Valdosta State University Mass Media students gain valuableexperience over winter break

The learning process for students in the Mass Media department at Valdosta State University didn't pause for winter break. With the college and professional football season coming to a climax, students' skills were in demand by NBC, CBS, FOX and an independent movie company.

Students helped with the production of the Atlanta Falcons and Jacksonville Jaguars football games, as well as the Gator Bowl. Jamaal Ferguson, a senior Mass Media student who worked on the sidelines at the Gator Bowl said, "It was a good experience...I was able to do anything that was requested of me, and I think that speaks volumes for what the professors are doing here at VSU to prepare me for my field."

In all, 14 Mass Media students worked with Kwokman Productions for the NBC broadcast of the Gator Bowl. Andrew Spratt, a sophomore who participated in the production, was responsible for camera operations. "The number one thing that I learned was how fast everything goes. I got a real sense of the pace of a live sports production," Spratt said.

Working on sports broadcasts was only a part of the production excitement over the holiday break. Three students also had the opportunity to work for an independent film company out of Burbank, California, on The Lost Mission, a movie filmed in north Valdosta.

Students of VSU's nationally award winning Mass Media department produce shows for VSU-TV and radio station V-91, providing well-rounded broadcast training and experience. For more information on the Mass Media program at VSU call 229-333-5820.