Broadcasting Hope from Home to Home

Student news at N. Buncombe Middle brings positive and hopeful info to the community during the pandemic.

(Featured Photo: The Blackhawk Broadcast news crew sits at the news desk of WLOS studios in Asheville, North Carolina. Photos were taken prior to the COVID-19 pandemic and are provided courtesy of North Buncombe Middle School.)

By: Benjamin Rickert, BCS Communications

Student newscasters at North Buncombe Middle School continue to bring positive and hopeful information to their school community while they ‘Stay Home, Stay Safe’ during the COVID-19 pandemic. Until schools closed for student instruction on May 16, seventh- and eighth-graders enjoyed the Blackhawk Broadcast each morning from their classrooms. When learning moved online, the news crew prioritized consistent content and meaningful messaging to keep their classmates connected.

The NBMS news crew works on a live morning broadcast.

“The Blackhawk Broadcast gives something to everyone no matter who they are — whether its joy, pride of being a Blackhawk, or hope that this crisis will be over,” said Derek Gilliland, a seventh-grader on the news crew. “It's important to keep NBMS news flowing.”

Led by media specialist Ms. Shelly Cloninger, the broadcast class gives students the opportunity to learn about storyboarding, scripting, and live news production. With crew members now collaborating from their homes, the group relies on regular Zoom meetings to plan shows, assign roles, and design news packages. Throughout the week, students share their recordings with one another online and post the edited content to their YouTube channel.

“It's about making this whole situation a little less stressful for everyone,” said seventh-grader Sophie Banks. “We've really tried to focus on the good stuff that's happening around us and in our community because people are hearing so much bad news nowadays. Our goal is really just to bring a smile to everyone's faces right now and help them remember that even when everything seems to be falling apart, there are still good people doing great things in the world.”

The Blackhawk Broadcast news crew.

In March, the news team brainstormed the kinds of information students would find beneficial while learning from home. As a result, they added helpful tech support tips to their shows. For example, viewers learned how to troubleshoot audio issues on their devices and search for digital books using the ‘Sora’ app. One show included a hint of humor with advice on avoiding boredom while stuck at home.

“We want it to be helpful and uplifting,” said Cloninger. “We tried to think of the kinds of questions we heard during school, and then answered them in the videos so kids could solve them on their own.”

Cloninger said she was proud of her students for rising to the occasion and creating content with the goal of making a difference — all while staying on top of their other classwork. The Blackhawk Broadcast has certainly come a long way since its inception last school year.

Seventh-grader Jacob Stowe hopes the news crew’s motivation during the pandemic will be contagious.

“I think that it spreads good vibes to people during this time of crisis,” he said.

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