THE NORTH ROAD
By Nicole LaDouceur
Video Placement Advisor
At 5:00 AM following Labor Day weekend, I began a whirlwind, 3-day Northern Michigan road trip. Armed with a Canon XL1s video camera, I interviewed 15 Specs Howard graduates who are working in broadcasting, ranging from TV talent to radio
board operations to management positions. Some of these folks had graduated within the past year, some over 20 years ago. All of them realized the opportunity of relocating to a smaller market.
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Mike Reling |
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Corey Adkins |
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Heather Obloj |
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Bob Peters |
These people are truly grateful for the "teacher" that is a small market. Julie Banovic has been cutting her teeth at WBKB-TV in Alpena for nearly a year, moving from an entry-level reporting position to anchoring the newscast.
Mike Reling moved to Gaylord years ago to get some on air experience at WMJZ/WSNQ, fell in love with the station and the community, and never left. His commitment to serving the community he lives in was echoed by many others I interviewed.
Corey Adkins has been a photojournalist at WWTV in Cadillac for 5 years, graciously agreeing to meet with me after he'd been on the clock for 10 hours. Corey is dedicated to his craft, coming in early and staying late, winning awards for his special story/documentary work.
Heather Obloj, who studied both radio and TV at Specs Howard, is a newcomer to Northern
Star Broadcasting in Cheboygan as board operator and disc jockey. Her enthusiasm was apparent as I listened to her on the radio on my drive later that night. She started out as a part-time board operator, and now enjoys more hours at the radio station cluster.
Bob Peters runs station operations at WCFX in Mt. Pleasant, now in the position of hiring staff, with over 20 years of radio experience under his belt. Often, I ran into other Specs Howard grads while touring a radio or TV station.
With a good attitude and passionate spirit, these grads expanded upon what they learned in school and continue to apply their skills and potential to the real world, always keeping up with new technologies and challenging themselves to better their craft. I was impressed by how truly thankful these grads were for their Specs Howard education.
The broadcasting industry is rewarding and challenging. We all have the power to become who we want to be in our careers and in life. TV, radio, video and film are never boring, always giving us new opportunities for growth. It is up to you to make the most out of the tools and opportunities that you find.
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