Posted by David Huffman on Fri, May 27, 2011 @ 12:13 PM
By Jodi Franks
@producerjodi
Cincinnati.com recently published an article about Oprah that got me thinking a little about personal branding.
Since 1984, Oprah Winfrey has been part of a daily routine. From her early days as the host of the half hour morning talk show “AM Chicago”, to the launch of The Oprah Winfrey Show in 1986, there is hardly a form of media she hasn’t touched. Talk Show Host, Actress, Author, Philanthropist, Voice-overs, Satellite Radio, Oprah.com, and her own television network, seriously, you get it. Unless you’ve been under the proverbial rock for most of your life, you know Oprah; and while this isn’t homage to a living piece of history, I hope that people can walk away with a better understanding of what it takes to succeed in this business.
Recently, I’ve been on a mission to better understand the formula for “Personal Branding” and the process of marketing “Celebrity”. Think there’s no science behind it? Think again.
If there is one though I try to instill into current students of the Ohio Center for Broadcasting Cincinnati Campus it is this: You are the product. You are the brand. Everything you do, from your work ethic to the decisions you make in your personal life, contributes to your “brand”.
Keeping in mind everyone’s definition of success is subjective, not everyone wants to be Oprah. I’m sure most would just be happy with a fraction of her net worth. (Who wouldn’t right?). However, so many students who enroll tell us “They have something to say, a story to share, people they want to reach with their message”. How will you reach those people if no one knows who you are? Once you’ve reached them, what is the value of your brand? Why would I listen to you?
Oprah took a different direction early on, even if her ratings took a hit from time to time. That was HUGE. In a time when Trash TV literally ruled the airwaves, and shock value reigned supreme, she stood by her brand. Now we have terms like “Oprahfication, and Rapport Tv”. We watched her struggle with weight issues, cried with her while she disclosed the pain and humiliation of molestation, screamed when studio audiences were surprised with unheard of gifts, and laughed when celebrities jumped on couches.
So who among you will be the next to revolutionize our water cooler vocabulary? Are you ready to share your message, your brand, with the world?
---
Posted by David Huffman on Wed, May 25, 2011 @ 12:04 PM
This blog typically isn't known for it's round-up type posts, but every so often we think it can be beneficial to wade through the barrage of radio and television career content that we publish and hand pick a few articles for ya.
The theme for this week is careers in sports broadcasting. Over the last few months we have published a few testimonials and some stories of success that have helped folks determine if the sports broadcasting career training route was right for them.
Below are the most popular ones in the Ohio Center for Broadcasting Archives:
Milan Jordan is a graduate of our Ohio Center for Broadcasting Cleveland campus. After graduating, he toiled around for a bit looking for that perfect sports broadcasting job.
He couldn't find it.
So he took a job on a Polka station and the rest is history
[click here for the full article]
Guy works hard in the restaurant industry. Guy eventually determines he isn't fulfilling his dream life's work. Guy enrolls at Ohio Center for Broadcasting. Guy makes connections, learns the trade, and gets a shot at a temp camera job with the Cleveland Browns that turns into full-time.
That "guy" is Brian Travalik.
[click here for the full article]
A little video from the grand opening of our Ohio Center for Broadcasting Denver campus. Oren Lomena of 104.3 FM & FSN talks a little about his path into a sports broadcasting career
[click here for full article and video]
Josh Seas graduated from the Ohio Center for Broadcasting Columbus campus. Before attending OCB, he drifted around a 4 year college until he decided it was time to follow his passion.
Josh eventually graduated from OCB and landed a job at the most sought after sports station in Columbus.
[read full article here]
---
Photo Credit: Michael Oh on Flickr
Posted by David Huffman on Wed, May 18, 2011 @ 10:45 AM
By Eric Halsey
Ohio Center for Broadcasting
Cincinnati Campus
Just imagine a hot summer day in Cincinnati. 100 degrees with an extremely high humidity. After sitting inside and wasting half the day watching network TV, you decide to get out and take a drive to the local pool. With the windows down and the radio blasting, you roll up to the pool just to see nothing but a CLOSED sign across the fence. This is the picture that the city of Cincinnati is going to paint for hundreds of thousands of people in the summer of 2012.
I first became a part of this issue while doing a project at the Ohio Center for Broadcasting. The project was to create a music video that represents something more than the music. My group decided to create a video that will shows how much these pools mean to the people in the surrounding communities, and the more time and effort I put into the project, the more and more I want to help out this cause.
The more people I talk to from these centers I realize how much these centers mean to the public.
After taking more than $7 million in budget cuts over the past 5 years the Cincinnati Recreation Commission (CRC) was asked to take another cut this upcoming year. This budget cut would eliminate the pools from over 20 centers in and around Cincinnati. Many of the centers went out to their communities and asked for financial help and some raised money but they were nowhere close to the total amount that they would need. City Council matched what money the CRC was able to raise to keep the pools open for this summer, but next year there could be nothing.
For more information and ways to help visit the CRC website at http://www.cincinnati-oh.gov/crc/pages/-4993-/ I couldn’t imagine a summer in Cincinnati without a place for our youth to swim and stay active.
---
Posted by David Huffman on Tue, May 10, 2011 @ 09:57 AM
I am living my dream and loving each and every minute of it!
Can you say the same?
Believe me it wasn't easy getting where I am at today. It took a lot of hard work and dedication as well as sacrifice. But I did it! And I love it! And I am living my dream! It is truly amazing!
As much as my career of choice has changed, it has always had something to do with broadcasting. I went from wanting to be news anchor, to a radio dj, video editor and even star in my own tic tac commercial. I remember back when I was going through my news anchoring stage, I was in the 6th grade and Jack Atherton spoke to our class.
I told him about my dream and right before he left, he passed me a note that read "See you on TV one day" along with his autograph. I thought it was the coolest thing ever, especially since I watched him on the 10 o clock news every night!
I remember checking out the Ohio Center for Broadcasting in 2002. So I decided to check out the school once again a few years later. It was perfect! Fast paced, hands on environment and only 10 months.
Being a single mother, it worked out great!
From the hands on traing in the very beginning, it was as if it was a refresher course to me, being able zip right thru the program. From the first day of class, I set a goal for myself upon graduation being the award recipriant of the Tony Sands Award for Excellance in Television. The training i received was great. Knowledgeable instructors and a staff that pushed you to be your very best and help you every step of the way. They want you to become successful! And I did! I met my goal as well. Not only was I student of the Month for March but on April 2, 2010 I received the Tony Sands Award!
After graduation it seemed as if it was a bit of a struggle to find a job, but I went from zero jobs to having three.
Yes three jobs and all of them in the industry. I sent out my resume over and over again to different tv stations and production houses. Not a single bite.
So I decided for radio. I wasnt a big fan of radio but I decided to give it a try and I have to say I am happy with my decision. I landed a job as a radio sales representative at Oldies1480 WDJO. Not only do I go out and sell air time but I write edit and produce spots as well. Hearing my commercials on air is great, to be able to say "Yea I did that, I wrote that, I voiced over that, and I produced that!" is simply amazing and well worth that pat on the back. That is my work, my writing, my art!
Soon after I landed my radio job I went back to the Ohio Center for Broadcasting, and became a Graduate Assistant so that I could help future broadcasters learn the field. I love to teach, so it just made sense and Im getting ready to go back to school to get a teaching degree. I want to teach the industry. Just recently I landed my gig at Channel 12 as a production assistant. It is funny how they really do hold on to your resumes. I put my resume in April and it took them to December to call me back. So that makes job number 3.
Its a lot of hard work but it is fun. I make a lot of sacrafices, but it will pay off in the end. Even with working 3 different jobs, I was still able to make a schedule where I still get ample amount of time with my son each and everyday.
I am a big believer in timing. Maybe it was not my time 10 years ago when I graduated highschool, but today it is mine, and I am taking full advantage of it! Be confident in yourself, and you will be great!
---
Want to explore more?
Or
Posted by David Huffman on Wed, May 04, 2011 @ 02:23 PM
He’s not a Doctor, but he needs to dress like one and blend in like the rest of the medical staff at Riverside Hospital in Columbus for the next six weeks.
While everyone else there is either having a baby or helping someone have a baby, his job is to make sure it all gets recorded and organized on at least one of nearly three dozen video cameras.
He’s Shawn Burrs, Ohio Center for Broadcasting Graduate and Instructor, decked out in scrubs for this stint as a freelance tape operator for a Lifetime TV series.
Shawn agreed to share his experiences with us during the taping…here’s the first installment of his weekly blog:
Burrs: What I’m looking at right now is a sports fan’s dream. Giant video panels displaying what 32 cameras positioned throughout the labor and delivery area of the hospital are capturing. If I was a college football junkie and this was a Saturday in September, I could have the man cave of all man caves.
Only I’m not, and this isn’t. The highlights I care about are scenes of ordinary people, going through probably the most extraordinary moment of their lives: the birth of their child.
If you watched “One Born Every Minute” last winter on Lifetime TV, you know the format. Shot at Riverside Hospital because it’s one of the busiest maternity wards in the country, and narrated by Jamie Lee Curtis. Each episode tells the story of three deliveries and what the parents experience as they go through labor and meet their child for the first time. The stories are dramatic, sometimes funny, occasionally scary, often absurd…and always intense.
My job is to make sure there’s a tape recording each shot all night long, and to organize who’s on each one. When the producers determine which stories they want to show, they need to know where to find the video of that couple leading up to the birth. So far, there’ve been at least a couple of babies born on each of my overnight shifts. Here’s one story you’ll probably see this fall:
Woman gets pregnant, father-to-be overdoses on heroin upon hearing the news, then stays clean for 9 months. At the birth, he cries harder than any man I’ve ever seen, then names the baby after his sobriety sponsor. But wait there’s more: the two families can’t stand each other and the nurses have to mediate their interaction.
Stay tuned…
--
Photo Credit: Sarah Reido