Next month, several groups of SF State students will be making their small-screen debuts in households throughout San Francisco on Cable Channel 27. During the last couple of weeks, BECA students have been preparing for their first TV broadcast of the semester scheduled to air on Oct. 3.

BECA students produce three 30-minute shows in separate classes each semester, one of which is “State of Events.” The TV program’s 11 students cover campus, local, national and international news. First, students select stories off of the KRON 4 news feed, which are then produced and aired on a weekly basis. Since shows air on Fridays, students shoot on Thursdays in the on-campus newsroom or on location. Afterward, tapes are sent for editing to the technical class, Television News Crew.

Once finished, the completed show is ready for its TV broadcast and is sent to Public Access Channel 27.

Michelle Kennedy teaches the “State of Events” class and is a reporter for KRON 4 News. In her first semester teaching at SF State, Kennedy focused on coaching her students and working on all of the “little technical” details. She has even eliminated all swearing in the creative arts newsroom where students film the show. Kennedy hopes this will get students in the habit of being watchful of their words since microphones are always on.

“There are hot mics all the time in the newsroom,” Kennedy said. She wants her students to be aware of themselves at all times and she’s even implemented a “swear chest,” where students deposit 25 cents each time a dirty word slips from their tongues.

Kennedy said that working on the students’ confidence is a major component of improving their reporting. “I’ve been encouraging them to find their voice and to relax their shoulders,” Kennedy said.

According to the professor, the class helps prepare students for the job hunt. Many students send out the videos they produce as résumé tapes.

Robin Zahner, anchor and reporter for “State of Events,” said that she has become more comfortable in front of the camera. “I think that watching tapes of myself has helped me improve,” Zahner said.

Zahner will graduate in January and hopes to land a reporting job. “The class is really good experience,” said Zahner, who added that this class is also great for learning to work with others.

“Other people are [prompting] you and you don’t always write all your own stuff,” Zahner said.

But Zahner has come across some aspects of the class that she is not fond of. Not only does she gather information, pull a story together and deliver a report, she must take her appearance into account, too. “I’m trying to have my hair more neat, not messy,” Zahner said. “And [I’m] wearing more makeup, especially lipstick, though I don’t like wearing a lot.”

Even at her job at KRON, Kennedy applies her own makeup, which she has down to a seven-minute routine. She said that for most TV anchors and reporters—except Katie Couric, perhaps—makeup is something they do themselves. “You always need a little bit more,” Kennedy said, explaining that it takes a lot not to look washed-out on camera.

Ingrid Fermandois, fellow anchor for “State of Events,” is working on her appearance too. Recently, she has taken home several blazers that Kennedy has outgrown.

Fermandois also agrees with Zahner’s remarks about working with others. “The class is an enormous group effort,” Fermandois said. While she plans to concentrate on art and cultural stories, Fermandois expects to cover a wide range of topics.

“We choose a variety of stories that we think will grab viewers’ attention,” Fermandois said. Recently, she worked on a story about a Los Angeles train crash.

The other two shows that BECA students produce every semester are “Under San Francisco” and “College Sports Reports.” “Under San Francisco” showcases the city’s art scene, while the latter follows a wide range of sports.

Student Daniel Marcus works for the “College Sports Reports” crew. He said the class rolls up to two packages each week that cover everything from campus to national sports. “[The programs] are basically a more in-depth look at topics, players, teams or any type of special event we cover,” Marcus said. “In these packages we have reporters doing stand-ups and voiceovers, so there is definitely on-site reporting going on.”

This semester, Marcus said that he is looking forward to working on all sides of the production process. “I want to do some writing, producing – a little bit of everything.”

So far, the show has been shooting SF State volleyball and soccer. “We’ll get basketball in November and wrestling too,” Marcus said.

SF State’s BECA TV productions air on Fridays from 5-6 p.m. and 10-11 p.m. from Oct. through Dec. on Cable Channel 27.