2001 Broadcasting/Television Graduate
Super Bowl Bound!
Bristol, Connecticut, a small town tucked in between Hartford and Waterbury is an unlikely place to find anything extraordinary. But sure enough, as you drive down rural West St., it's difficult to miss the numerous satellite dishes that speckle the horizon. Like gigantic flying saucers, they line the road and you instantly know that you have stumbled upon a major operation. This small town is home to the headquarters of world-wide sports leader, ESPN.
ESPN's campus is huge. It consists of about 8 large buildings all connected by catwalks. They also boast a number of other satellite campuses and studios across the world. However, it is in Bristol where most of the broadcasting takes place. Popular shows such as SportsCenter, Baseball Tonight, NFL Primetime and NHL 2Night are all filmed in the Bristol studios. Some of the more famous Sports Broadcasters that work here include Chris Berman, Kenny Mayne and Dan Patrick. However, we did not visit ESPN to meet with any of these guys. Instead, we went to meet with The New England Institute of Art & Communication's (The New England Institute of Art) own alumnus, Steve Begin.
Steve graduated from the Television Broadcasting program in the summer of 2001. A Bristol native, he came to Boston with the intention of studying broadcasting and returning home one day to work for ESPN. He is the perfect example of someone who had a dream and worked hard to make it become a reality.
Steve seized the opportunity to try to get his foot in the door of ESPN when they came to visit the The New England Institute of Art Campus last spring. After they gave their presentation to the students, Steve hung around to speak one on one with Joe Franco, Manager of Studio and Technical Operations. He suggested that Steve apply for the Temporary Production Assistant Program after graduation. This is a seven- month position in which people work as Production Assistants while being evaluated by Producers. At the end of his or her service, the Temp PA may or may not be hired based on their performance and the needs of the company. Steve's supervisors all speak highly of him and he has received lots of positive feedback. He is hoping to become a full-time employee within the next few months.
Steve really enjoys his current job. He works with a lot of young, fun people. His specific responsibilities vary but he generally either works in the control room loading graphics or operates the studio cameras for SportsCenter. Some highlights of his career so far include meeting Barry Melrose, Steve Young and Sterling Sharpe. Steve hopes that he will continue to learn and grow at ESPN. "I would eventually like to be on the sidelines of the Super Bowl filming a reporter," he says.
Steve felt that Ai New England was a great college with wonderful teachers. "I really liked Jim Clements. I think I had him almost every semester. He was a great instructor and very understanding." While a student here, Steve interned at NECN and participated in Naked Eye video. He urges current students to get involved, "join a club, work at Studio Ops, get a good internship &". Judging by Steve Begin's success, it seems like sound advice!
Ai New England has placed several graduates at ESPN over the past couple of years so Steve is in good company in Bristol. We will be watching for him and other The New England Institute of Art graduates as the Patriots repeat as Super Bowl Champions in 2003!