STUDENT VOICES
by Thomas Weaver
slide show by Bobby Bruderle '11
The university's three main student media organizations have taken a leap in visibility since the opening of the Davis Center in 2007. No longer are the Cynic and WRUV in that long, lonely basement hallway of Billings; no longer is UVMtv in exile at Coolidge Hall. Newspaper, radio, and television headquarters are linked by a Davis Center first-floor corridor, a route well traveled by students crossing campus.
While each of the media groups has its own character, they are united by more than a hallway and camaraderie. All of these students share the fundamental challenge of taking that nervy leap to put their words in print or their voices on air. For every student DJ or reporter or producer who goes on to a career in media, many more will find other paths where the professional and life lessons taught by rigid deadlines, live broadcasts, and staring down the abyss of a blank page are every bit as relevant.
CYNIC
It's getting late on a Sunday evening and Casey Manning '11 has pages to go before she sleeps. There's an apple, a banana, and a jar of Jif on her desk to get the Cynic's layout editor through the night. Sitting at the Mac across the table, art director Josh Lee '11 is concerned with an article about energy efficiency that advises readers to cover their water pipes. "I'm a student! I don't have pipes to cover!" Lee complains, wishing for something a bit more helpful for dorm dwellers. Googling forth in search of more relevant tips, Lee says, "Everybody does a little bit of everything here."
Jess Bartlett '10, the Cynic's managing editor, says this multi-tasking strength in numbers is a real comfort on the days when blank pages and looming deadlines threaten to overwhelm. "It feels like such a monumental task at the beginning of the week," she says. "But there's anywhere from 75 to 120 people working on it. That eases the burden. It's not just one person pulling it together, it's everyone." Still, fretting is part of a managing editor's job description, and Bartlett finds Fridays are the toughest if stories are coming in late for the weekly. By Sunday, though, "we're behind" has somehow morphed into "we're ahead" and with it comes the satisfying sense that another issue in the Cynic's 126-year history will hit the campus.
Bartlett says that while the rigors of pulling together a publication can be a challenge, that's also where the character of the organization is forged. "We laugh together. We get really stressed out together," she says. "I think that bond of tension during trying times really helps to unite us."
Though she wasn't necessarily interested in journalism, a general love for writing initially drew Bartlett to give the paper a try. Cycling through different roles, worker bee to leadership, is typical for those in student media. While Bartlett remembers being thrilled by her first front page byline, she's been surprised by how much she's enjoyed the mentoring aspects of being managing editor. As graduation approaches, it has her contemplating a future in teaching as much as one in media.
Will Sedlack '10, editor-in-chief of the Cynic from March 2009 to February 2010, has also seen the paper from many angles during his undergraduate years. In his latest role he's dealt with a wide range of issues–advertising to editorial to budgetary. "With the management lessons I've had here," he says, "sometimes I feel like I have the experience of a forty-five-year-old."
While Sedlack is well aware of the challenges before the newspaper industry, he qualifies, "it's not dying, it's transforming." As for the Cynic, Sedlack notes that students seem to prefer those stacks of newsprint around campus, tending to get annoyed when the staff has experimented with exclusively on-line content. "There will always be a place for a paper here," Sedlack says.
UVM TV
Compared with their cohorts at 'RUV or the Cynic, the students behind UVMtv are the new kids on the block. The television station, which runs closed-circuit on campus, completed the Davis Center-based media trio this academic year when they received long-sought deliverance from the hinterlands of the Coolidge Hall basement.
The large window of UVMtv's new studio sometimes draws a crowd of curious passers-by looking in on the programs being taped or going out live. "UVM Today," a news/talk show, is the station's core program. Also popular: "Bluesday Tuesday," broadcast live from the fabled Nectar's music club downtown, and "Loveline," a blind-date reality show. In the works: a soap opera called "Mountains of Desire" promising, perhaps not surprisingly, to be "sexy, steamy, scandalous."
Jeremy Baras '10, UVMtv president, says the move to the high-profile spot in Davis has made a substantial difference in student interest in the organization. As the ranks have grown and facilities have improved, the station finds itself with ample opportunity and potential–and the tough choices that come with it.
As the end of fall semester nears, the UVMtv students gather in the studio for a weekly meeting. Much of the discussion centers on how far the station has come in the past year and where it might be heading. Zach Borst '10, UVMtv's operations manager, rattles off some of their achievements. They haven't missed a night going live. They've gone on-air late just once. Compared to other student-run television stations, he says, "We're doing a ridiculous amount with fewer people and less equipment."
But another student ventures that the news show could be tighter, mentioning a Halloween program in which the screen behind the two anchors featured random, distracting images. There are smiles and some laughter around the room as students remember the broadcast.
"There's a nostalgia that we have a hard time letting go of, the fun stuff, the goofy stuff that we have thought of as UVMtv's identity," Borst says. "We're scratching our heads over it."
Baras encourages the newer students, reminding them that these decisions will belong to them as UVMtv continues to evolve. "It's your club next year," he says. "What would you want to watch?"
Anja Sturies '11, vice president of business operations, seconds Baras: "It's nice to see people dreaming big for UVMtv."
WRUV
The "band room" for broadcasting live performances from WRUV doubles as the station's "hangout room." There's a loose, clubhouse feel to it–one wall covered in a grid of well-worn album covers: Loverboy, Weird Al Yankovic– the worse, the better. Proof of the sublimely horrible's enduring attraction, the most egregious covers have "Don't steal this album" scrawled on them.
Yes, albums. 'RUV boasts Vermont's largest collection of vinyl. And the metal shelves in the station's compact headquarters are jammed with row upon row of CDs. But, no surprise, when DJ Alyssa Kropp '12 is asked what sort of music she's just played on her Wednesday afternoon show, "The Shady Lane," she taps on her laptop: The Books, Arcade Fire, Edward Sharp and the Magnetic Zeros–
Though the technology that delivers the music is ever-evolving, the motivation that keeps delivering new students to the WRUV DJ booth–a deep love for music and sharing it with others–has rocked steady for decades.
For station manager McCrae Hathaway '11, the music started thanks to his dad. "Classic rock: Zeppelin and Sabbath," he says. His sister's radio show at Smith College introduced that "college rock vibe," and his own music as a bass player took him into funk and jazz. From a freshman work study job at WRUV to becoming a DJ to serving on the executive board to being station manager this year, Hathaway has picked up increasing levels of responsibility. Estimating that he spends about twenty hours per week at the station, he says, "It's not 24/7 in terms of actual work; but in terms of thought, it's always on my mind."
Like Hathaway, Nyiko Beguin '12 (DJ Big Nyik) comes to college radio with a musician's perspective. He plays with a local band called Whales and Wolves and also has his own solo act. Though he's not sure about a career in radio, Beguin's very interested in the music business or other arts-related fields. At WRUV, he's found not only another outlet for his musical interests but also ties to a broader community. The station's more than sixty DJs include local people of all ages and former students in addition to the core staff of undergraduates. "It's a good mesh of old and new," Beguin says. "I think everyone is really just trying to learn about new music and about ways to connect with other people. It's kind of like a big family now."¯