July 2008

President's Corner

Greetings all!

I am sure that most of you are still recovering from the Emmy entry process. I know I am. It’s now time to play the waiting game until nominations are announced in August. In the meantime, we have sent those entries out for judging. Chuck Emmert will have the latest on this lengthy process.

Speaking of awards, I recently had the honor of hosting a lunch with students from our chapter who were recognized for their work in our National Student Television program. It amazes me what resources the students of today have at their fingertips. Patty Emmert and Bob Adlhoch will have more on these impressive students and their work.

As you may remember from our last newsletter, we have regional representatives who are helping us serve folks outside of the Phoenix area. Our friends in Tucson held a very informative and exciting program about putting together an award winning entry. Dan Duncan will have all the highlights.

On a more serious note, it’s been almost on year since we lost four of our friends in a helicopter crash above the streets of Phoenix. Scott Bowerbank and Jim Cox from Channel 3 and Rick Krolak and Craig Smith from Channel 15 died on July 27th while covering a police pursuit. A memorial honoring these journalists is slated to be in place in a matter of weeks.
We are continuing our work to establish a scholarship to honor not only these men but anyone who has died while covering news. As we approach the one year anniversary, I urge you all to take a moment to remember our friends and their contribution to the industry. I know I speak for many when I say they continue to be missed.

Jennifer Jones
President
Rocky Mountain Southwest Chapter
NATAS

National Student Television

Throw the rope back over the fence...
I was reminded of this very simple philosophy last month while watching one of the best executed investigative pieces I’d seen in quite some time. It was during sweeps, of course, when most stations allow their special projects and investigative groups to take center stage. This particular story chronicled the ease with which teenagers could purchase alcohol online – without any proof of age. The reporter consulted the county attorney and investigator, bought a prepaid credit card at the mall, spent 10 minutes at her computer and had a bottle of vodka delivered to her door in four days. No ID check, no signature needed for the delivery. It was compelling television – only it wasn’t on TV. The reporter, camera operator and editor were high school students.

Those students were among the 2008 recipients of the Academy’s prestigious National Student Television Awards. The awards were handed out by network news vet Av Westin on behalf of the NATAS foundation at a dinner in Chicago following the Spring meeting of the board of trustees. Watching the winning pieces reminded me of the tremendous talent that resides at our local high schools and universities. And it wasn’t long ago that we were in their place.

If you are receiving this email, chances are pretty good that you have accomplished enough in your career to offer something as a mentor. I remember a guest speaker in a broadcasting class at Arizona State telling us to “remember to throw the rope back over the fence” once we had started our careers. None of us got where we are without the help of a great many people. Why not take the opportunity to offer your help to a young journalist, producer, editor, photographer? Every market in the Rocky Mountain Southwest Region has many high schools and at least one college with programs in journalism, broadcasting or video production.

The next generation of television is at our doorstep. Let’s be active in helping shape what our children will watch. You’ll be surprised how much you learn from teaching.

(footnote to this – the story I referenced can be seen on youtube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWirXx3AYh8)

Bob Adlhoch, NATAS National Trustee

Emmy Entries: The Entries are in and judging is next!

We had a record year for Emmy entries this time around – over 900 individual entries were received. This is up from last year’s count of 840, which was also a record. Goes to show there is some great work being produced in our region and people and organizations are proud of what they are doing. There were slight changes this year in the Call for Entries. First, there were a couple of new categories. This is a result of input received from you, the Chapter’s membership, as a result of the survey we conducted earlier this year. Plus we continued to offer the advanced media categories; where an Emmy is being awarded for content created primarily for non-broadcast viewing.

Our entries have been shipped to the Upper Midwest chapter for judging. All the entries will be judged by panels of peer professionals and the results returned to an accounting firm for tabulation. In turn we are judging entries from their region this year, quality work with great photography and story telling. Many of you have stepped up to serve as judging panel leaders, but we need a few more. Great categories are still available to judge, including the coveted “Feature News” entries. Want to help? Contact Vic Narayan at VNarayan@abc15.com or Chuck Emmert at chuck.emmert@phoenix.gov to find out the details.

The nominations will be announced on August 26th - stay tuned for the locations and times for we are coordinating hosted events in all our major cities within our region. The Emmy Awards Event is scheduled for October 4th and we have an exciting evening planned, so mark your calendars!
Details will continue to be posted on the website and via email notices. Good Luck and hope to see you at the Emmy event this year.

Chuck Emmert, Awards Chairman

NATAS Happenings in Tucson, AZ

On May 21st NATAS hosted a gathering for media professionals at
Bianchi's Italian Pizza Place in Tucson. A panel of recent Emmy a ward
recipients provided ideas on what judges look for in an entry. Video
samples from past winners were shown to launch discussions. Patty
Emmert graciously made the trip down from the Phoenix office to update
attendees on some of the new categories and to field questions on who,
what, when, where and how to submit an entry. Attendees included
media professionals from Channels 4, 6, 9, 12 and 13.


PHIL ANAYA is spending the summer working at KMSB-TV in Tucson. Phil
will be a senior majoring in Broadcast Journalism at New Mexico State
University in the fall. He's a recipient of a major scholarship from
the National Association of Broadcasters Educational Fund for his senior
year - but there was a string attached. He was required to work in the
business this summer to get the check this fall. Dr. Sean McCleneghan
of NMSU's Journalism department reached out to KMSB Managing Editor
Bob Richardson, sang Phil's praises and asked to see if something could be
arranged. KMSB's owner, the Belo Corporation, made it happen. Phil has
been covering stories in Tucson for KMSB since late May. He has been
shooting and editing videotape, but has also reported on air. Phil has
the skills to perform many jobs in a newsroom - an attractive attribute
in a business experiencing tight budgets. It's a great opportunity for
a young person to learn skills "hands on" that he can take back to
school in the fall as he prepares for a career in the business. Phil
will be with KMSB until mid-August.

New Partnership/Sponsorship Opportunities Available!

Know anyone with an itch to get their message out to all the media folks in the region? If so, send them our way! After months of hard work (thanks Brad and Patty!), NATAS is proud to announce a number of fabulous new and improved partnership and sponsorship packages available.

Our new partnership packages are meant to give potential sponsors an endless array of both traditional opportunities, such as Emmy table sponsorships, and out-of-the-box ideas.

As valued members of the community, we encourage all NATAS members to reach out to their own business partners – and even friends and family – to see if NATAS is a fit for them and their marketing needs.

For more information, or to recommend a potential new partner, please contact Patty Emmert at aznatas@qwest.net.

National News BOB SCHIEFFER, KEN BURNS, AND TIM RUSSERT TO RECEIVE LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT HONORS AT THE NEWS & DOCUMENTARY EMMY® AWARDS, SEPT 22

New York, N.Y. – July 22, 2008 – CBS News Chief Washington Correspondent Bob Schieffer, PBS documentarian Ken Burns, and former NBC News Washington Bureau Chief and Host of “Meet The Press” Tim Russert will receive Lifetime Achievement honors at the 29th Annual News and Documentary Emmy® Awards, to be held on September 22 at Frederick P. Rose Hall, Home of Jazz at Lincoln Center, in New York City.

"Bob Schieffer has given CBS News more than 30 years of high quality reporting and anchoring and has won the admiration of both his fellow professionals and the American public," said Bill Small, Chairman of the News and Documentary Awards. "He is a role model for any aspiring journalist. As for Ken Burns, he has for many years set the standard for the very best in long form documentaries in a wide range of subject matter, from the Civil War to baseball to Mark Twain to jazz. It is a record of the highest quality in documentary production and without question many of the very best broadcasts on PBS bear his skilled production touch."

“I am especially pleased that we are paying tribute to Tim Russert,” said Peter Price, President and CEO of NATAS. “Tim was the supreme example of a dedicated newsman, admired by his host of friends at NBC and elsewhere for his work ethic, his dedication to first class journalism, and his love of family. He was truly special.”

Bob Schieffer has covered every important beat in Washington, including the White House, the Pentagon and Congress. He has won six Emmy awards, two Sigma Delta Chi awards, and the Radio-Television News Directors’ top honor, the Paul White Award. He has anchored “Face the Nation” since 1991 and wrote a book about it, "Face the Nation: My Favorite Stories from the First 50 Years of the Award-Winning News Broadcast." He is also the author of the much acclaimed "This Just In: What I Couldn't Tell You On TV."

In his thirty years as a documentary filmmaker, Ken Burns has produced over 20 films, among them some of the most accomplished historical documentaries of our time. He is perhaps best known for his 1990 film “The Civil War”, the highest rated series in the history of Public Television. Other important films include “Baseball”, an 18-hour documentary on the history of America’s national pastime; “Jazz”, a ten-part film that explores the roots and evolution of this quintessentially American art form; and most recently, the seven-part documentary about World War II, “The War”, which uses the personal accounts of men and women from around the United States to explore the human dimension of one of the most momentous events in recent world history.

Ken Burns’ films have won dozens of major awards, including seven Emmys, two duPont-Columbia Awards, and three Peabodies. In 2002, “Real Screen Magazine” named him one of the two most influential filmmakers of all time.

Tim Russert joined NBC News in 1984; the beginning of a 24 year run that brought him national acclaim and the admiration of his colleagues at NBC and elsewhere. It also gave American television viewers a tenacious interviewer famous for confronting the mighty with statements they once made and might now regret. From 1991 until his death this in June of 2008 he moderated “Meet the Press”, America’s most-watched Sunday morning interview program. Surviving a Tim Russert interrogation was considered an essential challenge for many an aspiring national politician, what Newsweek correspondent Howard Fineman coined “the Tim Russet test.”

Russert also anchored a weekly interview show on CNBC, “The Tim Russert Show”, and served as Senior Vice-President and Washington Bureau Chief of NBC News. Russert authored two best-selling books—“Big Russ and Me” (2004) and “Wisdom of Our Fathers” (2006), and received numerous honors over the course of his career.

In addition to the Lifetime Achievement Award, Emmy® Awards to be given out that evening, there be will be Emmy® Awards presented in 33 categories including Breaking News, Investigative Reporting, Outstanding Interview, and Best Documentary, among others.

Sponsors for the 29th Annual News & Documentary Emmy® Awards include Grass Valley, a Thomson company, and Television Week.


For Contact info:

Paul Pillitteri, Director, Communicaitons
ppillitteri@emmyonline.tv
212-586-8424

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