Seattle is the site of this year’s National Student Media Convention, held Oct. 23–26 at the Renaissance Seattle. The annual convention is organized by College Broadcasters, Inc. (CBI), which represents more than 400 college media outlets worldwide.
For student-led media outlets, the convention is an opportunity to meet peers and learn from industry experts. This year, presentations will be given by 33 industry speakers, 28 college faculty and staff members and 25 sessions from students. “The convention is the cornerstone of our overall mission,” said Anabella Poland, CBI’s president.
The 2024 event introduces several new features. A new career fair format on Oct. 25 will allow students to interact with recruiters from major broadcasting companies in a low-pressure environment, potentially leading to future employment connections, according to CBI. Session lengths have been extended to one hour with 15-minute breaks. Feedback from attendees drove the setup, according to Jessica Clary, CBI’s events director.
Choosing a venue for the event is a task CBI plans for years in advance. “Rotating between different cities allows us to network with industry professionals in each region,” Poland said. Conventions were held in Seattle in 2014 and 2018.
The NSMC will begin with a tour of 90.3 KEXP(FM), including its “Live on KEXP” in-studio performance show. Guests from KING(TV), KREM(TV), KWSC(FM), the Center for Cooperative Media and the Seattle Kraken will also be present, representing the Pacific Northwest.
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A special screening of the documentary “35000 Watts: The Story of College Radio” is scheduled for Friday night, followed by a Q&A session with the film’s director and other industry professionals.
Among the scheduled sessions, representatives from KAFE(FM) and Saga’s Cascade Radio Group will lead an “Ask Us Anything” session, and the Society of Broadcast Engineers will host a discussion on attracting young talent to broadcast engineering.
“I’ve attended two NSMCs in the past and at both I gained valuable knowledge and connections for someone interested in working professionally in radio,” said Clara Ketchell, the CBI student representative for this year’s convention. Ketchell is the station manager at 90.7 KJHK(FM) at the University of Kansas.
The event will culminate on Saturday, Oct. 26, with the National Student Production Awards. More than 900 submissions from campus media outlets were narrowed down to four finalists in 36 audio and video categories. To ensure the awards remain meaningful, around 50 volunteers judged the submissions, many handling multiple categories, according to Steven Hames, CBI’s awards coordinator.
Attendees can download the CBI Seattle mobile app on their iOS or Android devices to stay up-to-date with the convention schedule. Additionally, there will be an on-site cybercast, sponsored by Broadcasters General Store, providing live coverage of key events.
CBI serves students and advisers of student media. Notably, it is the only student media organization that has consistently participated in hearings about webcasting fees since 1998 on behalf of non-commercial educational broadcasters.
