Students in FAMU’s division of journalism are doing something they have never done before – airing the same show, at the same time via WANM 90.5 and FAMU TV-20.
“Red, White and You: Take it to the Polls,” which airs tonight at 9 p.m. is a program intended to inform students and the community about the electoral college voting process, voter registration drives and how to get to the polls.
Other topics that will be covered in the broadcast include a segment titled, “A look back at 2000: How far have we come?” and “The Black Vote,” an interview with Rev. Jesse Jackson.
“I am very excited to interview Mr. Jackson. I am not nervous in the least,” said Ron Jones, 22, a senior broadcast student from Upper Marlboro, Md. “I prepared for the interview the same way I prepared to interview anyone else,” Jones said.
Courtney Culmer, producer of “Red, White and You,” also expressed her anticipation for the show to air.
“I am very happy with the way the show has turned out,” said Culmer, 20, a senior broadcast student from Houston.
“When professor Kim Godwin came to my advanced T.V. news class with the idea to broadcast a program on 90.5 and FAMU TV-20, I knew this would be something that I would love to produce because I liked the idea for it and the direction it could go.”
Culmer, who was primarily responsible for bringing Jackson to FAMU TV-20, said bringing the high-profile political mogul to the campus’ studio was strictly a matter of networking.
“I just used my resources,” Culmer said. “Networking is key.”
Jones and Culmer are not the only people impressed with the students’ efforts for the show.
Faculty and staff are impressed with the quality that has gone into the taping and production.
Broadcast professor Ernest Jones, said the program is quite unique because students usually want to do something entertaining.
“This is the first time that students have done something like this as it relates to politics,” Jones said. “What’s really interesting about this is that this project started out as a class assignment, but the students have turned it in to so much more.”
The program gained so much weight that both campus broadcast media are interrupting their regularly scheduled programs for the show.
“I think it’s important for young people to pay attention to this election…even if it means interrupting other programs to do it,” said 90.5 Program Director Gregg Bishop. “Any way that we can get the politicians to take the young vote seriously, we will do it. It’s so cool that FAMU is getting involved with this effort.
This will be a ground-breaking event for the school of journalism.”
Contact Michelle Russ at mlruss@yahoo.com.