JESSICA VAUGHN
Staff Writer
In fall 2005, the Center of Communications and Business (CCB) began the process of adding a two-room TV studio in the Student Publications area on the ground floor.
The 17 x 12 foot space for the studio and control room is still in its final stages of construction even now, well into the spring semester. However, plans for completion are steadily approaching.
According to Rod Leard, project manager for the TV studio construction, the job began on Nov. 18 but will not be complete until the latter part of February.
“While the visible construction is substantially complete, the project will not be complete until equipment is installed and electrical lines are connected,” Leard said.
State-of-the-art equipment, including cameras, lighting and audio, will be set up in the studio, allowing for TV interviews and broadcasts to be made from Pepperdine.
The university, however, did not release total costs of the project.
Although students will not be the primary users of the studio, it was created with students in mind, according to Jerry Derloshon of University Public Relations.
The main users of the live-feed studio will be faculty but, according to Derloshon, the use of the studio will connect the university to people worldwide, ultimately moving Pepperdine into the public eye.
Even with this goal in mind, actual on-air time is undefined.
“To start out with, weekly use might be expected but once we get going, perhaps usage will go to daily and even multiple times per day,” Derloshon said.
Students will also get a personal benefit from the studio as well, according to Derloshon.
“Communication students and interns can work in the Public Relations and News office of Pepperdine and they will gain valuable hands-on experience in coordinating, arranging and helping with the efficient running of the studio,” Derloshon said.
Despite university hopes, some students see the new studio as more of an “inconvenience” than anything.
Senior Mike Mirliss, a student worker in the journalism office in Student Publications, also has doubts about the studio and its value to the university.
“The studio takes up space in the office and will increase traffic through the area,” he said. “I do not really care that it is there, but it will take getting used to.”
02-09-2006