At Carolina Now, the show goes on
For the student volunteers who produce Carolina Now and its Spanish-language edition Carolina Ahora, social distancing and stay-at-home orders could have easily put the show on hold.
Instead, the shift to remote working inspired Carolina Now anchors, producers, reporters and writers — with the guidance of faculty adviser Lindsay King and staff adviser Gary Kirk — to dig deeper, work harder and think creatively about content in the time of coronavirus.
Grace Wilson ‘22, a sophomore from Huntersville, N.C., is the show’s executive producer. When King and Kirk approached her about finding a way to keep the show on the air, she was all in.
“It would be so easy to give up on a volunteer-based show,” she says. “We’re stuck at home because we’re trying to keep everyone healthy, but we wanted to show people we could still put together a show with information that people needed.”
What was once a daily show now airs Tuesday with Carolina Ahora on Friday, covering everything from online learning and how UNC's makerspaces are creating protective masks for health care workers, to ‘Tik Tok Tuesday’ segments and updates on sports.
Julian Berger ‘22, a sophomore from Charlotte, N.C., produces and anchors Carolina Ahora, recording segments and interviews via Zoom. He says highlighting perspectives that are pertinent to Hispanic communities and interviewing friends and faculty members has helped him feel less isolated during social distancing.
“I anchor our show from my home, interviewing students and staff, and creating video content based on the needs of each show. I’ve been struggling with my social life and being home, because I miss my friends and my community. One of the UNC’s Hispanic clubs had a Latin Night through Zoom with a DJ – covering that was not only fun but also fulfilling for me.”
Even though Carolina’s sports teams aren’t playing games, Kennedy Byrd ’22, a sophomore content producer and sports reporter from Cary, N.C., still finds ways to cover her beat.
“I covered Bubba Cunningham being named to the NCAA’s Division I Men’s Basketball Committee, which is a big deal, and Brandon Huffman’s decision to transfer from Carolina. It’s been rewarding to realize we’re doing two shows with limited resources, and I think it’s all made us more passionate about what we do.”
“This show is what’s keeping me going,” says Wilson. “This is keeping us all tethered to campus, no matter where we are.”
Though UNC Hussman’s other broadcast show, Carolina Week, is on hiatus, Carolina Connection, the school’s student-produced radio broadcast, airs each Saturday at 8:30 a.m. on WCHL.