HOW NANTUCKET SPORTS CONNECTION WAS BORN

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In February of 2021, NCTV aired its first live broadcast of a Nantucket High School athletic event.

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While rudimentary at first, we adapted our gear, tested new protocols, and refined our approach.

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Critical to our progression was Richard Hussey, a member of the NCTV Board of Directors who has won Emmy awards for his live coverage of the Olympics and other athletics while working for NBC. His contributions were critical in the improvements leading to our live coverage of the 2021 Island Cup, carried on both Nantucket & the Vineyard as well as YouTube. It had scoreboard & motion graphics, a drone, coaches interviews, a halftime show, and an on-field camera.

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While we have trained many people on live broadcasting, Chris Morris is especially talented and passionate about the medium. We provided the equipment and technical support for single-camera, live coverage of Nantucket High School sports games featured on the Nantucket Sports Connection YouTube Channel & simulcast live on NCTV’s television channel, and we've just surpassed 100 game broadcasts. We've also developed the means of going live wirelessly via bonded cellular technology, which we demonstrated for the most recent season of football.

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These games frequently surpass the view counts for the other live coverage department we run.

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Since 2021, NCTV has built an audience of Whalers players, families, and fans that engage with and value our live sports coverage. We’ve even had “watch parties” spring up at restaurants like Faregrounds and The Charlie Noble. We believe the community’s interest in these types of events will continue to grow and we want to be prepared for the increased demand.

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TV PRODUCTION AS AN EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY

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Our live coverage has multifaceted learning potential as well. NCTV has always had a deep commitment to education. In 2021 we started offering NHS students their first experiences on a live production crew. We believe training and mentoring students is critical to the success of this program; it provides a larger pool of talent & it gives teens valuable learning opportunities for a specialized skillset, helping them stand out in college applications. Furthermore, it gives them hands-on experience to decide if they might like to pursue such a career.

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Working on a live production crew is an eye-opening experience. It's exciting, methodical, and a little stressful. There are no shortages for technical director roles on the crew, putting a teen in a leadership position that offers insights – not just for TV production - but for leading new teams in general.

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By supporting NCTV's live sports coverage, our community underwriters are opening a new possibility for NHS students to learn live broadcasting and life skills here on Nantucket.

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Our request to you is to help us serve the community by continuing our live coverage. We are putting our request out now as this is the perfect time to bring our production quality to the next level. Comcast and NCTV are soon launching a second channel in High Definition. HD is not only ideal for sportscasts, but it also means we can broadcast HD games while simultaneously airing our usual civic affairs coverage on the standard def channel.

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We need additional equipment so that the sports coverage team isn't conflicting with in-house production needs, and so that students have dedicated gear to train on. By providing the funding to purchase necessary equipment, you can help NCTV continue our live sports coverage for years to come as well as providing local youth an entry into high tech media production.

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Interested in becoming a sponsor? Email lisa@ournctv.org for more information.

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