Sports journalism takes Schaumburg High grad to College Emmys
It's a long way from the halls of Schaumburg High School to the red carpet outside the Academy of Television Arts & Science's College Emmy Awards.
But that's how far Ryan Dietz, 21, of Schaumburg has come since his days serving as editor in chief of Schaumburg High School's Sextant newspaper, and leading the marching band's drumline.
Dietz, now a junior at Northwestern University, joined classmate Patrick Lester in accepting the College Emmy for outstanding newscast at the College Television Awards Gala, held last month in Los Angeles.
Just how big was the awards show? Well, for starters, Tom Bergeron, of ABC's "Dancing With the Stars," hosted the bash.
"I had no idea it was such a big deal," Dietz says, "but I have to say, it was quite the experience."
Together he and his classmates produce SportsNight, a weekly sports recap and highlight show about Northwestern Wildcats and the Big Ten Conference.
"It's sort of like 'Sports Center' for Northwestern sports," Dietz says. "Nobody else covers Northwestern like we do. With all the video we have, we kind of have a niche in the market."
SportsNight is completely produced by Northwestern students, and is part of the Northwestern News Network, which is supported by the Medill School of Journalism.
Dietz and his classmates earned first place in the newscast category, edging students from the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, and their weekly televised newscast, Carolina Week.
This is the third year Dietz has worked on the show, having worked his way up to executive producer, along with reporting. Lester serves as producer, while Carl Deffenbaugh and Henry Rosoff both serve as anchors and sports directors.
The show airs on Evanston's cable channels at 6 and 10 p.m. every Thursday, but also can be viewed online by visiting www.nnntv.org.
"I think we've really taken it to the next level, and have gone more in depth with our stories," Dietz says. "There are plenty of stories in sports, and with this show, I think we've achieved that."
At Schaumburg High School, Dietz covered mostly sports before earning the title of editor-in-chief. While he says he would love to pursue a career in sports reporting, he continues to broaden his experiences in all types of broadcast journalism.
He is currently participating in the journalism residency program, serving as a general assignment reporter for the NBC affiliate, WGEM TV in downstate Quincy.