Between the luncheon dessert and the first 25-year veteran inductee reminiscence, the San Francisco Northern California Chapter of The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NorCal NATAS) introduced this year's scholarship recipients.

      Five local students were honored for their collegiate work during the NATAS Gold & Silver Circle Induction event on November 1st. After screening brief clips of each recipients work (a video edited by 2012 scholarship recipient Taylor Mosley), Chapter Education Chair Steve Shlisky handed out $2,000 Scholarships to: Sherae Honeycutt, from San Francisco State University, recipient of the Rigo Chacon (SC'97) Reporting Scholarship; Vanessa-Marie Walker, from Sacramento State University, recipient of the Kenneth Sloat Langley Memorial Scriptwriting Scholarship; and Michael Milano, from the University of California Berkeley (UCB), recipient of the "Miss Nancy" Besst Graduate Scholarship.

     Shlisky also recognized two special candidates with $3,000 awards, generously sponsored by George Lang (SC'14) of The Big Picture. The Steve Davis Undergraduate Overall Excellence Scholarship went to Jonathan Alonso from City College of San Francisco, and the Jerry Jensen Graduate Overall went to Tyler Trumbo from Stanford University.

     Lang devoted part of his Silver Circle induction speech to the students sitting around the scholarship table. Addressing a room filled with the legendaries of Bay Area Broadcasting Lang said: "Go over and visit with the students at table twelve. They are the future of our industry."

     Many of the professionals at the event took up Lang's suggestion. Honeycutt noted that many of the previous inductees congratulated her on the award: "I was very moved by how warm everyone was. I got to talk with Wayne Freedman and everyone was so nice and encouraging. It was just a wonderful day."

     Honeycutt plans to use the award for next year's tuition, to prepare for the Graduate Record Exam (GRE), and apply it toward a master's degree.

     Walker will use her scholarship for purchasing camera equipment for her continuing education: "now that I'm a first year graduate student in UC Berkeley's Journalism program, studying television and documentary film."

     "It was just an honor to be awarded a scholarship on the same day seven people were inducted in the Gold and Silver Circles," walker said. 

    She explained how inspirational the experience was.

    "I get to see other professionals get honored for the hard work that they do."

    Trumbo felt the Scholarship ceremony was a nice complement to the larger Gold and Silver Circle reception. He says: "It is inspiring to see the impact a person can have on a prolonged and passionate career."

    Trumbo's award may underwrite the purchase of archive footage for his master's thesis film, a 15- to 20-minute glimpse into a son's relationship with his often absent Navy Seal father.

    Alonso, expected at work shortly after his scholarship presentation, called in late so he could stay through to the end of the Gold Circle inductions over two hours later: "I loved it. I thought it was awesome how long they've been in the industry. It's really important to hear the stories, why they do it, and all that wisdom."

    Alonso will use his scholarship to continue his education by entering SFSU's Cinema department. He hopes this degree will lead him to a career at a network. As a kid, Alonso has always wanted to work for public broadcasting. His dream job: "Working for PBS's 'Nature' as a cinematographer."

    Milano values the opportunity to see the evolution of Bay Area news through the careers of its journalists. He got to listen and learn from those: "Who have done it best."

    The funds Milano received from the award will help fund his USB Graduate School of Journalism master's project, a documentary about the upcoming trial of Michael Brelo, the Cleveland police officer charged with voluntary manslaughter after firing 49 bullets into two unarmed, black suspects. His documentary focuses on the issues around police violence and racial tension. 

    The San Francisco/Northern California Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences awards these scholarships to encourage individuals who demonstrate leadership and talent in advancing the artistic, cultural, educational and technical qualities of television. 

Link to Scholarship Application Information
 

By Cynthia E. Zeiden

NATAS National Program Chairperson

     The San Francisco/Northern California Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and IBEW-San Francisco are partnering to present a Fall series of master classes in TV production/post production free to NATAS and IBEW members, $25 each for non-members and $5 for students with a current ID in San Francisco.  The classes will also be live webcast to NATAS and IBEW members and then archived on YouTube.  RSVP's are required, use links under each class description.

     Each class will begin at 10 a.m. PST with a networking reception.  The classes/webcasts will begin at 11:00 a.m. PST.  The online audience will be able to ask questions of the instructors during Q&A periods, along with the live audience.  Each class will be divided into three segments.  The classes will end at 1:30 p.m. PST. 

     Get in-depth tips and techniques from the Bay Area Television Masters!  Each class will begin with basic principles but will quickly accelerate into advanced concepts in each craft area.

Master Class Schedule

Writing/Storytelling - Wayne Freedman, KGO-TV ABC 7, San Francisco

Saturday, Nov.15
 
 

     I'm the bald-headed reporter who likes to shoot many of my own stories. It's what I have always done. In ninth grade, I published my first regular column for what is now The Los Angeles Daily News, and continued it through high school.

In 1977, I earned a Bachelor's degree in Political Science from UCLA while working as a network page assigned to the newsroom at KABC-TV in Los Angeles. In 1978, I finished my Masters Degree in Journalism at the University of Missouri. It's a great school. If you want to be a reporter, go there. Seriously.

Wayne Freedman KGO-TV Reporter Hosts Master Class Nov. 15

    I have been on San Francisco television since 1981, beginning at KRON. Before that, I worked at stations in Louisville and Dallas. In 1989, CBS Network News hired me to produce and report national feature stories for CBS This Morning.

    ABC7 hired me in 1991. Since then, I have covered all kinds of local, state, national, and international stories. They include Russia's Second Revolution in 1992 and Hurricane Katrina in 2005, along with major fires, earthquakes, elections, and NASA space missions. Twice, I crossed the country by train, visiting small towns and taking the pulse of America following the September 11th attacks.

    My book, It Takes More Than Good Looks to Succeed at Television News Reporting, now in its Second Edition, is required reading for major college journalism programs in the United States, Canada, and Europe. Since 1990, I have conducted more than one-hundred narrative writing and visual storytelling seminars for newsrooms and national organizations in the United States and overseas.

    Many people know me as the recipient of fifty-one Emmy� awards. I earned thirteen of them for Writing, and fourteen others in the category of On Camera News Talent. There have been other multiple Emmy� awards in the categories of Breaking News, Feature Reporting, Feature Series, Sports Reporting, and News Programming Special. I am also a member of the Northern California chapter's Silver Circle. In 2011, I received my 50th Emmy� award for shooting and editing my own stories as a multi-media journalist. After the 51st, I retired from that competition, and now encourage others.

In 2012, I received a regional Edward R. Murrow award for writing.

KGO ABC 7, 900 Front Street (between Green and Vallejo Streets), San Francisco
 

Link to register to attend seminar

Voiceover - Elaine Clark  

Location: Voice One, San Francisco

Saturday, December 6th

Camera/Lighting - Chris Bollini 

Location: Academy of Art University, San Francisco

Saturday, January 24th

   "Have a bag packed and ready to go. You may be headed to Big Island."

   That was the text message I got from Hawaii News Now assistant news director Scott Humber on Wednesday, Oct. 15, at 10:06 a.m. A little over six hours later, photographer Peter Tang and I were in Hilo and headed to the Hawaii County Civil Defense emergency operations center for an interview.

   The reason for the trip on such short notice was a storm named Ana. It had developed in the Central Pacific as Tropical Depression Two-C. By midday Tuesday it had strengthened into a tropical storm with a track that would take it toward the Big Island of Hawaii by Saturday, and possibly over the rest of the Hawaiian Islands over subsequent days.

   This was the third time in two years that Peter and I were Big Island bound for a tropical cyclone. In July 2013, we were in Hilo for Tropical Storm Flossie, which only caused relatively minor damage. But we were also on the Big Island in August for Iselle, which made landfall as a tropical storm and caused major damage in the island's Puna District, toppling trees onto houses and power lines and leaving residents without utilities, in some cases, for several weeks, and disrupting voting in that week's primary election (we covered both events).

   With that in mind, it was imperative that we get to Hilo quickly ahead of the rapidly-developing storm. The logistics can be a bit complicated in an island state that is heavily dependent on air travel, but assignment editor Brenda Salgado was able to get us a flight that would depart Honolulu at 3:46 p.m. Unfortunately for Peter and me, we were still making our own storm preparations and taking care of other personal business, but having done this before, we were able to get everything together quickly and get to the airport by 2:30 p.m.

   We touched down in Hilo at 4:26 p.m. By 5:15 p.m., we were at the emergency operations center, where its director, Darryl Oliveira, gave us a quick interview about how the county was preparing for the storm. We were live at Hilo Bay for the 6 p.m. news. It helps that we know our way around the place, and that the airport, the EOC and our Hilo Bay live shot area are all a few minutes' drive apart.

    The Big Island has more than its share of natural disasters; it's the island with an active volcano that is currently sending a lava flow crawling toward a town in the Puna District, threatening at the very least to cut off the only highway to the area. Yes, the same area still recovering from Iselle. Because of the active nature of the island from volcanoes and earthquakes over several decades, the civil defense agency is used to dealing with non-Big Island media.

   We asked if there were civil defense crews out informing the public, and we were directed to a team going door-to-door in the lower Puna coastline, where there was a chance that large surf and a storm surge from Ana could damage homes. It's a very rural area, and we spent much of Thursday on gravel roads, following the county crew and volunteers who talked to residents, or left an emergency notice taped securely to a door or front gate where no one was home.

   Thursday night, we went to Pahoa, about 40 minutes southeast of Hilo, for one of the community meetings that have been held there on a regular basis by the county to update residents about the lava flow threatening their town. That night, the discussion also included a brief update on Ana. Most of the residents' concerns were still primarily about the lava, as it looks less likely that this storm would make another direct hit on the area.

   The pace was relentless, as we were doing live reports for the evening newscasts, and then getting up at 4 a.m. to do live shots for the morning show. Thank goodness the morning show crew is great to work with, even under trying circumstances.

   By Friday, it was apparent that Ana's center would pass to the south of the Big Island, but there was still the possibility of strong winds and high surf for the southernmost part of the island. A second crew, reporter Mileka Lincoln and photographer Alan Johnson, had landed in Hilo a day after us and were already 82 miles to the southwest at South Point, the southern tip of the Big Island (and the entire United States, for that matter).

   Friday morning, Peter and I got a call from Brenda asking us what our schedule was because she needed to book a flight from Hilo to Kauai. We had been expecting a flight home to Honolulu Saturday night or Sunday morning, so this was an interesting development. But it made sense, as Ana's track now had it headed close to the Garden Isle, which had been devastated by Hurricane Iniki in 1992.

   On Friday evening, we broadcast live from downtown Hilo, where Ana's effects were limited to heavy rain. Mileka and A.J. experienced higher surf, heavier rain and some stronger winds at South Point while broadcasting the southernmost live shot in the United States. To my knowledge, it's the first time there's been a live shot from there, thanks to our backpack units.

   Saturday morning, Peter and I were able to sleep in until 6 a.m. because there was no morning show. One last interview with civil defense chief Oliveira and a report from the Hilo Farmer's Market, and then it was time to pack and head to the airport, again. We left Hilo in an absolute downpour; the flight itself went through the northern outskirts of Ana, which made for zero visibility outside the windows and enough turbulence to keep the flight attendants seated through the entire half-hour flight from Hilo to Honolulu for our connecting flight to Lihue.

   We landed at Lihue Airport to our first sunshine in days. Almost immediately I got a call from one of the county's public information officers, saying the mayor would be available for an interview before going into a briefing, leaving us only about 20 minutes to get the interview. Again, fortunately, the airport is literally next door to the Kauai County emergency operations center, a big help for two guys who hadn't been to Kauai in years.

   We had done the report from Hilo, which aired at 5 p.m., and then we went live from Lihue, at the other end of the state, at 9 and 10. This prompted a print reporter friend of mine to call me "the Phil Collins of Hurricane Ana coverage."

   By Sunday morning, we were at Kalapaki Beach, reporting live for a special edition of the morning show. The county was under a tropical storm warning, but we knew that there wouldn't be a direct hit, so Peter and I dispensed with shoes and went with the usual island style of slippers, known elsewhere as flip-flops. We did wear rain gear because of spotty downpours and larger-than normal surf that crashed into the seawall and drenched us from time to time. The waves also attracted dozens of surfers, some of whom went in with their boards to ride waves at a usually calm beach.

   Hurricane Ana would make its closest approach to the islands just to the south of Niihau, the privately-owned island nicknamed "The Forbidden Isle," since you can go there only by invitation. The very rural island is home to fewer than 200, mostly native Hawaiians.

   Fortunately, the main effects of Ana were also relatively minimal for Kauai and Niihau, and we were booked on a flight back home to Honolulu Sunday night.  Peter and I, who have developed a great and constant working relationship over the past few years, may not get too long of a break. Hurricane season doesn't end until November 30. And there's still that lava flow headed to Pahoa.

     I'm only in my second market as a young reporter, but I've already had great guidance and grown both professionally and personally from the two bosses I've had. I'm not sure many people in other industries can say that. Who knows? Maybe even other people in this industry can't say that. But the great experiences I've had with my news directors inspired me to write about the dynamic between them and the people they manage - people like me, who are still trying to soak up as much about local broadcast news in between chasing stories.

    Come to think of it, that's where most of most of a news director's influence probably comes - not necessarily in a sit-down, one-on-one meeting at the station, but over the phone or though text messages when a reporter is out in the field. Every single time I've run into a road-block on a story, my news director, Scott Howard, has steered me in the right direction, or told me to take a different road altogether. He's even picked me up on the side of the road once or twice.

Scott Howard Chico news director praised by staff for caring ways

  On a related note, Mr. Howard is like the brain trust of the news station. He knows everything about everything -- politics, the real estate market, how law enforcement operates, how the University operates (he's an alumni), everywhere -- Chico, the North State, and California. And it's now my personal opinion that if you know these places, you pretty much have America figured out. I remember my first day here and was expected to turn a package (and front it) on California's water wars. The thought of learning the extensive history, pretending to know what I was talking about with Congressman John Garamendi, and then talking about it on live TV was intimidating, but he guided me through the process. And if my memory serves me right, I believe that included Scott drawing a diagram of where the "tunnels" would go. I do remember one time when Scott coached me "at" the office when I worked on a story in-house. I had to dissect a Butte County grand jury report that revealed a lot about the state of Chico's ugly financial situation and the extensive backstory of how it had gotten there. We went through it page by page, and highlighted paragraphs we found worthy of being included in my minute and a half long story.

    Mr. Howard has also had my back on stories. And that's maybe the quality I value most in whomever manages me, because given what we do, I believe they're also supposed to defend us. He's defended me on multiple stories, one which I wrote about already in OffCam, when I was chewed out by a PR woman representing one side in a tense, heated tribal dispute at a Corning casino. More recently, however, a Chico State professor blasted us for my story on a small, local health clinic that was closing its doors because of what they said were the negative effects of Obamacare. But eventually, through e-mail responses from Scott and myself, the professor came around and realized he jumped the gun in criticizing us the way he did.

    At the risk of sounding cheesy, I look at a news director as a rock, someone that shows leadership by sticking up for the reporters they oversee, day in and day out. Because without that kind of leadership, we'll feel that we're fish in the water, thrown to the fire, left high and dry... the list goes on. But I certainly have never felt that way working at Action News Now with Scott Howard.

      Talia Samelian, last year's Steve Davis Memorial Scholarship recipient, spent little time getting her career off the ground. 

      In the last year since receiving her award, she has contacted 70 news directors, as Miss Emmy during this year's Award Gala she handed out Emmys onstage to recipients, celebrated her second year as an assignment editor at KPIX CBS5, and finished her degree in the Broadcast and Electronic Communication Arts (BECA) program at San Francisco State University (SFSU). 

      Since graduation she set upon a 12-state, 30-station blitz, from Southern California to Florida. The short week and a half resulted with several job offers. She chose the NBC affiliate in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, WVLA. Today she is a reporter, each day filing a package and three VOSOTs before each day is through. Samelian says: "It's nuts, it's exciting, and the day just flies by."

Talia Samelian Scholarship recipient lands first reporting job

      The $3,000 scholarship prize directly helped her realize her career goals. Besides helping to pay for gas to cross the country by car, she purchased programs like Adobe Premiere, made dozens of audition CDs, and created her professional website: "The Scholarship helped me to do real world things to get a job and not just send out paper resumes." Samelian adds: "The scholarship was monumental. It opened an opportunity and provided money to let me do the things I needed to do to start my career."

     The Steve Davis Scholarship followed the excellent broadcast education she received from the SFSU program:

     "The well-equipped BECA department does a fantastic job for a pro career. It gives you a real world experience on a daily basis. The professors are always pushing you to do better. I am now on a job with a million things to do. BECA puts all the things in front of you and you take what you can."

     The BECA experience certainly prepared the energetic Samelian for her full time reporter tasks. By her fourth day on the job, she created a package on introduced it live on the air. The newest of five reporters, her week begins at 9am Monday morning pitching stories for that day. By 9:45 a.m. she is on the street speeding to her first assignment, a nearly two-minute package on dealing with local education, politics or health. She will shoot, write, and eventually edit the story for one or more of three � hour newscasts at 5, 6:30, or 10 p.m. on WVLA 33. The package could also appear on WVLA's sister station, WGBM, on their one-hour newscast at 9 p.m. Each package takes three to four hours to investigate and shoot. She interviews at least four people and then races back to the station. For the next three to four hours, Samelian will write and edit the package and do a cut-down VOSOT.  Her day is finished after she has written and edited two more unique 30-second VOSOTs.

    By the second month at WVLA, Samelian produced two feature stories for the sweeps period. Pleased with her early success, she explains the work "Really fulfills me. Reporting lets me tell stories that are important; a really unique opportunity to impact the world in a positive way."

    Samelian closely connects to one of this year's scholarship recipients. While at SFSU, she single-handedly reinstated the SFSU's College Students in Broadcasting Club (CSB) in the fall of 2013, and became its president. SBC sponsors broadcast centric events on campus, such as, studio productions and field trips to meet studio executives in Los Angeles. In this capacity she met and mentored Sherae Honeycutt, this year's recipient of the Rigo Chacon Reporting Scholarship. Samelian admired Honeycutt and saw her: "As a real go getter. I'm incredibly excited that Sherae won the scholarship. I know it'll help her achieve great things." Samelian even encouraged Honeycutt to apply for the award.

    Samelian plans to stay at WVLA for up to two years, her ambition is to be a network anchor. She guesses her next jump will be to an anchor-reporter position: "It is rare for a reporter to jump to a full-time anchor chair." Right now she wants to glean everything she can: "When I've gleaned it all I will move on to bigger things."

    Samelian suggestion to her BECA classmates and other students to: "Do not hold back and go for it with full force." She says some of her classmates seem too satisfied with being a production assistant in the Bay Area. Samelian believes it is easy to be seduced waiting for opportunity to strike while working in a low level position. San Francisco is a large market offering limited opportunity for the unseasoned. She counsels:  "Take the risk ...go out and have the experience. Learn from the bottom up."

       This month, as we honor and recognize the 2014 inductees of our Chapter's Gold & Silver Circle, I thought it was time to remember someone who was one of the first inductees of our Silver Circle, and a legendary one at that.

       Her name was Lucille Bliss (SC'90, GS''02),  and in the truest sense of the word, she was definitely a television pioneer in San Francisco. And, the San Francisco/Northern California Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences recognized her accomplishments and her 25-plus years in the industry in 1989, when she was inducted into the distinguished Silver Circle.  Lucille was also a member of the first class of Gold Circle inductees in 2002.  

       Bay Area television was still in its infancy when Bliss arrived on the scene. She performed on many local and network radio programs based out of San Francisco. Eventually, she moved to Hollywood, where she worked with Walt Disney, providing the voice for one of Cinderella's wicked stepsisters. In later years, she was featured in Tom & Jerry and Droopy cartoons.

        Lucille Theresa Bliss was born in New York City in 1916. Bliss, who died in 2012, was known for her legendary voice for most of her 96 years.

       She provided the voice of the title character on Crusader Rabbit, the first animated cartoon series produced in the pioneering days of television.

       The show debuted in October 1950, and revolved around the adventures of a plucky little rabbit and his faithful pal, "Rags the Tiger", voiced by the late Vern Louden (SC '89), and their nemesis, "Dudley Nightshade", voiced by the late Russ Coughlan (SC '86). In later years, Louden became a longtime director at KRON and KPIX; Coughlan became an anchor and the vice president and general manager of KGO-TV. 

       The five-minute Crusader Rabbit segments aired weekdays from 6:40-6:45 p.m. on NBC. Bliss, whose long career as a voiceover artist stretched from Hanna Barbera's The Flintstones in the 1960s to Nickelodeon's Invader Zim, remembers earning $5 per episode in the early years. She would record her tracks in a San Francisco studio.

       While in San Francisco, she hosted a local show, The Happy Birthday To You Show. It lasted seven years, from 1950 to 1957.

       For the next 50 years, Bliss' legendary voice was heard in such animated works as the 101 Dalmatians (1961), The Secret of NIMH (1982), Robots (2005), and throughout television.

       Bliss also entered the video game genre in the 1980s and 1990s, voicing parts for Space Quest 6, Battlestar Galactica and Stars Wars: Bounty Hunter. In 1999, for her work in 1950's Cinderella, she received the Former Child Star Lifetime Achievement Award.

       In the Bay Area, Bliss was also featured with her own shows, which were seen on KRON, KGO-TV, and KPIX. She also performed in dramatic on-camera series for KQED.

       For a much later generation, Bliss was the voice of "Smurfette", female star of the National Emmy Award-winning Smurfs cartoon series.

       Her last work - at age 91 - was when she voiced the role of "Quinby" in the animated short, Up-In-Down Town.

       At her passing four years ago, she was living in Costa Mesa, in Orange County.

       Lucille Bliss was one of the Bay Area's true television pioneers. 

Death on the Fairway

      Did you know that golf courses are the fifth most common place for people to suffer from sudden cardiac arrest (SCA). SCA is a condition in which the heart suddenly and unexpectedly stops functioning.

How to Be Prepared

     The worst-case scenario is having a cardiac event on a distant hole. On your next golf outing, it's a good idea to do the following when you schedule your tee-off time:  

• Find out if the golf course is equipped with an automated external defibrillator (AED), where it's located, who is trained to use it, and if that person is on the premises at all times. (It's best if the marshal also keeps one in the cart and can operate it.)

    A defibrillator can deliver an electric shock that can restore a normal rhythm to a heart that's stopped beating, but the sooner lifesaving treatment can begin, the chances of survival are greater. Permanent brain damage can occur after only four minutes without oxygen, and death can occur within four to six minutes after that. How fast do you think you can get help on the golf course?

• Get the clubhouse phone number and find out if they have an emergency phone number (that is, a number where you won't be put on hold in an emergency). Save these contact numbers in your phone. Each player in your group should do this.
• Stay hydrated and avoid alcohol -- especially if the weather is hot. Alcohol is a diuretic and will further deplete your body of essential fluid and electrolytes. Dehydration can affect your heart rhythm and can be a life-threatening condition.
• Be on alert if you have a history of coronary heart disease (CHD) and/or you're a man over age 45 or a woman over age 55. Men are two to three times more likely to have SCA than women.
• Be a regular exerciser -- not a weekend golf warrior. A sedentary lifestyle puts you at risk for SCA.
• Pick a partner that knows CPR!

     Karen Owoc is a cardiac rehabilitation clinical exercise physiologist and former NATAS governor. If you'd like more info on her talk, Links to Life™ - Sports Cardiology Tips for Golfers, you can reach Karen at: karen.owoc@TheHealthReporter.tv. A healthy heart usually means a healthy body. Learn how to lower your risk for heart disease and SCA while lowering your score in golf. You'll get tips on how to help keep your game in the fairway and your body in motion.

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