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Photographer stresses
storytelling in atypical profession
 Sanford,
NC—Video and radio production students at Central
Carolina Community College (CCCC) received some tips, stories
and broadcasting insight Wednesday, December 8, 2004. Richard
Adkins, chief photographer at WRAL-TV, spoke to three broadcast
production technology classes about a typical day in the
television industry.
“
There are no typical days,” Adkins said.
That is easy to believe after hearing some of the stories
the 20-year industry vet shared about his experiences.
Adkins has covered a murder trial and a mead-maker in the
same day. His job has taken him from the beaches of North
Carolina to the mountains of Japan. Adkins said on days
like those, it is great to be a television photographer. “It’s
like stealing money.”
However, Adkins stressed to the students that, while the
job can be rewarding, the most important part is telling
a person’s story. “We’re storytellers,” he
said. “Anybody can pick up a camera, not everyone
can tell a story.
“
You can report the news all you want, but if you can introduce
people to people it will be more memorable,” Adkins
explained. “Every story has a beginning, middle and
end. But every story has to have a character. That’s
what it takes to tell a good television story. You have
to give the viewer something to connect with.”
Adkins urged students to be conversational in order to
bring out the best in a character and a story. “Just
sit people down and talk to them,” he pleaded. “You
need to eliminate the sound byte. Let people talk to you.”
Adkins also spoke passionately about the ethics of covering
a story. When asked about staging or re-creating events,
Adkins adamantly spoke against it. “That’s
not true. That’s not real,” he told the class. “It’s
not ethical. It’s not an option.” Adkins said
reporters and photographers can avoid such troublesome
situations by being prepared and said that in an industry
based on trust you can not afford to compromise. “If
I tip-toe over the line of staging, how can you ever trust
me again?”
CCCC television instructor Heather Burgiss said this was
the third time this semester students have interacted with
WRAL-TV employees. In October, television broadcast production
students toured WRAL studios in Raleigh. And in November
WRAL assistant news director Rick Gall spoke to the broadcast
management class.
Burgiss said she hopes students learn a lot from people
like Adkins. “I think it always helps when they can
be around a professional in the industry,” she said. “I
hope they learn about how to do things right the next time
they are covering a story. Hopefully they’ll do something
different than they would have before and think about things
more ethically.”
For more information on the broadcast production technologies
program at CCCC visit http://www.cccc.edu/Programs/Broadcast.html.
You can also contact Heather Burgiss at hburgiss@cccc.edu or media technologies department chair Bill Freeman at
bfreeman@cccc.edu.
Photo: WRAL-TV chief photographer Richard Adkins
speaks to broadcast production technology students at the
Lee campus of Central Carolina Community College.
Media Contact:
Benton Smith
Central Carolina Community College
(919) 718-7265
bsmith@cccc.edu |
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