Field report: Coppell High School’s broadcast media program

Print journalists, eat your AP-style hearts out.

by John P. Meyer

On Thursday morning, May 17, I visited the media center offices at Coppell High School, with KCBY-TV/Broadcast Media Instructor Irma Kennedy serving as gracious host. Having crossed paths with several of her student media crews during my coverage of various red carpet events during the AFI Dallas Film Festival (and more recently at the Inwood premiere of The Wendell Baker Story), I'd become acquainted with the remarkable poise demonstrated by the youthful KCBY staffers and the ambitious range of their local film scene coverage.

After spending a few minutes conversing with five CHS broadcast media program participants, it's clear that their poise and ambition stems in no small part from the influence of Ms. Kennedy, who is completing her first year as lead instructor in the 10-year-old department. Boasting professional credentials which include a stint as associate producer at 20/20, as well producer for the 24-hour Spanish-language news channel Canal de Noticias NBC, Ms. Kennedy spent her college years at UT Austin.

Student Jeff Lefkovits, who will serve as program director of next year's broadcast media crew (along with co-directors Ashton Kennedy and Andrew Sharp), consented to answer a few questions about the program and his two years of participation in it (with a third to come). Over the course of the interview, various other KCBY student journalists - including Greg Ramirez, Chris Oroza, Ashton Kennedy and Melissa Hays - ambled onto the studio set where we were conversing and shared their own insights into the program.

Jeff currently serves as sports director, and as such it's his job to coordinate coverage teams for CHS events. Jeff's interests run to the creation of short films; he plans to study filmmaking at USC after graduating high school. He tells me that there are about 45 students in the broadcast media program and mentions that, since Ms. Kennedy has come on board, interest in the program is peaking, with more students than ever jockeying for fall semester classes.

In addition to churning out weekly video news pieces for campus consumption, the media center produces work for off-campus clients such as Coppell ISD, for whom they are putting together a showcase DVD. One of the goals for the next school year is to place video productions for broadcast on Coppell's local access cable channel.

Jeff's most memorable event this year was his interview with Terrell Owens (who he refers to as "T.O.") at the Books-A-Million near Grapevine Mills. Asked if he was nervous before the interview, Jeff admits that he was, but that the careful planning done beforehand (including an early reconnoitering of the site to make sure he knew where he was going) made things go much easier. Also, it seems that Ms. Kennedy has a habit of reassuring her media teams that there will be multiple opportunities for speaking with celebrities, thereby downplaying the horrible thought that if one were to trip all over him- or herself on any one particular interview outing, all would be lost: this year, for instance, KCBY crews conducted on-camera interviews with Will Smith, The Rock and the Wilson brothers (Owen, Luke and Andrew), in addition to T.O.

When asked whether he peers down his nose at his lowly print journalism counterparts, Jeff laughs, says "no," and explains that, while there is a certain amount of rivalry involved between the Sidekick (CHS student newspaper) staff and KCBY, it's a friendly and respectful rivalry; he goes so far as to say that "they have an awesome program, too," and points out that there are a couple of students on the staff of both organizations. But - and take this as a dig if you want, Sidekickers - Jeff notes that the newspaper is produced only once every six weeks, while KCBY produces content weekly.

As an admitted word snob, I was curious to know how important Jeff thinks writing is to a broadcast story. "Huge," he said, and went on to explain that writing sets the tone and defines the style of the broadcast. Scriptwriting for the on-camera anchors, I learned, is a big part of the production process.

I asked the assembled staffers to come up with a few of the most unusual stories they covered over the course of this school year, and thus became familiar with the legend of the "airhorn bandit," along with the drama club's plastic flamingo promotion and the fund-raising scheme which held that those not raising funds at a predetermined level would be forced to dress as their favorite super hero for a day.

Of the KCBY staffers with whom I spoke, five out of five (that would be 100% of my sampling, for the mathematically challenged) assured me they intended to continue working toward broadcast journalism careers; they admitted to spending large quantities of extra-curricular hours in the media room, on the set or on location working on video production projects. Bottom line: they love what they're doing and appreciate what they're learning.

Asked how many school hours per day they spent doing KCBY stuff, I discovered that some students haunt the media center offices for up to three periods (out of seven) every day; occasionally, the dedicated journalists will miss some of their other classes, but it turns out that teachers of more traditional coursework are "mostly" supportive.

The most helpful aspect of the broadcast media program, per general agreement, turns out to be the broad range of experience it provides - "everybody does everything," as Jeff puts it, spending production time both behind the camera and in front of it, while also working in the pre- and post-production areas: it's kind of like having an opportunity to do everything there is to do in a broadcast newsroom, and maybe getting a feel for what it is that you like and/or do best.

Having zombified the students with mind-numbing questions, I turned my laser-like attention to their fearless leader, Ms. Kennedy.

John Meyer: How old is the broadcast media program at CHS?

Irma Kennedy: KCBY celebrated its 10th year this year.

JM: Who originated the program?

IK: I'm not sure.

JM: Has any of the equipment (cameras, editing gear, etc.) been received through donation? In general, how is the program funded?

IK: KCBY has been fortunate to have the tremendous support of the district and community. This year alone, we received a grant from the Coppell PTSO (Parent Teacher Student Organization) that was matched by the district. Yesterday, we received another large grant from the CISDl Education Foundation. We have also received donations from parents who have been tremendously supportive, throughout this year.

JM: Are there comparable programs being offered at the high school level anywhere else in N. TX?

IK: There are many other schools who have media technology programs in the area. We were recently named to the top 10 videos submitted by schools to the FOX 4 "My School is Cool!" contest. Schools were encouraged to submit a video showing why their school is cool. You'd be amazed how many schools have programs and they are all doing some great work! I wish I would have had a program like this when I was in high school to get a jump start on my future.

JM: How do you come up with your daily lesson plans?

IK: Having worked in news and public relations before I became a teacher, I am fortunate to know what is relevant for students to know as they move into media as a career. So, I use that as a basis for what we should and can be doing. There are also state TEKS as a guideline of what should be taught.

JM: What's your background in broadcast media?

IK: After graduating from the University of Texas at Austin, I was fortunate to be recruited by ABC News in New York. I started out working as a desk assistant for ABC NewsOne, the affiliate feed service. After a year, I was promoted to ABC News 20/20, where I worked on numerous segments as an associate producer. After four years, I went to NBC News and helped launch the first Spanish-language, 24-hour news channel called Canal de Noticias NBC. After 5 years, I moved to Dallas and worked in public relations after a year off to take care of my newborn daughter.

JM: Where do broadcast student journalists go from here? College? Internships?

IK: Most of these students will go to college and major in communications. It is very encouraging how motivating this program is to help them determine what it is they want to do with their life. My goal is to provide as many real-life opportunities for my students so that they will get a taste of how exciting this field can be.

JM: Are you posting any content online, and do you see increased collaboration in future between online and broadcast media?

IK: Not at the present time, but we will be collaborating with our print journalism in the future to prepare students for convergence journalism which is the wave of the future.

JM: Thanks, Irma. It sure was fun getting to talk to you and the kids.

IK: Thanks so much! I'll look forward to seeing your writeup.