Fall 2007 Semester Wrap Up, Plus a Job Opportunity!

Well, a whole semester has passed since I last blogged, and it pretty much seems like a blur right now. I was so busy with my full schedule of classes which included my cluster class and an upper-level French class. But more importantly, I was even busier dazzling in elements of radio news all semester in BC 311. We even got to visit KDKA Radio, the heart of it all, on a field trip.

I was able to build on my skills as radio news producer, which ended up really helping me toward the end of the semester when one of my broadcasting professors, Dr. Barner, suggested I apply for a part-time position at Newsradio 1200 AM WKST in New Castle, Pa., currently owned by Forever Broadcasting. After sending a copy of one of my better newscasts on Titan Radio, the PD and morning show host, Ken Hlevboy, e-mailed me back saying he was impressed and wanted me to come in for an interview. Soon after, in November of 2007, I officially started working at the station, mostly on the weekends.

My job includes the following duties: producing, writing, and anchoring radio newscasts on the weekend, sometimes filling in for the news director during the week, and running the audio board for the local high school sports games and the ethnic weekend shows! Although the semester is over, I will be working there a little over break and working more again when I get back for the spring semester!

A Typical Intern Duty? Not Really...

Just to follow up from where I left off...I did get to fill in the next day for my boss Greg, the morning show producer (many may know him as the "treadmill guy"). Anyways, my responsibility was mostly to answer the phones and talk to the listeners, but I had another duty my second day on the job. It was my responsibility to get coffee for the morning show. OK, so I bet you are thinking typical intern duty...but that wasn't really the case. Before I went to work, I ran to Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, and McDonald's to buy a regular coffee from each place. Len, Brooke, and Mark decided they would do a coffee taste on the morning show that day to try and determine which coffee was the best, or at least, which they thought most people would choose as their favorite. Apparently, the crew had gotten into a debate over which coffee was the best with the work-day DJ Gina Hart, who said she would only drink Starbucks coffee.

So, when I got back to the office, I poured a small amount of each coffee into a three separate cups. Then, we also added the office's coffee to the mix. I labeled each type of coffee with a number, but only I knew the results. After some discussion between the hosts and the listeners, Len, Brooke, and Mark decided that the McDonald's coffee was the best overall. Then, they brought me into the conversation, and I got to reveal the results on-air and then talk a little more with the hosts live. This was definitely a way to turn a typical intern duty into something exciting, fun, and beneficial. Plus, this was probably one of the most exciting moments during my internship experience. I was very grateful for the opportunities I was given at the Fish radio station and for the new people I met and got to work with on a daily basis. If you're interested in interning at the Fish radio station in Cleveland, check out this link: A Super Great Experience!

Wakin' Up with Len and Brooke...95.5 the Fish!!

Last week, I had a really great opportunity...I got to shadow the Fish morning show crew!! A week or two before, Len had said I could come sit in during the morning show, but that I should wait until Brooke got back from vacation.

On Wed. July 25, I got up EXTRA early; it was still dark as I was driving to the office. The experience was just amazing. The morning show runs three hours from 6:00-9:00 a.m., featuring Len Howser, Brooke Taylor, and Mark Rein. Len normally opens up most of the breaks, and Brooke adds to what he says. Len also runs the contests while Brooke updates listeners with the Scoop and offers her own tips and advice. In addition, Mark Rein, the news director, brings you Info to Go every 15 minutes! Mark also runs the audio board and the 360, while my boss Greg and Len usually answer the phones.

I had a great time, although I was caught off guard when Len brought me into the conversation on-air...I ran up to Greg's microphone to answer the question, so I was on-air for like five seconds!! And shadowing the morning show definitely paid off...tomorrow, I get to shadow the Fish morning show again...and fill in for Greg as morning show producer!!!!!!!!!! :) Check out this link to find out more about the Fish morning show!! Wakin' up with Len and Brooke...

It's Been a Hard Day's Night...

I love the Beatles. So, naturally, I was excited to hear that John needed interns to help out at WHK's Beatles Tribute concert at the House of Blues on Sat. July 21. Unfortunately, I realized I had prior commitments that evening, but I could help out earlier in the day with the setup and the special live broadcast before the concert.

As I had mentioned in an earlier post, WHK Radio 1420 AM is celebrating their 85th anniversary this year; the station has been broadcasting since 1922. WHK is one of the oldest radio stations in the country! To learn more about WHK throughout the years, you can visit the following link WHK's History! Many people especially remember WHK because the station brought the Beatles to Cleveland in 1964. Check out this link! The Beatles!

Therefore, in celebration of its 85th anniversary, the station decided to hold a Beatles Tribute concert, featuring local Beatles tribute band, Hard Day's Night. The week before the concert, the other interns and I spent hours stuffing bags for the event and calling those who had won tickets to remind them about the special live broadcast. On Saturday afternoon, Andrea and I drove down to the House of Blues together. We were in charge of the setup: the VIP and tickets table, the WHK memorabilia, the sponsor's table, and the broadcast table. Also, one man was there selling pictures he took of the Beatles. The broadcast consisted of John interviewing former WHK personalities Bill "Smoochie" Gordon, Carl Reese, Bob Friend, and John Webster. Once the broadcast started, Andrea and I were in charge of handing out the tickets to those who won tickets on-air as well as handing out the VIP bags, which included T-shirts, badges, etc. At the end of the pre-concert activities, I had to leave, but I definitely wish I could have stayed!! I've seen Hard Days Night before, and the band is great :) Overall, the event was very interesting; I got to learn more about WHK's history and talk to some of the former WHK personalities.

One Busy Weekend!!

The early part of July was not that eventful (allowing me to spend some time with family and friends for the 4th of July), but the weekend of July 13th-15th was a super busy one. On Friday night, I helped out with a remote at St. John West Shore Arts Festival located on the hospital grounds. Although I had never heard of this festival before, the place was packed with people. When I arrived, I spotted Len prerecording his call-ins from his cell phone. As soon as John showed up, I assisted with the setup of the table and the sound system. Overall, this event was pretty enjoyable, and the landscape was beautiful. In addition, I got the chance to talk to Len a lot about my broadcasting experience at school; he suggested that I give him a copy of my air check/radio resume!!! (Later the following week, I handed in a copy of my radio resume; although nothing has come of it yet, Len originally had said he was looking for DJ help on the weekend...you never know what may happen in the future...)

The following day, Sat. July 14, I assisted with a remote at the Holden Arboretum. The morning was kind of slow, but it was great to get to know the morning show Info to Go guy, Mark Rein, who was there to do call-ins. This park was beautiful and also featured a special mini-train display. Also, that night was Indians Faith and Family Night at Jacob's Field, brought to you by the Fish and the Cleveland Indians!! I had been waiting for this event all summer, since I'm such a huge Indians fan!!!!!!! Andrea and I drove down together and met John at the gate. After getting our tickets, we went to listen to a player faith testimonial from Indians pitcher, Paul Byrd. His story was very inspirational and made me realize how important it is to listen to God and follow his path for us. Also, before the testimonial, I ran into another Westminster broadcast major, Chris Norris. Chris is going to be a senior next year and is lucky enough to be interning with the Indians this summer!! I was hoping to run into him while I was there, and it was such a coincidence that he happened to be helping with the speaker system for the player testimonial. Chris told me about his experience at the Jake so far; he also mentioned that his Indians music video montage would be playing on the jumbotron that night in the middle of the first inning. I was so excited to see all of his hard work. The music video looked amazing :) Be sure to check out Chris Norris's blog to see the video and learn more about his broadcasting experience http://www.chuckonorris.blogspot.com

The rest of the night was extremely fun; Andrea and I got to stay and watch the game for free. Although the Indians lost (5-6), I still had a great time. And following the game, we set up for a special post-game concert between the Jake and the Q featuring Michael Tait of DC Talk (one of my favorite Christian bands)!! Despite a little rain, the concert was a success!! Plus, I got to hear one of my DC Talk songs, In the Light!! Michael Tait is now performing with his own band, Tait, and is preparing for his new CD, Loveology, to be released this fall ; I did enjoy his own solo music as well. I think he sounded a lot like Matisyahu. Check out his band's website, Tait the band!! The weekend tired me out, so I was definitely glad to get a break that Sunday; however, I was happy and grateful for all of the opportunities I had that weekend :)

The End of June...

As the month of June came to a close, I was becoming more familiar with the work in the office as well as the normal set-up for Fish promotional events and concerts. Also, I was also getting to know more people at the office as well as in the sales department. I even filled in for the receptionist a couple of times, answering the phones and such. In addition, I was asked by the productions director Dale to voice a couple of Fish liners for promos. I thought nothing of it until a couple of days ago I was listening to the Fish and heard this promo a couple of times with multiple voices. After hearing it about the third time, I realized my voice was in there twice!! I was shocked at how my voice sounded so different!!

Anyways, I helped out with two events toward the end of June. The first was a radio remote at Cedar Point on June 29. Since the park is a bit of a drive, I got there early, taking along my brother, his friend, and one of my friends. We planned to stay there longer after I was done with my remote. For some unforeseen circumstances, I had had to run up to the station to pick up all the Fish banners, fliers, etc. Thankfully, I got to park inside the park near the marketing office, which made it easier to carry everything inside. Actually, it was cool because I got to meet one of the Cedar Point marketing managers, Bryan Edwards. I met up with John and Josh around 1:30...we set up all the equipment and the signage. Josh was broadcasting live right outside Cedar Point's new ride: the Maverick. (I didn't get to ride it because the line was too long, but I heard this new terra-coaster was very cool and definitely worth it)!! I checked back periodically to make sure Josh was doing OK, and around 6:00, we torn down everything. My friends and I stayed a little bit later; however, we were all pretty tired, so we ended up leaving earlier than we had planned.

The following morning, I helped out with another radio remote that Josh was doing at Fred Martin Superstore in Baberton. Christina, Andrea, and I ran the booth, which included the Fish prize wheel. A couple of other radio stations were there as well...it was interesting to see what they had for their remotes. One station also had a prize wheel, while the other was giving away free pizza :) Overall, the remote went well; although, our location kind of hid where we were, making our crowd flow a little less than I had hoped. So there's the rest of June...July too has been a busy, busy month which you can read about in the posts to follow!! Although I have one more side note: I was worried about getting enough intern hours, but by the end of June I was surprised to find that I already accumulated over 90 hours!!! :)

Alive Music Festival!!

The week after the U.S. Open I found myself busy as always. Tuesday and Wednesday I worked in the office in the promotions department. However, the most important event of the week was the 20th annual Christian Music Festival, the Alive Festival at Clay's Park Resort in Canal Fulton. I had never been to this festival before, but Andrea had so she explained it to me. This was a week-long festival where families could come for one day or camp the whole week while enjoying the lake, great food, inspirational speakers, and wonderful Christian music. People were able to enjoy performances from some of the top Christian artists (from all genres of Christian music) for the last four days of the festival (June 20-23). During these last four days, the promotions people and all of us interns manned the Fish inflatable booth. Believe me this thing is HUGE!!!

Unfortunately, I could only help for the first two days of the festival (since I was getting my wisdom teeth out on Friday), but my help was definitely still needed. This event had to be one of the biggest I had attended so far! On Wednesday, Christina and I ran the booth. We set out Fish fliers, Cleveland magazines, and Fish bumper stickers as well as running the "Guess the number of fish in the bowl..." prize contest (if you guessed the number correctly, you had a chance to win four Cedar Point tickets). Also, Christina and I were busy putting Fish tattoos on all the little kids. The first day went pretty smoothly. It was great to hear from and talk to dedicated Fish listeners. On Thursday, Andrea, Rick (another intern I had never met before), and I met early to set up the Fish inflatable. The previous day had worked out fine, since Greg had been there to help show us how to set it up. Well, that wasn't exactly the case on Thursday because of the strong winds!!! In the process of blowing up the inflatable, the wind blew two stakes out of the ground, causing the entire half of the inflatable to flip over!! Andrea and I were stunned. Thankfully, Rick had a tool kit in his car so we could hammer the stakes into the ground real good this time. Finally, we got the Fish inflatable up!!

Thursday went just about the same as Wednesday (except for a huge thunderstorm during which we stuffed everything into the Fish van including ourselves!). Truly, All of the people at the festival were so friendly, and I realized I really do love this music format because the people are just great!!! In fact, one guy came back to our inflatable at least a couple times each day while I was there just to talk to us and keep us company. Overall, the festival was a great experience, and the music was awesome. Some bands I had never even heard of, most likely because they played more Christian rock or even Christian metal. I do have to say I was impressed by this hard rock Christian band Flyleaf as well as one of my favorite all-girl Christian bands Barlow Girl!! Although I didn't see get to see the top artists/bands (Jeremy Camp, Relient K, Switchfoot, and Newsboys) since I had to leave early, I still loved the music and can't wait to come back next year!! :) Visit this link for more info!!! Alive Music Festival Rocks!!!

U.S. Open at Oakmont!!!!!

I've been extremely busy with my internship (and 4th of July festivities) to keep up on my blogging, so I'm going to start where I left off! The weekend of June 15-June17 was a very, very busy weekend for me. On Friday night, I baby-sat two kids that I've been baby-sitting for a long time. The following morning, I helped out at a radio remote at the Klaben Auto Store in Kent. Brooke, a morning co-host with Len, did her breaks live using her cell phone, which I thought was so simple, yet cool because for our remotes at college we used a marti system. Unfortunately, the turn-out wasn't huge (probably because it was 10-noon in the morning on Father's Day weekend), but I still had fun setting up the Fish prize wheel and talking to the listeners. However, the best was yet to come!!!

On Sunday morning, I got up early, ready for a full day of media fun :) I was lucky enough to be traveling to Oakmont Golf Course near Pittsburgh. One of the AM radio stations owned by Salem Communications was broadcasting live from the U.S. OPEN!!!! AND I got to help them out!!!!!!!! First let me explain...Salem Communications owns four radio stations in the Cleveland area: WFHM FM 95.5 the Fish, WHKW AM 1220 the Word (a Christian talk radio station), and WHK AM 1420 and WHKZ AM 1440 (both news and talk radio stations). All of these radio stations broadcast from the same office in Independence.

Anyways, 1420 AM, which is celebrating its 85th anniversary, has a golf show on Sunday evenings from 5-7 p.m. (I learned a little about WHK's history during the ride down from John)!! The DJs decided to broadcast their show live from the U.S. Open since it was only a couple of hours away from Cleveland. One of my bosses, John, and his partner Michael host the show together. John picked me up in the Fish van, and we drove down together, swapping stories during the drive. We arrived around 11:00 or so, and proceeded to the media center. Before I could do anything, I had to get a media pass/badge with my picture on it!! I got to keep it as a souvenir!! John and I found our booth inside the media center labeled Salem Broadcasting and set up our equipment. Later on, we met up with Michael and his family...and walked around the golf course so the two guys could get the feel for the course and the tournament. They took a lot of "mental" notes to help them figure out what they would talk about during their golf show. Around 4:00, we went back to the media center to get some free food and to prepare for the show. Inside the media center, flash interviews from the players could be seen as well as all kinds of info and stats, which were updated almost instantly.

During the show, my job was to collect any interview, info, and stat sheets that were published as time passed as well as get updated scores and stats from the public computers. It was AWESOME!! I loved being in the media center, meeting and seeing people from all kinds of media: radio stations, television stations, and newspapers. Our booth was two over from BBC radio!! When the golf show ended, the last two golfers, one being Tiger Woods, were still on the 17th hole, so we ran out to the golf course. The 18th hole was packed, but I got a glimpse of Tiger through the crowd. The whole crowd groaned when Tiger missed tying for first with Cabrera...John and I then stayed to watch the award ceremony (I was standing about 25 feet or so from Tiger)!! Strangely enough, I ran into another Westminster broadcast major, Danielle, who had been working at the U.S. Open all week (I think as security?). Afterward, John and I packed up our equipment and headed back home, grabbing dinner on the way. I was EXHAUSTED after a 14-hours on the job, but I had the BEST time!!! Clink on the following link to learn more about WHK AM 1420's golf show! WHK's golf show with John and Michael!!!

Geauga Lake Remote!!

I was definitely busy the first week of my internship. Besides the 33 Miles concert, I also helped out at a radio remote at Geauga Lake on Friday along with Christina and Andrea. The three of us left early in hopes of getting to ride a couple of coasters. However, we were all hungry and decided to get lunch at a Burger King before the park in an effort to save some money. It took 45 minutes!! This fast-food restaurant was so crowded. After lunch, we met up with our other boss and Promotions Director John. We had no trouble getting into the park by ourselves after we said we were with the Fish. We put up a couple of banners and set out some Fish bumper stickers. Soon after, the afternoon DJ Josh Booth arrived with his wife and baby daughter.

I stayed the whole time during the remote...it was a lot of fun listening to Josh's breaks as well as talking to John about his experiences in the broadcast world. Besides a torrential downpour halfway through the remote (during which most of us squeezed into the booth), the day was a lot of fun. And I even got to ride one roller coaster before the weather got too bad: the Villain!

33 Miles Concert!

The first week I went to two events, one being a 33 Miles concert at Word of Grace Church in Chesterland on Thursday. I was excited and nervous, first of all, because it was my first promotional event for the Fish, and secondly, because I was going to meet 33 Miles!! Early at the office, Andrea and I walked around to record some listener comments with a mini-disc recorder for new Fish liners. At the concert, we were supposed to record a couple more.

We arrived early to set up (Andrea, Christina, Cassie, and I). Cassie is another intern who just helps out at events. Andrea and Cassie both go to the Ohio Center for Broadcasting and both are in need of intern hours. Unfortunately, all four of us are on the shorter side, making it hard to set up the backdrop. The members of 33 Miles saw our dilemma and decided to help us put it up. They introduced themselves...the three-member Christian band includes Jason (Louisiana), Chris (Alabama), and Collin (Colorado). I fell in love with their Southern accents! I only had heard one of their songs, What Could Be Better (the Days Ahead), before this concert because I added it to the Covenant's currents when it neared the top of the charts a couple of months ago.

Anyways, the interns and I talked to the listeners, handed out fliers, and got a couple more listener comments before the concert. Then, we went in and listened to a couple of songs...I was really impressed...I loved their music, and I could see a lot of potential in this group. I think 33 Miles has a lot of talent and a bright future. All three could really sing well. They almost reminded me a little of Mercy Me. Check out this link if you get a chance! 33 Miles!

The First Few Weeks...

I know it's way past the time I started my radio promotions internship at Salem Communications (mainly 95.5 the Fish), but I finally have time to reflect since I'm kind of out of commission. (I got my wisdom teeth out a few days ago). I really do love my internship, and I'm learning so much from really great people. My first day was Tuesday, June 5. I remember getting dressed up (because I wasn't sure about the dress code) and driving to the office which is right across the street from where my mom works. I remember walking in thinking, "This is just so cool!" I could see that the dress code at the office was more casual than I anticipated. A few minutes later, I met my boss Greg for the first time.

I had my interview on the phone, and he hired me right afterward. Greg is Morning Show Producer and Events Coordinator for 95.5 the Fish. He introduced me to the other two interns, Christina and Andrea, and then had me sign some paperwork. I began working that same day as well as meeting everyone in the office. Granted, I still don't remember everyone's names; however, over time, I'm sure I will learn everyone's names. Also, I've met the majority of the on-air personalities: Len, Brooke, Gina, and Josh.

Although I'm still learning the ropes, I've already started helping out in the office. The interns' duties include mailing out the prizes, making weekly prize sheets, handling half-prize dining deals, organizing, filing, and other random responsibilities that may come up. In addition to working in the office on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday (Andrea, Christina, and I developed a weekly schedule), I also help out at events during the week and on the weekends. The first week I helped out at two events, which I will describe in the following posts. Needless to say, I'm having a wonderful time!!

Entering the Blogging World...

So I've finally done it...I've decided it's time for me to start keeping a blog, specifically describing my broadcasting experience. Later on, when I'm looking for a job after graduation, I will definitely be glad that I documented everything I did in the broadcasting world and all the people I've met along the way.

Actually, my professor and adviser, Mr. Weaver, suggested I keep this blog for my internship this summer; however, I would like to continue writing this blog throughout my college years so I can look back at the memories and display all my hard work. Anyways, this summer I have a radio promotions internship at Salem Communications, particularly 95.5 the Fish radio station in Cleveland...this is such a wonderful opportunity for me, which will hopefully help me figure out more what I want to do for a career in the future!