Jan 15th, 2008 - NY 1

JC asked me to contribute to the blog. Hope you like it!

Today was our final tour--NY 1. Courtesy of Charnee's contacts, the NY 1 people were gracious enough to set aside a few hours and talk to us. It was my favorite tour because it was short and to the point :)
The station is located in Chelsea Market, a former Nabsico factory that, today, is home to many eateries. It smells heavenly, especially around Hale 'n Hearty soups, which typically has a line that ends outside the door.

We met Hector Reyes, head of the HR department, and quite an animated character. What struck me almost immediately about him was his friendliness. Before we were settled in our seats, he asked us if we would care for any refreshments-- and although we politely declined, he fetched for some anyway. Later, he gave us NY 1 merchandise : t-shirts and umbrellas. I loved his accent. It was subtle and very New York!Above, Hector is holding his newly designed and colorful business cards. He handed one out to everyone after the discussion.

Within the hour or so he talked, I could tell, there was something captivating about him. His emphasis was on the NY 1 internship program. He encouraged everyone to apply, he made us feel like we had a shot. He gave us hope.

At that point, everyone was asking questions about the program. Henry even ventured to ask about salary. I think the balloon deflated around then. Haha.

He turned over the metaphorical mic to his news director, Bernie Han. She spoke briefly about her life. We learned that she went from wanting to do print to falling in love with broadcast. That alone is interesting; it left me wondering about print people and broadcast people, their similarities and differences.The NY 1 newsroom had a unique vibe. There were street signs of significant places situated all around the area. Hector led us on a brief tour. We glimpsed into the control room. We even saw Roma Torre at the anchor desk. I have to admit, hearing my name refer to someone else is a little odd. (I thought it was original!)Hector led us to different anchor desks, with lots of lights, cameras, teleprompters. The rooms were very cold, purposely to avoid overheating the equipment. He showed us the control rooms, too.

At one point, he led us into a very small room that had the logo "NY 1 n" plastered onto the anchor desk. It happened to be the NY 1 Noticias newsroom, the Spanish language version on NY 1--a recent addition to company, launched with just eight people.
We all look great, thanks to the awesome lighting and Hector's superior photography skills :P Oh, sorry Maureen!

Overall, the tour was a good one. I personally learned a lot. Local news stations are cozier and smell nicer. But then again, maybe that was just Chelsea Market.


By the way, all the photos are by JC.

-Rohma