The first Oz Empire State Panel, co-sponsored by the student-run TV station, WTOP, and the Oswego Alumni Association, featured meteorologist Patrick Cavlin ’13, post-production manager Barry Gliner ’84, broadcast engineer Ben Gordon ’13, reporter Tammy Palmer ’98 and media adviser and instructor Marie Villa ’11. Marissa Sarbak ’15 served as moderator.
The alumni, reflecting on their experiences at Oswego and leading up to their professional jobs, acknowledged WTOP as the steppingstone that began their careers. WTOP provides students with the opportunity to learn various roles within television production—as on-air talent, a producer or a member of the crew.
In addition to encouraging students to get experience at WTOP, the panelists advised student attendees to always say “yes” to opportunities and to apply for internships.
“I would not have a job in broadcasting if it wasn’t for my internship,” Palmer said.
Palmer interned with ABC News Channel 9 in Syracuse, N.Y., while attending SUNY Oswego. She said the internship not only gave her necessary experience, but helped her make a good impression with supervisors, which eventually led to full-time employment with the station.
“Reality is, life is a cycle, and it’s about creating positive relationships for the future and helping other people,” Palmer said. “So for me, I feel like it’s my time to pay it forward. Someone did it for me, and now 16 years in, it’s time for me do that for someone else.”
—DJ Manou ’16
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