NewsWatch: Behind the Scenes

NewsWatch: Behind the Scenes

The University of Mississippi puts on a live, student run broadcast that airs Monday through Friday at 5:30 on Channel 99. The half hour show, News Watch, is the only local newscast for Ole Miss, Oxford, and Lafayette County. The broadcast is repeated each evening at 10 o'clock PM on Channel 99 as well.

Anna Ellingburg, a junior at Ole Miss and veteran to NewsWatch, refused to let her freshmen status stop her from joinging the NewsWatch team.

“Well, I actually came into Newswatch for my first time my freshmen year to try out, and it seemed like there were only juniors and seniors in here, and as a freshmen, I was pretty nervous. Once I got in, I realized there’s a big mixture of classmen here,” said Ellingburg.

NewsWatch provides students with hands-on experience, as well as compensation, for the anchors, sports anchors, producers, reporters, camera operators, directors, and more.

“I really think that getting involved in the SMC is really important because there are things in journalism that you can’t learn from a text book or even from a professor just talking to you. The SMC really provides that for you,” said Ellingburg.

Lindsey Neyman, producer for NewsWatch, values the experience she gains at work everyday.

“As the producer, it can get a little stressful at times. It’s a tedious job, but I love it. I would never get the experience I need for this kind of field without getting out and doing it. This isn’t preparing for the real world; it is the real world,” said Neyman.

Auditions for NewsWatch are held at the beginning of each semester in Bishop Hall in the Student Media Center. To preview past broadcasts from NewsWatch, visit http://www.youtube.com/user/NewsWatchOleMiss