The 43rd Annual San Francisco/Northern California Area Emmy� Awards gave more away than just hundreds of glittery Emmy� statuettes at the Awards Gala in San Francisco on June 14.

       Six very special honors of recognition were bestowed upon six distinguished individuals within our Chapter. 

       Longtime Bay Area television reporter Rita Williams, who retired from KTVU Channel 2 in 2013 after 41 years, broke barriers for women in TV news, setting a high bar of excellence for all journalists. This year, she was honored with the Chapter's most prestigious recognition, the Governors' Award.

       Throughout her career of daily on-air reporting, Williams chose not to leave the streets for an anchor position. She loved reporting, saying it was a privilege and an honor to tell people's stories and to be the eyes and ears of the public.

      Williams broke many stories and had many exclusives. One of her first, in 1978 when she was at KQED, was the only interview ever given by the wife of San Francisco City Hall assassin, Dan White, who assassinated Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk in City Hall in November 1978.

      She exclusively interviewed the man believed to the elusive Zodiac killer before his death. Williams was first nationally to break the story of Barry Bonds' indictment. She also did many of KTVU's political reports, from San Francisco City Hall to national political conventions to Presidential campaigns.

      The Board of Governors' Citation is awarded in recognition of outstanding and unique achievements or accomplishments. Few people have made such a strong impact on our chapter as Activities/Program Chair, Trustee and Sacramento Vice-President Cynthia Zeiden.

      Over the years, Zeiden has produced hundreds of NATAS events in many regions. In 2012, she began webcasting and archiving them so members in every region could participate.

Board of Governors and Officers Celebrate Colleagues  From left to right: Richard Harmelink, Kim Stephens, Patty Zubov, Julie Watts, Cynthia Zeiden, Keith Sanders, Karen Sutton, Kym McNicholas, Kevin Wing. Zeiden received the Governors' Citation; Harmelink, Zubov, Watts and McNicholas were honored with the Governors' Service Medallion.

      After serving just one term as NATAS governor, she was elected Chapter president in 1998. Zeiden's desire to plan that next event, her drive to forge new partnerships, and her enthusiasm to use innovative technology has made her invaluable to NATAS, both locally and nationally. 

      Richard Harmelink serves on the Executive Committee as Fresno Vice-President. He has helped shape the Board over the past several years more than any other person, as Chair of the Governor Nominating Committee and Chair of the Officer Nominating Committee.

      Kym McNicholas is a former officer and a key fundraiser in the Emmy� Event Committee.  She now serves as Membership Chair and has pushed to increase member perks using her strong ties to the business community.

      Julie Watts serves as Awards Chair and was the Executive Producer of the Emmy� Awards Show.  Her innovations have quickened the pace of the show and increased sponsorship opportunities which are crucial to the financial solvency of the Chapter.

      Patty Zubov serves as Marketing Chair and oversees the Off Camera newsletter, the Social Media Subcommittee, and the emmysf.tv Website.  She is also on the Events Committee, contributing to the success of the Emmy� Awards Gala.

     Oakland's KTVU Channel 2 will have a new owner for the first time in 51 years.

     Late last month, a media deal was struck between Fox Television Stations and Cox Media Group, with Fox acquiring Fox affiliate KTVU Channel 2. Since 1963, Cox Media Group, of Atlanta, has owned the station.

     The San Francisco 49ers presence in the NFC is a key part of the deal for Fox.

     KTVU and its sister station KICU TV36 are both owned by Cox Media Group.

     KTVU's popular slogan "There's Only One 2," evokes memories and the long history of Channel 2 in the Bay Area.

     Channel 2 signed on in March 1958 as the Bay Area's first independent station. It has come a long way from the early years, when it had no network affiliation and had to pay the bills by airing movies and reruns, children's programs such as Charley and Humphrey, and live action sports such as roller derby and wrestling.

    The station became one of the very first partners to join the startup network Fox back in 1987.

    The KTVU VP/General Manager at the time, Kevin O'Brien, later said, "When we were approached by Fox, it made sense to me to give it a try."

    Now, the prime-time programming looks different with the 49ers, and big hits such as American Idol and 24. That programming won't change with the change of ownership.

Longtime KTVU news anchor Dennis Richmond, who spent 40 years with the station said last month that the station's affiliation with Fox opened doors to national resources for KTVU's newsroom.

    "I still firmly believe that the affiliation with Fox was a good one," Richmond said. "I think KTVU, in general, helped Fox because we had a great reputation in the Bay Area."

    Most viewers probably didn't know much about KTVU's owner for the past 51 years, family-run Cox Media Group based in Atlanta.

    "I would like to recognize and thank the outstanding teams at KTVU and KICU,
said Bill Hoffman, CMG president. We are proud of the work they have done over the decades to super-serve the San Francisco Bay community with award-winning broadcasting."

    Jack Abernethy, chief executive officer of Fox Television Stations said, "The addition of KTVU and KICU provides us with a compelling growth opportunity in a top-10 market. Our stations group will benefit from both the strong demographics of the bay area market as well as the alignment with our package of sports rights."

    "The Bay Area is one of the biggest and most prosperous markets in the country," noted Alan Mutter, a media expert and adjunct faculty member at the UC Berkeley School of Journalism.

    Mutter says sports rights, central to the KTVU deal, are increasingly important to the television business because sporting events still aggregate a large audience that is becoming increasingly fractured by alternate media channels.

    "Nothing is bigger than a 49ers game," Mutter told KTVU, "Because Fox owns the broadcasting rights, the (network) has a real interest in trying to own the station that broadcasts it. So it's an auspicious moment for Fox."

    The acquisition is a no cash deal. Fox will acquire KTVU and KICU. In exchange, Cox will take ownership of the Fox stations in Boston and Memphis.

    The deal won't be completed until it goes through regulatory approval.

      Fox Television and Cox Media Group announced last month that KTVU, one of the original charter stations of Fox when it launched as the nation's "fourth network" in 1986, would be swapped along with sister-station KICU (Channel 36) in exchange for Fox-owned stations in Boston (WFXT, Channel 25) and Memphis (WHBQ, Channel 13).

     The swap will give Fox control of an affiliate and an independent station in the San Francisco Bay Area, the sixth-largest television market in the country, while Cox will gain two Fox affiliates in Boston and Memphis, the seventh and 50th-largest television markets.

     Raponi is an 18-year veteran with Cox Media Group, joining KTVU sister-station KICU in 2001 and later being promoted to the role of general manager and vice president of both stations, a title he has held for the past three years. 

     Kelley has been general manager of WFXT since 1998. Under his watch, the station competed heavily against newsrooms owned by CBS and Hearst Television. 

     Recently, WFXT expanded their newscasts to include a longer morning program and a new evening show on the weekend. 

     Raponi and Kelley are expected to stay at their current stations until the station swap between Fox and Cox is finalized.

By Steve Shlisky

Chapter Education Chairperson 

      In May, the San Francisco/Northern California Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences honored excellence in high school video production. 

     Entries were submitted by the media programs of high schools' media programs within the Chapter's region -- from Visalia to the Oregon border, including Reno, Nevada, and Hawaii -- for work performed during the 2013-14 school year.  

Chapter Education Chairperson Steve Shlisky, third from left, awarding students in Oakland May 29.

     The "Award for Excellence," an engraved glass pillar, was presented to the school while each production student received a certificate.  

     For the "Award for Merit" each student receives a certificate.

     Five Pillars for Excellence and 20 Certificates for Merit were awarded.  

     The Academy of Integrated Humanities and New Media, Tamalpais High School, Mill Valley received a total of eight awards; Searider Productions, Waianae High School, Waianae, HI, seven awards; Two awards went to Franklin High School, Elk Grove.  Single recipients included: Abraham Lincoln High School, San Jose; California High School, San Ramon, Hawaii Student Television, Honolulu, Maui High School, Kahului, HI; Media Enterprise Alliance at KDOL-TV, Oakland Unified School District; Eye of the Tiger, Roseville High School, Roseville; Sierra High School, Prather; and K9 Studios, Sheldon High School, Sacramento.

Mark Pearson, left, Chapter Legal/Bylaws Chairperson, presents honors to students May 16 in Kahului, Hawaii.

    The local chapter welcomes a few new schools participating this year.  Entry submissions were up more than 25% from last year. Judges were treated to many excellent videos, many superior to previous years.

    Six Education Committee members -- Kym McNicholas, Mark Pearson, Steve Shlisky, David Waxman, Kevin Wing, Pamela Young -- personally appeared at six high schools throughout the Chapter to present the awards. 

Students in Waianae, Hawaii, after receiving their honors in May by Chapter Regional Vice President-Hawaii, Pamela Young (not pictured).

"Despite our geographic isolation, the Hawaii students are excelling, thanks to

Kym McNicholas, Chapter Membership Chairperson (fourth from left), presenting awards to students in Elk Grove in May.

incredibly supportive instructors like John Allen III and Candy Suiso," Young says. The students are from an area considered disadvantaged, but they are passionate about the visual arts and extraordinarily talented.  They have something to say and are using this medium in which to say it."

    The complete list of recipients follows:

Newscast

    Award of Excellence:  Searider Productions, Wai'anae High School, Wai'anae, HI.  "Searider News," Shayla Ader, Kahunui Foster, Producers; Marcela Bator, Charlemaine Blue, Shayla Bradley, Crystal Cebedo,  Jesa Delos-Reyes, Gary Domingo-Oka, Thomas Dupa, Tressa Hoppe, Kertsye Kau, Raeanna Labrador, Keani Malo, Kayla Manuel, Abreen Padaken, Monique Paogofie, Diamond Tuisano, News Staff; John Allen III, Advisor.

    Award of Merit:  Eye of the Tiger, Roseville High School, Roseville.  "TigerCast News," Daniel Wetter, News Director; Evan Stepper, Executive Producer; Jacob Darby, Jake Kellar, Producers; Austin Daly, Celine Nunally, Producer/Reporters; Sierra Hernandez, Iman Richmond, Reporters; Ben Judd, Meghan Julin, Anchors; Rachel Kistler, Kiann Epan, Editors; Megan Blumm, Technical Director; Bobby Ritter, Adviser. 

Serious News 

    Award of Excellence:  Searider Productions, Wai'anae High School, Wai'anae, HI.  "What's the Catch?," Crystal Cebedo, Reporter; Mahealani Nieto Lopes, Photographer;Shayla Ader, Editor; Kahunui Foster, Writer; John Allen III, Advisor.

    Award of Merit:  Maui High School, Kahului, HI.  "Hawaii:  The 15th State," Michelle Gima, Reporter/Writer; Tristan Pascual, Camera; Victoria Gaxiola, Giel Tolentino, Camera/Editors; Clint Gima, Advisor. 

Light News

    Award of Merit:  Searider Productions, Wai'anae High School, Wai'anae, HI. 

"Home Grown Eggs-ellence," Kahunui Foster, Reporter; Shayla Ader, Photographer; John Allen III, Advisor. 

Arts and Entertainment/Cultural Affairs

    Award of Merit:  Searider Productions, Wai'anae High School, Wai'anae, HI.  "Rising Son," Austin Kaulia, Producer; Keanu Lyau-Goodwin, Director; Gary Domingo-Oka, Head Photographer/Editor; William Domen, Writer; Sheaven Delima, Grip; John Allen III, Advisor.  

Music Video

    Award of Excellence:  Academy of Integrated Humanities and New Media, Tamalpais High School, Mill Valley "Trouble Comes Running," Bennett Gates, Sean McGuinness, Garrett Miller, Filmmakers; Mike Goldstein, Sharilyn Scharf, David Taripian, Advisors. 

Long Form - Fiction

     Award of Merit:  Abraham Lincoln High School, San Jose.  "Enlazado," Connor Lonergan, Director, Writer, Actor, & Post-Production; Andrew Perez, Writer, Actor, & Post-Production;

Daniel Resz, Advisor

     Award of Merit:  Academy of Integrated Humanities and New Media, Tamalpais High School, Mill Valley "Free Range Vegetables," Sam Gates, Aiden Grahame, Gabrielle Hauzy, Mabel Herrick, Filmmakers; Mike Goldstein, Sharilyn Scharf, David Taripian, Advisors. 

     Award of Merit:  Franklin High School, Elk Grove.  "Chicken Crossing," Marissa Kong,

Giana Shibata-Bardaro, Animators; John Dennis, Voice Actor/Editor/Digital Ink & Paint; John Litzo, Voice Actor/Digital Ink & Paint; Katie Butler, Director/Animator; Brad Clark, Adviser.  

     Award of Merit:  Hawaii Student Television, Honolulu, HI.  "HIV-THE HARD WAY."  

Hawaii Student Television, Producer. Robert Olague, Advisor

     Award of Merit:  Sierra High School, Prather.  "Perfect Strangers," Rachel Zurcher, Director/editor/ cinomatographer; Kevin Schritchfield, Advisor

     Award of Merit:  Searider Productions, Wai'anae High School, Wai'anae, HI.  "Day Dreamers," Shayla Bradley, Producer/Director; Kerstye Kau, Director of Photography/Editor; Tressa Hoppe, Writer; John Allen III, Advisor. 

Long Form - Non-Fiction

    Award of Excellence:  Academy of Integrated Humanities and New Media, Tamalpais High School, Mill Valley "Herbert-NO VIDEO," April Anderson, Adrian Duann, Yoav Pantilat, Alyssa Urban, Max Bayer, Hana Dahl, Paula Venables, Filmmakers; Mike Goldstein, Sharilyn Scharf, David Taripian, Advisors. 

    Award of Merit:  Academy of Integrated Humanities and New Media, Tamalpais High School, Mill Valley, "Iron Woman," Liz Archer, Sophie Aubin-Pouliot, Katie Hawkins, Clementine Quittner, Filmmakers; Mike Goldstein, Sharilyn Scharf, David Taripian, Advisors. 

    Award of Merit:  Academy of Integrated Humanities and New Media, Tamalpais High School, Mill Valley, "Straight, Curly, Kinky-NO VIDEO," Sophie Aubin-Pouliot, Jack Rogosin, Made Sandrolini, Vivienne von Welczek, Filmmakers; Mike Goldstein, Sharilyn Scharf, David Taripian, Advisors.    

    Award of Merit:  Academy of Integrated Humanities and New Media, Tamalpais High School, Mill Valley, "The Order of the Pink Bunny Ears," Isaac Cohen, Kat Hazen, Chelsey Meyer, Filmmakers; Mike Goldstein, Sharilyn Scharf, David Taripian, Advisors.   

Sports

    Award of Merit:  Searider Productions, Wai'anae High School, Wai'anae, HI.  "Heads Up," Diamond Tuisano, Reporter; Gary Domingo-Oka, Head Photographer/Editor;

Raeanna Labrador, Photographer; Courtney Aboy, Writer; John Allen III, Advisor. 

Public Affairs/Community Service

    Award of Merit:  Academy of Integrated Humanities and New Media, Tamalpais High School, Mill Valley, "Priced Out," Yasmine Bakhtiari, Jack Brown, Claire Talkoff, Erika Witt, Filmmakers; Mike Goldstein, Sharilyn Scharf, David Taripian, Advisors. 

    Award of Merit:  California High School, San Ramon.  "Every 15 Minutes: California High School," Jacques Descoust, Director; Jenna Ray, Advisor.  

    Award of Merit:  Searider Productions, Wai'anae High School, Wai'anae, HI.  "Think College," Shayla Bradley, Producer; Kerstye Kau, Director; Tressa Hoppe, Writer; John Allen III, Advisor.  

Animation/Graphics/Special Effects

    Award of Merit:  Franklin High School, Elk Gove.  "The Quest,"  Thomas Vang, Writer/Animator/Editor; Brad Clark, Advisor.  

    Award of Merit:  Media Enterprise Alliance, KDOL-TV, Met West High School, Oakland. "OUSD Community Schools," Malachi Segers, Animator-Editor-Voice Over; Mori Wexler, Animator-Editor-Music; Kaila Blake, Guayo Cartegena, Autumn Criss, Jeffrey Flores, Gilberto Hernandez, Damari Lawrence, Nancy Tafoya, Animator-Editors; Nick Sazani, Jake Schoneker, Advisors.

    Award of Merit:  K9 Studios, Sheldon High School, Sacramento. "Super Commute,"

Heather Fletcher, Producer; Matt Klein, Director; Lauren Morgan, Director/Story;

Kyle Spencer, Animator/Story; Kate Allen, Lead Animator; Caccis Cancilla, Animators; Paris Draper, Animator/Story; Long Nguyen, Editor; Jared Harvey, Director of Backgrounds; Daniel Hargrove, Director of Sound Design; Andrew Dang, Sound Engineer; Shawn Sullivan, Advisor.

Gold & Silver Circle Profiles returns in the August issue of Off Camera. 

Do You Need Enhanced Water?

     In a day's work, your body loses about 8-12 cups of water... and all of that fluid needs to go back in. Water not only quenches your thirst, it's vital for your organs to function. It's needed for digestion, to carry nutrients and oxygen, control blood pressure, and to even lubricate joints. Without enough water, skin, the largest organ in the body, can become dry and wrinkled. Beverage companies know this and continue to tinker with ways to sell water.

    Some companies have added vitamins and/or caffeine to water with the latest innovation in replenishment being "liquid water enhancers". These concentrated flavors come in tiny, two-inch squeeze bottles, but beware. 

    You need to look beyond the trendy hype and know what you're drinking. Water is essential and drinking it plain and pure is good for you. But when water contains chemical additives, such as artificial colorants (which are derived from petroleum), preservatives, and artificial sweeteners, nature's most important nutrient becomes a manufactured product that's not so nutritious.

    Vitamin Water  

    If you're eating a balanced diet, you likely won't benefit from water enhanced with vitamins and electrolytes, such as sodium and potassium. In excess, the water-soluble vitamins added to these waters (vitamins B and C) will be excreted through your urine. If you're already taking a vitamin supplement or eating fortified foods, adding vitamin-enhanced water could increase your risk of vitamin toxicity. 

    Unless you are exercising for long periods of time (e.g., two hours of biking or running) and in extreme heat, you don't need the added electrolytes. The best fluid replacement for casual exercisers is water. If you tend to perspire a lot, weigh yourself before and after your workout. For every pound of weight you lose, you need to drink 16-24 ounces of water.

    Liquid Water Enhancers  

    These additives are flavored drops that you add to your water. The caffeinated liquid water enhancers contain 24 servings per bottle with a total caffeine content of 1440 mg. If not used as directed, such as squirted directly into your mouth in shot form, you can consume a highly concentrated dose of caffeine (as much as five times the recommended daily limit) that can increase your heart rate and blood pressure as well as lead to nervousness.

   Healthy Ways to Drink Water   

   Consider these water options instead of manufactured enhanced water:

• Fresh fruit-infused water - Steep fresh fruits, veggies, and/or herbs with water until the flavors fuse together.
• Seltzer juice (seltzer is a sodium-free carbonated water) - Add a splash of antioxidant-rich 100% Concord grape juice to seltzer water.
• Frozen fruit water - Add some frozen berries, cherries, pineapple or mango chunks to your water. When the fruit thaws, you end up with cool water with fresh fruit flavor.
• Herb or fruit ice cubes - Add fresh herbs to water and freeze them into ice cubes. Add a few cubes (along with frozen bits of fruit) to your water bottle for a refreshing, flavorful drink.
• Citrus water - Add some fresh lemon, lime, orange, or grapefruit slices to your water to add some zing to icy H2O.

Former TV Traffic Reporter Flying Around The World  Amelia Earhart (her real name) left Oakland International Airport June 26, beginning a 17-day global flight. At 31, she is hoping to become the youngest woman to fly around the world in a single-engine plane.

   The 24,300-mile journey started in Oakland on June 26 and will take 17 days to complete. The 1930s Earhart also began her global flight from the tiny airstrip that one day would become today's Oakland International Airport. When the present-day Earhart completes the trip, she will be the youngest woman to fly around the world in a single-engine plane (a Pilatus PC-12NG aircraft). She began flying when she was 21. 

     "The reliability of a single-engine aircraft today in 2014 is vastly different than it was back in the 1930s," Earhart says. "So, while there is still a component of adventure with any flight over water, I felt most connected to the Pilatus. The cockpit is absolutely state-of-the-art. We've got synthetic vision, we've got dual GPS."

Amelia Earhart She is believed to have perished in 1937 after her plane vanished during her around the world flight.

    Today's Amelia Earhart is flying with a co-pilot. Still, she's trying to keep things as true to the original trip as possible.

    "Absolutely no auto-pilot issues," her latest tweet reads. "We hand-flew the aircraft to experience the type of flying Amelia was doing." 

    "By recreating and symbolically completing her flight around the world, I hope to develop an even deeper connection to my namesake and also encourage the world to pursue their own adventures," Earhart explains on her site. 

    Earhart has also started a foundation, called the Fly With Amelia Foundation, to inspire young girls to take to the sky. The foundation provides scholarships for high school girls to attend flight school.

    Track Earhart's flight on her site, The Amelia Earhart Project.