January 20, 2005

Pop quiz: Andrew Bloustein

Junior, School of Communication

Stephen Anzaldi

What are you learning at Northwestern?

When I came to Northwestern I started working at the Northwestern News Network (NNN), on the News Report and SportsNight. It’s been a big opportunity. We have great facilities at Louis Hall, and I’m gaining the experience to already get jobs in the television field.

What have you tried here that you hadn’t expected when you were in high school?

I’m gaining experience in television production. I’ve been able to direct, crew, and also produce some shows. It’s something I knew nothing about, although in high school, I worked on the set of an independent film.

What do you like specifically about TV, as compared to film production?

It seems to me like a more active, fast-paced environment, or at least live TV is. Also, in my limited professional experience as a technician at a few television stations, it feels like more of a stable environment as well.

In the control room, what goes into making a show?

For news, the producer creates a rundown of all of the show’s segments. The technical staff gathers the materials, like videotape, and prepares the audio and video. The director makes sure everything is coordinated and everyone’s working on the same page. You have to tell the crew to roll the right tapes when it’s time to roll them and tell audio to raise the volume at the right time.

What do you do at Channel 1?

I’m the station manager. I’m responsible for the physical operation, getting all the programs in and scheduled for airing. And I do day-to-day programming, deciding what to air when we have spaces to fill.

How do you decide what to air at this point?

When we launched the station, we wanted to have more than just NNN shows and special campus events, so we’re showing things from the Studio 22 library and looking for people who have already created shows or have the means to make them.

What kinds of shows are on the air?

Student films and productions. We’ve shown last year’s hour-long sketch comedy episode by Northwestern Student Television. We’re keeping the hours filled, for the most part. The daily schedule runs from 2 p.m. until 4 a.m., college student hours.

— Stephen Anzaldi