How can I learn more about sports broadcasting while in high school?

Hi, Ethel:

Thanks so much for inquiring. In addition to the sound advice from Ms. Gillette, there are other things you can engender for yourself without needing anyone's help. Since you live in Chula Vista, youth sports - particularly baseball - are likely a vibrant part of the community. Chula Vista's Little League team is currently playing in the Little League World Series, which they do seemingly every year.

You could start to do webcasts of some of their games, even if it's for the small universe of their families. You could engineer the webcasts and potentially even do play-by-play. To do it, you could simply use your phone to webcast on Ustream, Livestream, or other such services. If you were so inclined, you could increase the quality of your equipment a little - you could buy a transmitter from B&H Photo in New York City and hook it up to a camcorder, which takes better pictures than a phone and would allow you to simultaneously record the games while also transmitting them.

You could then make highlight clips of good plays for the families and then send them. All of this would be great practice for doing so at higher-level TV stations/websites down the line. Showing a potential employer that kind of entrepreneurial spirit could go a long way for you.

Best wishes for success,

Barry Abrams
ESPN

Hi Ethel. Does your school have a multi-media program? If so, you can start by reporting on your school's local games. You can write for your school newspaper. You could announce the games, meets and matches on-site at your school.

Outside your school you can try to get an internship at a local TV station or radio station. Do any of the local networks cover high school sports? MSG network has a high school sports network in NY and my son submitted some video of himself broadcasting for his high school sports channel and won and award, got to a live report on one of their shows and received scholarship money. He later got a summer internship with Fox and I am pretty sure it was that experience with MSG that got him the internship.

Be creative and use your high school sports programs as an opportunity to develop your writing and on camera reporting skills. Then look to your community for local stations and reach out for internships. Good luck!

Ethel,

Like Ms. Gillette and Mr. Abrams said, find ways to improve your skills by working independently or with a group of people at your high school's sports events. Another thing I would highly recommend is reaching our to the nearby local TV station. Not only will this give you a foundational background in the industry, but it will also help you start building a network. Some of my most valuable experience came during my internship at the local TV station. It was a market-100 station, which isn't too big nor too small, but what made that experience so crucial to my career path was my eagerness to learn and the knowledge/skills I developed during that summer. Hope this helps!