Since partnering with American University this past summer, College Sports Television (CSTV) has helped promote the university's athletic programs through a series of student-run broadcasts on the school's athletic Web site.
Visitors to the revamped Web site, www.aueagles.com, will have noticed changes this semester in conjunction with the partnership, including the newly-installed EAGLEVISION, which features live-game telecasts, post-game commentary and other weekly features on AU sports teams and athletes.
Though the EAGLEVISION broadcast is owned and aired by CSTV and AU Athletics, the broadcast itself is overseen and created by AU students. The idea behind the broadcast is twofold: to promote AU's athletic teams by reaching out to fans and keeping them informed, and also to get students involved in the process of creating the broadcasts.
"It's a way to not just sit at the game, but to see what goes on behind the cameras and how a sports broadcast works."
After creating the idea of a student-run broadcast, the athletic department worked quickly to put the plan into action. Matt Doolin, a senior in the School of Communication, was approached by Anthony Wilson, AU's athletic communications director, with the idea to launch the project over the summer, and was quickly on board.
"There's a lot of excitement about people getting involved with the communications side of the athletic department," Doolin said. "I think this is such great way to get students involved, whether it's kids who are athletes, people in SOC or people who just love sports. It's a way to not just sit at the game, but to see what goes on behind the cameras and how a sports broadcast works."
Doolin, a broadcast journalism major who had previously worked on the ATV show "SportsZone," has been involved with every aspect of the site's broadcast, from setting up interviews, camera angles, highlight reels and post-game commentary. Now the director of video operations for the Web site, he relies on help from fellow students to make the broadcasts successful, pointing out the value of gaining hands-on experience in a student-friendly environment.
"Hands-on experience is so important in broadcast [because it's] what allows you to learn," Doolin said. "When you listen to the pros doing it, you learn. The same idea applies here, with students around each other, hearing ideas, how to shoot the game, learning from each other."
Doolin, seniors Andrew Baumhor and Lyle Cervenka, and junior Joe Green worked tirelessly throughout the fall season to broadcast live telecasts of women's volleyball games, interview players from all fall sports for Web features and do post-game reports from men's and women's soccer, field hockey and volleyball games.
While the project started out slow, the EAGLEVISION broadcast has gained momentum, with new students joining up to assist with the winter season, including coverage of men's basketball, AU's most popular athletic team.
With the success of the broadcasts from the fall season and the growing interest in the winter season, Doolin is confident that the program will continue to be a success and promote athletics at AU, an area which has not always had the most support.
"I think the video and radio aspects [of the Web site] raise awareness about AU athletics," Doolin said. "With students getting involved, it really makes a difference"
