Co-op with 89.7 WSHC Part 6

The Co-op is about to come to an end, and so is doing work on "the Underground Hour". The show will have one more week, and after that it will be finished due to finals week coming next and graduation occurring after this semester. I feel that my previous internship had more to offer and gave me more experience than this, but I am still glad I did this. Helping with a show is a valuable opportunity, and can offer a lot for someone in the future.

I was absent from last week due to being sick, but returned to do more recording with "the Underground Hour". This was the first week where we did not have a live guest with us, instead the interviews with the guest were recorded prior to the live broadcasting. The show ran smoothly, as to be expected since the last few shows have been major improvements in technical terms. The show has been focusing more on hip-hop than rock music lately, so it feels like a specific demographic is being targeted. Now that this week went smoothly we just have to make sure that the last show goes well, so it ends on a high note.

I'm always hoping to have more experience in the field of radio, and I'm sure there will be more opportunities in the future. I may not stay in West Virginia after graduation, but I know there are plenty of places where there is work to be done in radio.

Dry Land

Abortion is one of the most controversial subjects in today's society. People both for and against abortion have strong feelings for the position they stand on, and are usually not afraid to give their thoughts on the subject. This play tackled a lot of the different subjects about abortion, such as teen pregnancy, pills, and more. "Dry Land" is a play that tackles many controversial subjects, some of these are handled well, and others could have been done better.

It is best to start with what the play did right. "Dry Land" does take it's subjects seriously, but it is also not free of lighter material, which is a good thing since if the entire thing was centered on controversy, it would be hard to sit through. The actors did a good job, and gave performances that were good enough for the audience to be invested in. The weaknesses of the play come from the writing perspective, as there were some lines that were cringe worthy, and could have used some revising. There is also implied lesbianism in this play, the problem is that it goes nowhere and could have been cut from the play completely and nothing would have been lost. The play handles the subjects at hand seriously, but it does have flaws that hinder the over all quality.

Despite the flaws in "Dry Land", I would say that I am glad that I went and saw it. The subjects it tackles are ones that are major in today's society, and for the most part, it handles them well. Abortion and the controversy that surrounds it has been a big subject for years, and it is likely that it will remain that way for years to come.

Co-op with 89.7 WSHC Part 5

The school year is coming closer to an end, and with it, so is the end of the co-op. There were a few things that were to be highlighted about this week, such as the, "Underground Hour" having what I would consider its best week so far, and the possibility that my documentary from Capstone may play on WSHC. It might be me having my expectations too high, but having my documentary be played on the station might be a first step for possible opportunities for me in the future.

I now have to be extra careful with what I do in regards to finishing, "Life of Radio" as I don't want to get carried away and end up making a mistake on it that will ruin everything I worked. "The Underground Hour" being more successful this week came from having less technical difficulties and a lot of interaction between the host and the guest. I feel we are now very close to the show having a strong high point in the upcoming weeks.

I'm hoping that these successes will lead to something both inside and outside of this co-op. The time being spent at this station is coming to a close, and it is time to start thinking more about the future, as it is almost here.

Life of Radio First Impressions

I was not sure how the board was going to react when they heard the documentary for the first time. Sadly, because of time limits, I was only able to show them the first two minutes of the ten minute documentary. The good news is the presentation went well. The board was happy with the audio quality of my project, and thought that the overall content was good. My project is almost ready for the end of the year presentation, there are only small tweaks that need to be made.

The major thing that I need to add to the documentary is introductions to myself, and the people I interviewed. I didn't think much of it at first, but the board brings up good points, people are going to want to know who they are listening to or they my not care about the documentary. I never intended not to give credit where it was do, but this is an important point that needs to be done for the future.

I have been nervous and lacking confidence for the majority of this procedure. I am glad for the reception that I was given, as I now feel more proud of what I have made, and more confident in this project's future.

  

Life of Radio Final Preperations

The scripting is finished and the voice recording is at it's final stages. The last major part of completing the project is the editing process. As much as I would love to go back home for spring break, I am staying on campus to have access to the school radio station, which has Adobe Audition and a professional microphone. The final product is not going to be how I envisioned at the start, but it should be able to meet the expectations that are set, so long as everything that I have been told is true.

During my last discussion with my director I received the background music that I needed, as well as being given some direction for the length of the project. He was really set on a quality over quantity mindset for this project, so the idea of the project being twenty to thirty minutes long is essentially gone. The more appropriate length in the end is going to be around ten to fifteen minutes, which at first I thought would be too short, but the point is to get across what I need in the documentary without unnecessary filler.

One week remains before the final project is due. Everything will be in place, and the presentation will go as smoothly as possible.

Career Fest

I am on my final semester of college, so if there was ever a time to attend Career Fest it was now. Shepherd University's Career Fest offered a lot of opportunities for students to find potential sources for employment. It didn't matter what major someone was taking, there was something there for just about everyone. We are in a time where finding a decent job is not the easiest thing in the world to do, and an opportunity like this is something that everyone in college should do at least once.

Even if you don't find the right job right away, there were jobs at the fair that would allow for valuable experience and opportunities that would lead to better things. The people at Career Fest were friendly, it was nice to see some of them openly communicate with some of the students, and not always having the students make the first move. The employers were more than willing to take questions and go into details about the type of jobs that they had to offer.

Many people today will take what they can get in terms of jobs, and some people have to work multiple jobs just to get by. The economy today is at a low point, and things like Career Fest are needed for people like college students to get started with their careers and secure themselves an honest living.

Co-op with 89.7 WSHC Part 4

For this week, the second showing of "The Underground Hour" happened, and the live broadcast went rather smoothly. Everything was going over the air, and we had another guest with us, though sadly he could not do a live performance this week. But of course, we can't be completely free of problems since the recording of the show was having issues. The computer in the lobby was not picking up the sounds from the music and the microphone through Adobe Audition, even though it was able to last week. Hopefully we can get this resolved so that we can have at least one week of our show with no problems occurring.

Not much has happened regarding the recruitment poster, though I am still hoping that by the end of this, the poster will be going somewhere. The entire thing does not have to be completed, but I would like to have enough progress so that I know for a fact it will be made by the beginning of next semester. Even though there have been a lot of issues regarding this Co-op I'm still very glad that I am doing it. It is giving me valuable experience, and not just teaching me how to do things but also learning that there are times when things are going to go wrong.