San Antonio – Journalism students at the University of the Incarnate Word are making history at the School of Communication by receiving a record amount of 15 Lone Star Emmy nominations.
Staff and students said part of their success includes the ability to carry out live broadcasting and field reporting with professional television station equipment.
“We…purchased a ‘Live U’ remote broadcasting unit that allows students the opportunity to go out in the community and do a live shot,” said broadcast journalism professor Theresa Coronado.
Coronado said roughly 30 students run a weekly television broadcast collecting stories around the San Antonio area and on the university’s campus.
One of the students, Gabrielle Yanez, was nominated for an impactful hard news report.
“The story is based on a true story — one of my friends that passed away in a drunk driving accident. I spoke with her sister and we decided to create this video to kind of get the message out against drunk driving,” she said.
Yanez’s classmate Markus McGuire explained that students part of the program see journalism as a bridge between information and what people choose to do with it.
He said their passion for storytelling goes beyond awards.
“If we didn’t have journalism or factual storytelling, we’d probably be left in the dark a lot of the time,” he said.
The Student Production branch of the Lone Star Emmy Awards Chapter will present recipients with awards Friday morning.