An inside look at Golden Warrior TV

STERLING, Ill. (KWQC) - While many eyes inside Musgrove Fieldhouse are focused on the game going on, in the rafters a few students are bringing the game to life over television.

“What you see is [the students] get into it, and it’s a little bit overwhelming,” said Jim Spencer, supervisor of Golden Warrior TV. “I don’t think people quite understand what goes into television production, and all of the things that have to work for it to be successful.”

Golden Warrior TV, through the Sterling Schools Foundation, introduces students to different elements of a live broadcast.

“The basic role is [the students] assist with production. They are going to be running a switcher, doing replays, gonna be monitoring audio, they are going to be running cameras, doing graphics, and statistics,” Spencer.

For Sterling High School senior Zach Shapero, joining Golden Warrior TV was a no-brainer.

“It is something that I want to go to college for, and I feel like this has given me a nice stepping stone to pursuing that dream of being a play-by-play announcer one day,” Shapero said. “Getting to follow that dream of wanting to be an announcer this early in my career, if you will, is awesome.

Sterling senior Braden Hartman wants to become a baseball announcer in the future. He said Golden Warrior TV has helped him gain experience.

“After my first game, I was watching when I got home, and I was like, ‘Oh, I could have done this a little better, or this a little better,’” Hartman said. “Now coming on to my third one, or even last time, I wasn’t really nervous about it. You start to get those reps in so when you go to those programs or colleges, you already have an idea of what it is supposed to be about and you just get those reps.”

“It gives me a great sense of passion to know that we’ve been able to provide a great stepping stone and introduced people to the world of professional broadcasting,” said Kyle Morgan, Golden Warrior TV’s executive producer and equipment manager. “Specifically, in our productions, we attempt to do things as professionally as we can to simulate an NFL or even college-level production.”

“I’ve watched the NFL, the NBA, and I watch the news all the time,” said Josh Olson, Golden Warrior TV participant. “It’s cool to take a step back and think about, ‘I wonder what is going on back there.’”

Spencer said it is great to see the students’ confidence grow with each broadcast.

“What we are looking for is that magic that comes from learning just a little bit, getting a taste, and finding how fun it can be when it all works the way it is supposed to work,” Spencer said.

Spencer said the annual cost for a subscription to Golden Warrior TV is $25 before the first Sterling football game. After that, the cost jumps up to $75.

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