Oswego State is the proud home of WTOP-10 TV, a TV station run completely by over 200 students. WTOP-10 features weather reports, nightly news, fashion talk shows, live sports coverage and a large variety of specials that are directed toward college students.
The digital TV studio, located in Marano Campus Center, was a donation from alumnus Al Roker in 2007. The studio was renovated to include upgrades such as green screen technology, microphones and state-of-the-art camera equipment, all in high definition.
WTOP-10 is led by the executive board and managers, who all work to make sure each show runs smoothly with the goal of giving each contributing member of the broadcast the best experience possible. Each position within the station mimics those within the real world. This provides great experience for future careers in broadcasting.
Anthony Russo is a senior at Oswego State and holds the position of executive producer of WTOP-10.
“WTOP-10 is not just for broadcasting majors,” Russo said. “Anyone is welcome to play a role in the process of executing the show. There is always room for new WTOP members.”
Management, production, human resources, operations, creative services, engineering/technology and finance are all departments found within the production of the show. Thirty-two leadership positions exist within these departments and are up for grabs at the end of each school year.
The live nightly news segment runs Mondays through Thursdays at 9 p.m. The segment highlights news on local, state and national levels. The news is geared toward the interests of the college and Oswego community, informing and educating viewers about the world around them.
“A major goal of the news is for college students to discover how national issues affect them on a daily basis,” Russo said.
The nightly news includes a weather report of the next day and the rest of the week presented by students interested in meteorology. With snowy days quickly approaching, this segment will be extremely helpful to students wondering how much to bundle up for classes.
A sports segment is included in the nightly news and focuses on local, state and national games. This also includes the standings of teams and announcements of upcoming games. Oswego State hockey and basketball games are a main focus of this segment and are always displayed live when they occur.
The pre-production process is full of script writing, rehearsing and rendering of images and audio. A team of 10 to 12 people are behind various computer screens during each show, making sure the broadcast is running smoothly. Each segment has to be perfectly timed out in order for the show to maintain a 30-minute runtime.
Students love the production process of WTOP, but also love being a part of such a close team. The station brings students of all majors, backgrounds and personalities together, all with the common interest of bringing a show to life.
“My favorite part of being involved in WTOP is definitely the lifelong friendships I have made. Holding a leadership position in the club has enabled me to meet so many amazing people, and I will miss it so much after graduation,” Russo said.
Everyone has access to tune into WTOP. The WTOP-10 website provides live shows and links to previous shows. The WTOP-10 Facebook page is another way of watching, and the shows are always on TVs (Channel 10.2) throughout the Oswego State campus.
Sign-ups for the club can be found on the WTOP-10 website.
Photo provided by Joshua Holfoth
