DeGroote School of Business goes live to air

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BY Julia Thomson

September 18, 2006

[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/CH News edited.jpg” caption=”Paul Bates, dean of business, was interviewed during the CH News noon broadcast. Photo by Susan Bubak.”]

The Bank of Canada raises interest rates, the dollar gains four points, inflation falls. The question for most consumers is, “What does this mean for my wallet?” Professors at the DeGroote School of Business are helping to decode current events in the world of commerce with daily commentary on CH TV's noon newscast.

“It's a matter of taking these business stories, which sometimes can be quite abstract, and explaining them in a way that people can easily understand,” says Paul Bates, dean and a frequent contributor for CH and other media.

A broadcast camera installed in the business school allows McMaster to broadcast live feeds to television stations anywhere in the world. This offers many opportunities for McMaster faculty to comment on current issues and helps to raise awareness of the University as a result.

DeGroote professors have been doing business commentary every Thursday on CH Morning Live for the past year. As CH got ready to launch a new expanded noon news format this fall, producers at the station turned to DeGroote to help explain the business beat.

Beyond DeGroote and CH, other Faculties and stations have made use of the TV camera. CBC is a regular customer, even using the camera for external guests who don't want to make the trek to Toronto.

“Media coverage helps to ensure the University is seen as a place where experts work,” says Gord Arbeau, director of marketing and communications for DeGroote. “It's a way to communicate to the general public about the innovative research that is happening here at McMaster.”

Catch DeGroote Live daily on CH TV at about 12:10 p.m. or on Thursday mornings at about 7:15 a.m.

Tips for TV:

Thinking you might want to be a media star? Here's some tips to help you master the small screen:

  • Keep it brief and simple. Reporters and viewers are absorbing complex topics in very little time.

  • Avoid jargon, statistics and numbers. Try not to “um” or “ah.”

  • When faced with a camera but no reporter (like at DeGroote), plant your feet and look into the lens of the camera. Even if you're not talking, you're on screen. If you're looking off into space, staring at your shoes or fidgeting, that's not a good visual.

  • If the interview is live, what you say is what you say. But if you goof up, it's not the end of the world. Tomorrow, it will be yesterday's news.

  • Watch and listen to television interviews from the standpoint of someone interested in being that interview subject. Figure out what you like in an interviewee, what puts you off, and act accordingly.

  • Relax