A revamped newscast for UTA broadcast journalism students
Growing up, Linda Barry would create and present her own newscasts for her parents and family.
Now as a broadcast journalism senior at The University of Texas at Arlington, Barry said her classwork in her final semester reflects not only how professional journalists are operating during the COVID-19 pandemic, but also how UTA has adapted its teaching and learning.
In a typical semester, UTA broadcast journalism and television reporting students produce newscasts on campus in studio, covering stories about UT Arlington. This semester, of course, is different.
Working remotely with broadcasting students spread out across the Dallas-Fort Worth region, faculty members in the Department of Communication decided to have students focus on stories based on their geographic locations.
“Other professional journalists are also going through the same thing and working the same way we are,” Barry said. “In the field, you have to be able to use the resources you have and make the best out of a bad situation.”
UTA’s broadcasting students, like their professional counterparts, are reporting from their own living rooms and home offices, gathering information remotely without losing accuracy.
“Our idea this semester was for students to focus on hyperlocal content, to go into their unique neighborhoods and find community partners that they could tell a story about,” said Andrew Clark, associate professor of communication. “Our main concern was staying true to the intention of the class and providing our UTA students with the experiences they need while still working at a distance.”
UTA News, a weekly, student-produced broadcast, has covered a variety of stories this semester, from local election results to COVID-19. UTA faculty strive to teach students how to navigate an ever-evolving profession while reminding them of journalism’s key role in a democratic society.
“We talk about the principles of fairness in the news and being objective in how you do it, getting students to think about whom they are talking to and what they bring to the story, along with how to provide other perspectives,” Clark said. “I want to still impart on the students a love for doing this and for them to thrive.”
Iara Roberto, an international student from Argentina double-majoring in broadcast journalism and Spanish for global competence, says she is grateful for dedicated professors.
“I believe in what journalism stands for,” she said. “Stories that are compelling and heartwarming are rewarding to work on personally and important to share with people in our local communities."
As Barry looks toward her future, seeking to become a news producer after graduating this month, she said she thinks back to her first UTA newscast and the positive feedback she received from her professors.
“I was so nervous; it felt like a big responsibility,” she said. “But even in the virtual setting, our professors would take the time to do one-on-one mentoring, making sure my work was the best it could be. I could not have picked a better school than UT Arlington. My time here has been so supportive and encouraging.”