IU Student Television succeeds with new format

Silence falls over the IU Student Television studio. News anchor Tia Broz looks straight into the camera and begins to read the teleprompter.\n"Mayor Mark Kruzan announced the results of a survey ..."\n"Stop!" one of her directors yells from the control room.\nSuddenly a cluster of camera operators, technicians, anchors and directors comes out of hiding to make adjustments -- bring up the lights, tighten up the camera shot, set the teleprompter to scroll a little faster. It's these small details that will make the difference in the next take. \nAs director, senior Elizabeth Howard hurries from the control room to the studio and back again and exclaims, "Happy first day!" The student volunteers all take another collective breath as she begins the countdown again.\nThis time they nail the take. \nIt is the night before the IUSTV launch on campus television channel 2. The student-run organization took over the channel Wednesday, airing programming around the clock. \n"We just changed our whole paradigm," junior Director Jesse Wallace said. \nPreviously, IUSTV aired on Community Access Television Services and the Web. In an effort to attract more viewers, IUSTV pursued the use of channel 2 on campus. In order to make the switch, technicians had to implement new fiber-optic equipment. This technology has changed the way the organization records and broadcasts the news. \n"We used to have finite newscasts," Wallace said. "This new technology allows us to put fresh news on the air all the time." \nNot only will this new system make news timelier, it will also save time for volunteers.\n"In the past, recording a newscast could last up to three hours," said junior Stacy Sawyer, a member of the studio team. "Now we'll be coming for an hour at a time to run a few headlines."\nInstead of shooting full-length, half-hour newscasts, producers are now shooting one headline at a time and editing them together to present the most up-to-date news. \n"Playing a half-hour show doesn't make sense," Wallace said. "I hope that people will tune in for reference."\nIndeed, students have already taken notice of the new layout and programming of channel 2 since the Wednesday launch. \n"I like to watch the news," sophomore Anthony Kometz said. "I also think the schedule on the sidebar is helpful."\nThe left side of the screen displays the current date and time, as well as a schedule for the IU movie channel. Advertisements run along the bottom of the screen. \nHowever, some students have criticized the format of the screen.\n"The news is good to a certain extent, but over half the screen is taken up by stuff," said sophomore Matt Mauntel.\n"It's going to appear a lot more like 'Headlines News,'" junior Brittany Terwilliger, executive news director and an Indiana Daily Student reporter said.\nIn addition to the news, IUSTV also airs several local programs, such as "Hoosier Date?" and "Cruise Control," which features some local Bloomington attractions.\n"I enjoyed watching 'Hoosier Date?' because it was funny and local," junior Nick Kimmel said. "I actually watched the whole 15-minute show."\nStudents can check out the new programming by watching IUSTV on channel 2 anywhere on the Bloomington campus. The station is also accepting ideas for shows on its Web site, www.iustv.com. \n-- Contact staff writer Greg \nIngram at rgingram@indiana.edu .