Interview with AWCM Access Coordinator, Mike Milligan:
“The OTV News club broadcasts the morning announcements live, every morning from the local Ashburnham Westminster Community Media Studio, located in the back of Oakmont High School. OTV News has been in operation for over 30 years, and I have been assisting Mr. Secino, the club adviser, since I began as the Access Coordinator of AWCM in 2018.
Although OTV News is produced by the students, I ensure that all the equipment is up and running for the club members each morning, that the daily announcements are accurately loaded into the teleprompter, and that all segments are up to date. Preparation and dedication are key parts of each broadcast.
I enjoy seeing students each morning, eager to make today better than yesterday. After 30 years, OTV is always updating and evolving, but the question that students continue to ask is ‘How do I join?'”
OTV is a familiar part of our day. When homeroom comes, you see that recognizable news background with different stories, What’s Cooking?, and the Spartan Center. But do you know how much effort goes into a four-minute broadcast? Behind those four minutes is a lot of unseen hard work.
Every day, thirteen students arrive at the studio with a shared goal: to have a successful broadcast. Each role is distinct and essential; OTV could not run if any one job were missing.
The thirteen jobs:
1. Graphics 2. Teleprompter
3. Attendance 4. Anchor 1
5. Anchor 2 6. Daily Features
7. Floor Director 8. Audio Technician
9. Technical Director 10. Producer
11. Spartan Center 12. What’s Cookin
13. Backup
Before the Broadcast
The day for OTV does not start at homeroom. Each morning, the staff arrive early to ensure server functionality, program readiness, and script preparation. By the time students arrive, the staff has already performed numerous tasks, ensuring that OTV can run smoothly and efficiently.
For the broadcast to run, there are five jobs behind the scenes:
- Audio Technician
- Technical Director
- Graphics
- Teleprompter
- Producer
Audio Technician: Manages the microphones and overall sound to ensure clear audio during the broadcast.
Technical Director: Switches camera shots and segments, ensuring smooth visual transitions for each part of the broadcast.
Graphics: The Graphics person is a person in charge of the bottom frames of OTV. Whenever you see a story, and it has the bar telling what the story is about, that’s the person in charge of graphics.
Teleprompter: The anchors don’t have to memorize any of the words they have to say; it’s all on the teleprompter. The teleprompter is a program that shows the script at a steady pace. The teleprompter is the person in charge of changing the speed and starting/stopping the flow of words given to the people on the floor.
Producer: The producer is the single person who is responsible for OTV running exactly at 9:00 AM. They are also responsible for ensuring both the tech panel and the floor are ready to broadcast and for fixing any issues that may arise or bringing the attention of the staff.
There are also some studio jobs:
- Anchors
- Floor Director
Anchors: The Anchors are the people you see every day on the big screen. They are sitting at the desk reading off the stories, or they are standing doing Spartan Center or What’s Cookin?
Floor Director: The Floor Director is the person who is connected by a headset to the tech director. They are the person on the studio floor counting in between frames to prepare the anchors for their time to speak. They are also the liaison between behind the scenes and the studio.
Transcript from an interview with Mr. Greg Secino, Teacher and Club Advisor for OTV:
How long have you been doing OTV?
“I’ve been in charge of OTV since 2017.”
What do you do to make sure OTV can run every day?
“On my end, I need to make sure the schedule is set for the week. In doing so, I need to make sure the schedule doesn’t have conflicts with other groups that might be meeting during homeroom. I have to answer student questions about all the various OTV jobs. I need to make sure we’re on by 9 AM and done in a reasonable timeframe. I have to make sure no one is doing or saying anything inappropriate while on the air. I have to submit a variety of stories on a weekly and daily basis. I have to coach students in their various jobs.”
How much time outside of the workday do you spend preparing for OTV?
“I would say I spend at least 10 hours a week outside of OTV prepping for the day/week. Many of the things are listed above, but I’m always brainstorming potential new segments. Working within the schedule to make sure OTV or NoTV News is still happening. Talking to Admin, students, and staff about stories and guest spots. There’s a ton of behind-the-scenes stuff that needs to happen to make it work.”
If there could be one thing you said to the people who watch OTV and want to join, what would you tell them?
“I don’t have a blanket statement for kids. Everyone is different, with different circumstances.”
Has there been growth, and if so, are you happy with the growth since you first started OTV?
“There has been a tremendous amount of growth since I’ve taken over OTV. The number of students who want to be involved, as well as the number of stories and segments we do on a daily basis. Matt and Mike are continuously making updates to the studio so we can continue to push the envelope of what a daily student broadcast can look like.”
During the Broadcast
The switch gets flipped, and the red sign that says “silence” is now on. What happens now?
Everyone is at their stations, doing their best for a good production. The anchors are ready to read the script, the team is focused on their jobs, and silence fills the room. There is little talking during the broadcast. The focus is so strong that even a pen drop is noticeable.
Those 3 minutes, so much time gets put into it with so little time for error. One mistake, that’s all it can take for the entire broadcast to derail.
After the Broadcast
The OTV outro is playing, you just sent out a good broadcast, but wait, all the equipment is still on. Now the people at the different positions have to shut down their equipment. They say goodbye to the staff members and go to class. OTV is the only homeroom in a secluded part of the building, so they have to potentially travel across the school to their B-Block.
Everything is now shut down; it’s time to do it all over again for the next day.
The next time you see OTV playing, take a moment to think and appreciate how much effort actually goes into OTV.
