Nicholson Alumni Shine at 2015 Suncoast Emmys
Story by UCF Nicholson School of Communication
January 8, 2016
NSC alumna Tiffany Anthony had not been able to attend the 2015 ceremony. Once received at WJXT, the prized Emmy was forwarded to her.
It was a simple statement on the Facebook page of Tiffany Anthony, ’07, but it said so much: She could now officially call herself an Emmy Award-winning producer. Anthony was one of the winners at the 2015 Suncoast Chapter ceremony of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Regional Emmy Awards, held Dec. 6.
Anthony, a 2007 R-TV graduate, shares the Emmy with her WJXT-TV, Jacksonville team members: Executive Producers Josh Beauchamp and Stacey Readout, Producer Robert Brown and anchor Bruce Hamilton. Her Spot News Emmy was for “Gunman on FSU Campus,” the station’s reporting of the shooter incident that occurred in November 2014.
The Suncoast ceremony recognized other NSC alumni as Emmy nominees: Russell Colbourn, Katie Johnson and Valeza Gil. Colbourn was nominated for a Spot News award for “Action News Storm Coverage” with the team at WJAX/WFOX-TV. Johnson’s nomination was for a historical piece, “90 Year Old Veteran Remembers Where He Was on V.E. Day,” shared with Ian Dorety at WPTV. And, Gil’s nomination recognized an on-camera live report, “Valezka Gil – En Vivos,” produced by WTMO-TV Telemundo.
Congratulations also go to WUCF-TV Producer Buddy Pittman for his two regional Emmy award nominations – one for “Mike Nuriel Secondhand Choppers” in the Arts/Entertainment segment, and the second, for “Tangelo Park/Harris Rosen” in the Education/Schools category.
Of her team’s Emmy-win, Anthony said, “As a station, you work hard to make sure coverage informs viewers with the most updated, fresh and relevant information.” On the day of the FSU incident, coverage was a team effort. Reporters and anchors were in touch every 15-20 minutes, they turned to social media for information, and the team used the station’s top resources, she said.
Anthony’s career has advanced since producing at the Jacksonville station. She’s now a producer at CBS affiliate News 6 WKMG in Orlando. She said her studies at Nicholson prepared her well, and remembers being influenced by George Bagley and Dr. Tim Brown, associate professors of R-TV. She loved working as a producer on Knightly News, saying the experience was a main reason she decided on producing as a career.
Tiffany Anthony (center of front row) with the rest of her graduating class at UCF in 2007.
She noted her profession requires a certain drive. She even jokingly said it takes a personality “that likes to boss people around.” Producers deal not just with routine stories, but tragic ones, she pointed out. “That’s a very tough job,” she said. Anthony offered some top advice: “Be thick-skinned. Be informed. Be very understanding of human nature. And, even if you think you are an optimist, remember that it is hard to remain optimistic unless you keep the right focus,” she said. “People rely on you to inform them of the facts. That’s a very positive purpose to have, and to maintain.”