journalism.
“If the equipment helps us focus on the real part of journalism, that is awesome but if all we are doing is imitating other journalists, then there is no point in having the new equipment,” Paynter said.
Janae Hubble, 23, a senior from Tipton, Iowa, majoring in broadcast journalism, is one of the NewsNet anchors. Hubble said the new set and cameras make a better experience for the students.
“It”s innovative; it”s nice to be on the cutting edge of things, because your work is more worthwhile that way,” Hubble said.
Paynter said NewsNet is fortunate to have the support it does.
“We are grateful to BYU and the Department of Communications for their support.”
Reprinted with permission of CommWorld.
