Camera

August 2006

ff The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences

www.emmysf.tv San Francisco/Northern California Chapter

SAN FRANCISCO INDIE KGO “IGNITES”

BACK ON THE BLOCK
BLOCK HD NEWS

By Bob Goldberger
San Francisco’s former WB affiliate, TV20, KBWB, is
up for sale again after station owner Granite
Broadcasting cancelled a purchase agreement in mid
July. It’s the second time this year the sale of KBWB
has fallen through. The first occured after the WB
network merged with UPN, leaving KBWB a sudden
and unintentional independent station. The buyers
walked away.
This time, though, Granite walked away. Its con-
tract to sell both TV20 in San Francisco and WNTD in
Detroit to DS Audible, LLC, gave Granite the right to
terminate the agreement if the sales did not close by
June 30th. With WNTD set to become an affiliate of MY
Network in September, Granite apparently decided to
retain its Detroit station; so it cancelled the deal with
DS Audible and announced its “intention to continue
marketing its San Francisco station to interested
parties.”
TV20 General Manager Bob Anderson
admits the sale falling through took them
all by surprise. “The expectation was
certainly that the DS Audible agreement
would be completed. I’m sure that every-
one at the station expected it to close as
there was no reason to expect other-
wise.” But he adds, “Granite’s decision to
walk away was in the best interest of the company,
and that’s of primary interest.”
continued on page
By Keith Sanders
Many Bay Area TV stations are now producing
content in HD, but for the moment their newscasts
remain mired in standard definition. However this
situation is beginning to change.
KGO now has a new control room under construc-
tion that will be used to broadcast news in HD. It will
be the first station in the market to use Grass Valley’s
Ignite HD; a next-generation automated all-digital HD
control room solution.
“Ignite was designed, developed and tested (by
Grass Valley) with the help and input of ABC Owned
Television station engineers from KABC and KGO” says
KGO GM Valari Staab. She adds that critical assistance
was given by “KGO VP of Engineering Janice Reyes,
Assistant Chief Engineer Jack Fraser, Project Engineer
George Kapoulas along with very helpful input from our
staff directors and technical directors, especially Marti
Hanzlik and Scott Lawler.”
Ignite HD systems first became available in April and
offer an integrated video switcher, audio mixer and
teleprompter that simplifies live news production. KGO’s
system will interact with existing Vinten Robotic camera
pedestals. “We are currently producing our new hour-
4
continued on page 6

EMMY ® VIEWING IN PARADISE

PARADISE
At the end of this month, all of you in Hawaii have an early opportunity to
meet our new chapter president, Lynn Friedman, and view the
“Emmy®Winners’ Reel” from this year’s NATAS awards ceremony.
The viewing party is Thursday, August 31 at 6:30 p.m., at Honolulu’s
Gordon Biersch, 1 Aloha Tower Drive, Suite 1123. This is a FREE event for
media organizations of Hawaii. NATAS V.P./Hawaii Duncan Armstrong will
also be in attendance. And before anyone gripes, don’t worry, our chapter is
not paying for Lynn’s trip to Hawaii (Sorry, no junket scandal). Lynn was
already going to be in Hawaii on her own.
To attend, you must RSVP to Duncan Armstrong at darmstrong@khnl.com
Bring all your questions and your party hat.
Off Camera, August 2006, page 1
 SILVER CIR
SILVER CLE REV
CIRCLE A MPED
REVA
TO CELEBRA TE CINEMA CLUB
CELEBRATE
TWENTY YEARS
Ballots are going in the
mail to the 145 members Tired of paying
of the Silver Circle who ten bucks a pop
will be casting their votes to see the latest
for the Class of 2006 films – block-
inductees. With this buster hits as
year’s Induction Cer- well as smaller
emony and Luncheon, the features? NATAS has a
NATAS San Francisco/ solution. Join one of the
Northern California local NATAS-run Cinema Clubs.
Chapter will mark the 20th With Lynn Friedman now President of our chapter,
Anniversary of the first her four-year run as Cinema Club Chair is over. Her
local Silver Circle. duties have passed on to Annika Wood (formerly
To be eligible, individuals must have been actively KNTV). Annika ran the South Bay branch of the Cinema
engaged in television broadcasting for 25 years or Club this past year, but now lives in San Francisco,
more (with at least half of those years in the San where she’ll be searching the local scene for free movie
Francisco Bay Area or Northern California Region, which screenings for NATAS members.
includes Reno, NV and Hawaii) and made a significant John Peck (KNTV) is now handling the South Bay
contribution to Northern California Television. screenings, which have turned into a nice perk for
The Silver Circle Committee selects nominations from members living or working in the San Jose area. Bryan
the applications received. Voting is done by the Silver Shaden is the Sacramento Cinema Club contact.
Circle membership. The cut-off for induction is deter- Screenings take place a couple of times a month
mined by the Silver Circle Committee. (more during awards season) and generally start at
Gold Circle nominees must have been actively 7:00 pm on weeknights. Just a note, some screenings
engaged in television broadcasting for 50 years or have guest list seating for press. Others require
more (with at least half of those years in the chapter arriving early and waiting in line. Almost all films are
area) and made a significant contribution to Television. first run sneak previews. For most films NATAS mem-
Gold Circle inductees are chosen by the chapter Board bers may bring a guest.
of Governors. If you are interested in this great member benefit,
You do not need to be a member of NATAS to qualify contact the Academy office to be included on the e-mail
for induction. list for the Cinema Club in your area.
The 2006 Gold Circle and Silver Circle inductees will
be honored at the Annual Induction Luncheon on
Saturday, November 11, 2006 at the Holiday Inn
Fisherman’s Wharf at Columbus and North Point
Streets in San Francisco.
NATA S NA
NAT TIONAL
NATIONAL
PUBLIC
PUBLICA ATIONS
The Gold & Silver Circle Committee’s new Chair,
Terry Lowry (Silver Circle 1996), encourages you to
attend what has proven to be a fun and very popular
event. “Don’t miss sharing nostalgic and amusing war
stories with colleagues past and present, watching the ON-LINE
“vintage” videos, seeing the photos of days gone by,
making new memories, meeting new friends and, most
of all, cheering on the “Class of 2006.’”
For more information on the 20th Anniversary Silver
Circle Induction Luncheon, to download 2007 Silver and
Gold Circle nomination applications or to see a list of
Circle members, go to the Academy website:
www.emmysf.tv and click on Silver Circle or Gold Circle.
You may also contact the Academy office to have an
application mailed to you, e-mail: circles@emmysf.tv or
call: 650-341-7786.

Send your news items to:

offcamera@emmysf.tv www.emmysf.tv
(click on the NATAS National link)
Off Camera, August 2006, page 2
 FRIEDMAN NAMES COMMITTEE CHAIRS
July 8, 2006 was president Lynn Friedman’s first official board committee chairs for 2006-2007 . The Board of Governors unani-
meeting. She wasted no time in naming her committee and sub- mously concurred with her appointments.
Activities / Programs Archives & Museum Area Emmy® Awards

Cynthia Zeiden John Catchings Linda Giannecchini Javier Valencia

Cinema Club Technology Emmy® Event Gold/Silver Circles

Committee Chairs (Magenta)

Sub-Committee Chairs (Purple)

Annika Wood Keith Sanders Wayne Philippo Terry Lowry

Education Finance Legal/Bylaws Membership Marketing

Alison Gibson Jim Spalding Darryl Cohen Brian Avery To be named

Fundraising Mgmt. Relations “Off Camera”

Joe Cherubini John Burgess Bob Goldberger

MORE BOARD CHANGES

The Executive Committee recommended the following changes to The Board also unanimously approved these appointments.
Officers and Governors at the July 8 Board meeting.

VP-Sacramento Treasurer Alternate Trustee Governors

Thomas Drayton Sharon Navratil David Mills Dan Adams Joe Cherubini To be named
KXTL Fox 40 KTVU 2 CBS 5 KXTV 10 KRON 4 Hawaii
Off Camera, August 2006, page 3
 TV-20 F OR S
FOR ALE?
SALE?
continued from page 1
One interesting subtext to the failed
negotiations: If the sale had gone On Saturday, August
through, it would have returned long-time 12th, more than
KTVU General Manager Kevin O’Brien to a thousand are ex-
the Bay Area television industry, this time pected to lace up their
as a part owner. O’Brien was an original sneakers to stroll, walk,
member of the group that agreed to buy and ride around
KBWB earlier this year, but dropped out before the Oakland’s Middle Harbor
remaining partners pulled the plug. This time, O’Brien Shoreline Park as part of
was still part of the deal when Granite walked away. the Friends of Faith
With the station back on the market all over again, Walk for the Cure. This
maybe the third time will be the charm for O’Brien. is the second annual
Meantime, Anderson says the on-again-off- event sponsored by the
again station sale saga is not hindering KBWB’s perfor- organization named for
mance. He says, “TV20 will enthusiastically be very the late Bay Area
independent. We have had a fall schedule in place for reporter Faith Fancher.
some time, but we are still tweaking it as we finalize The organization’s
time periods.” Anderson says he believes it’s actually goal is to promote
an advantage to be independent these days, in that awareness and early
the station has the opportunity to sell, and keep the detection of breast
revenue for 100% of its advertising time. cancer and to celebrate
But Anderson adds, being independent doesn’t the courageous women
necessarily sentence a station to operating alone. He who are battling the
says, ”I can think of numerous opportunities to partner disease.
with other stations and other media entities in the Faith Fancher, a long-
market. But, at this point in time, no serious discus- time television reporter
sions have taken place with anyone.” with KTVU Channel 2 in
His final words on the issue: “There will be a lot Oakland, documented an extraordinary public diary of
more to come and a great deal to be heard from TV20. her battle against breast cancer that inspired the Bay
Stay tuned.” Area, and motivated hundreds of women to get
screened for breast cancer. When Faith struggled in her
BL
BLAACK EXPO HONOR
HONORSS last days, some of those women whose lives were
saved by early screening gathered with candles below
her hospital room in a silent thank-you to a woman
they credited with saving their lives.
Faith’s life-saving legacy continues through the
organization she founded along with her colleagues in
television, radio, and print media.
Friends of Faith is a nonprofit organization that
specializes in providing direct support to women with
the fewest resources. Grants are given to help women
with breast cancer who have needs ranging from child
care to transportation to medical assistance. Faith’s
legacy was one of tireless work and advocacy for
women who were uninsured and without adequate
support systems, and the Friends of Faith are carrying
Dr. Brenda Wade Barbara Rodgers Jackie Wright on her work with a Walk for the Cure.
The Black Expo’s 11th Annual African American If you are interested in joining the Friends of Faith
Excellence in Business Awards & Scholarship Gala Walk for the Cure, all the information is at
presented by Citibank was held on July 12th at the www.faithfancher.org.
Oakland Marriott. The event not only honored small You can still register the morning of the walk, on
businesses and major corporations for their excellence August 12th.
in business, but also honored 101+ Women Making a
Difference In Our Community. Among those honored
were the Bay Area CW’s (ch44) Black Renaissance Host,
Dr. Brenda Wade; CBS 5’s Noon Anchor, Barbara
Rodgers; and Jackie Wright Public Affairs Manager for
the Bay Area CW.
In keeping with its emphasis on the importance of
education, the Black Expo’s non-profit partner, SEEDS,
will give six scholarships – five to undergraduate
students and one to a graduate student – at this JOB BANK at www.emmysf.tv
year’s Gala.
Off Camera, August 2006, page 4
 GOOD TURN OUT F OR PR
FOR ODUCER
PRODUCER S’ SHO
ODUCERS’ WCASE
SHOW
By Cynthia E. Zeiden
On Thursday, July 27th at the beautiful San Francisco
screening room at Dolby Labs in San Francisco, after an
amazing reception with dim sum and other treats, we
featured the complete screenings of two recent
Emmy® recipients: Screaming Queens: The Riot at
Compton’s Cafeteria, Best Historical/Cultural Program
and Counting Sheep, Best Documentary and Program
Photography. There were Q&A sessions with the
producers following each film.
Screaming Queens tells the forgotten story of the
first collective act of militant resistance to the social
oppression of gay people in the United States—a 1966
riot by transgender prostitutes at a late night cafeteria
in San Francisco, three years before the famous gay
riot at New York’s Stonewall Inn.
Susan Stryker and
Victor Silverman were
present to answer
questions about
Screaming Queens. Jack
Walsh, the third pro-
ducer on the team was
not able to attend the
screening. Susan and
Victor told the audience
it took them seven years to complete the documentary.
The archival footage was difficult to obtain but once the
essential pieces were found, moving images of
Compton’s Cafeteria on Turk and Taylor Streets from
the 1960’s, the rest fell in place. The soundtrack
consisted of music that was specially composed for the
film and authentic songs from that period.
After the screening, a raffle was held to benefit the
NATAS Board of Governors’ New Media Scholarship. The
grand prize was an Avid Media Composer donated
graciously by Avid. Producer Susan Stryker was the
lucky grand-prize winner. Other prizes were donated
from: HBO, Peachpit Press, Adobe and ABC 7.
Off Camera, August 2006, page 5
Photos by Lynn R Friedman © 2006
Counting Sheep takes place high in the Sierra Ne-
vada wilderness. There, the last few native bighorn
sheep are fighting for survival. Threats from mountain
lions have forced wildlife officials to take extraordinary
measures to protect the bighorn. Two remarkable men
stand between the bighorn and extinction. An oboe-
playing mountain man turned consummate scientist has
an unlikely ally: a mountain lion tracker of skill and
instinct, a modern day frontiersman.
Following the screening, Frank
Green, producer of Counting Sheep,
took questions. Frank worked on
this documentary for 12 years. We
talked about the sounds in the film.
The rams would lock horns during
fights and we heard loud, crisp
sounds when that happened. The
audience was wondering how they
got this natural sound on location in
the mountains. It turns out the
sounds were created by Frank
throwing stones and making other noises on the
mountains. We were lucky to have the man respon-
sible for the film’s sound, Jim McKee, with us in the
audience. His dream was to hear this soundtrack on
Dolby’s system. We aim to please!
The documentaries were very appropriate to this
year’s Emmy® theme: Breaking New Ground. Screaming
Queens featured the story of an historical event that
had never been told to the world via film and Counting
Sheep showed these bighorn sheep for the first time
ever on film. So they each broke new ground in their
subject matters!
We want to thank Dolby Labs for letting us use
their magnificent facility for this event each year. Avid
sponsored the delicious food from Knight’s Catering
and donated the grand prize for the raffle. We truly
appreciate what that added to the event. Also, thanks
to our volunteers: Tommy Tang, Javier Valencia,
Alison Gibson and Teri Maria Amos. Thanks also for
the fabulous photos that accompany this article. Our
President, Lynn Friedman, took them.
We hope to offer many more of these Emmy®
screenings throughout the year that will cover a variety
of categories.
 KGO “IGNITES” HD NEWS
continued from page
long live Monday-Friday show,
“The View from the Bay” with the
Standard Definition version of the
Ignite system. We are also
producing our morning weekend
newscasts with it, and have for
several months,” explained
Staab.
But one note: when the
aspect ratio expands, the crew
size will contract. Not many
crewmembers are needed to
operate the Ignite HD system. Is
it because of the robotic cam-
eras? No, that’s old news. KGO
began using them a decade ago.
Could it be the tapeless play-
back? Again, old news, KGO has
not needed operators to play
back news tapes for years. So
where will staff reductions be
made?
”The Ignite
system eliminates
the positions of
robotic camera
operator, audio
control operator and
technical director”
said Staab. “We do
ABC 7 GM need more Ignite
Valari Staab
directors than we
currently have as traditional
directors, so we have trained or
are training technical directors to
become Ignite directors. We have
planned the move for more than
a year, so we have filled technical
job openings for the past year
with daily hires and temporary
workers, so that these jobs will
be available for our staff produc-
tion crew when the transition of
their newscasts occurs.”
Broadcast television has
always made use of cutting-edge
technologies to increase quality
and decrease cost. This has been
apparent to IBEW and NABET
union members during the great
transition from analog to digital.
Local IBEW union chief Mark
Jaqua reflected that “the best
way to deal with technological
change is to keep learning the
technology and learn whatever
skills you can that make you
more valuable.” This is true in
the TV industry, as well as in the
technical jobs of Silicon Valley.
KGO has not yet announced
1 an Ignite HD start date. Could it
begin in September? That timing
would be fortunate as the
NATAS New Technology In
News Forum will take place on
Wednesday, September 20th
from 7 to 9:30 p.m. at the KPIX
Studios in San Francisco. Panel-
ists will speak about new tech-
nologies being used in broadcast,
cable and web-based news
programs.
KPIX Operations
Manager Don Sharp
will moderate
discussions and
demonstrations of
news on the web,
HD in local news,
Don Sharp
news on cell
phones, satellite
uplink technology
and much more.
C|NET Executive
Editor Harry Fuller
will sit on the panel
Harry Fuller as well.
Check out www.emmysf.tv
and the next edition of “Off
Camera” for further details.
Keith Sanders,
is the NATAS secre-
tary and a video
producer for San Jose
State University. In
addition to being our
technology chair he
also produces the
Emmy® show.
Send your
technology stories to
Keith.Sanders@sjsu.edu
NATAS FORUM
New Technology in News
The Future of Broadcast News
Wednesday, September 20th
7-9 p.m. KPIX CBS 5
855 Battery St., San Francisco
• News in HD
• Webcasts
• Podcasts
• News on Demand
• Automation
• and much more
Save the Date
Off Camera, August 2006, page 6
 IN MEM OR
MEMOR Y
ORY
STAN HEGGE HARR
HARRYY DINER
Former KGO engineer
Rudolph Stanley Hegge
died on July 21, 2006.
His first job was at
KBES-TV, Channel 5,
Medford, Oregon
starting in March 1963.
He stayed there nine
months before moving
on to KAVE-TV, Channel
6, Carlsbad, New Mexico
in November, 1963 and
was let go at the end of
the month when the
station went dark.
Next Stan was at
KOGO-TV, Channel 10, San Diego, then owned by Time-
Life where he worked as a vacation relief studio engi-
neer in 1964 and 1965. Because he wanted to see San
Francisco, Stan left at the end of the year, although he
had been offered a permanent job at KOGO-TV.
He came to San Francisco in February, 1966 and went
to work at KGO-TV as vacation relief in March and was
offered a permanent job at summer’s end. Stan worked
for ABC (KGO-TV, KGO-AM, and KSFX-FM) from March of
1966 until he had a brain hemorrhage in 1987 and went
on Long Term Disability on March 15, 1989. He finally
retired in August of 2001.
Stan held all the offices in the San Francisco NABET
local 51 except treasurer, and was elected to the ABC-
NABET negotiating committee for the 1981 contract.
The odd fact is that he never considered broadcasting
as a career until the older brother of a schoolmate, who
happened to be a radio program director, told him that
he had an announcer’s voice. This happened at a party
in Minnesota in 1962. Someone else suggested having a
“First Phone” license might help him get a job, and
recommended Bill Ogden’s school in Burbank. He took
the course and was looking for a job on the air when the
offer at KBES-TV turned up and Stan stayed with engi-
neering ever since. But it certainly was a long string of
coincidences from that initial conversation to the
present.
Stan was an active member of the Broadcast Leg-
ends.
ON THE MOVE
MO
Darren Zulberti moves to KTVU 2 in Oakland as
Producer. Zulberti comes from WXII in Winston-Salem,
NC where he was also a Producer.
Promotions for Lena Sullivan and James Reid from
Producers to Senior Producers for CBS 5’s “Eye on the
Bay.”
KQED 9 has a new Chief Financial Officer Jeff Nemy.
Jeff most recently was Chief Financial Officer for Publicis
& Hal Riney in San Francisco.
Tom Burke is the new News Director at KTXL Fox 40
in Sacramento from EP at KMPH in Fresno for the past
three years. He was ND at KGPE in Fresno. Tom
replaces Steve Kraycik who was promoted within
Tribune to become ND at KCPQ-TV in Seattle.
Off Camera, August 2006, page 7
By Ben Williams
After 91 prosperous
years, former KPIX Sales
Executive Harry Diner
passed away on July 27,
2006, at his home in
Borrego Springs, CA.
He was born at a
time when premature
babies had only a
gambler’s chance at
survival. He weighed only
a pound-and-a-half. His
worried parents named
him Harry and prayed for
the best. The tiny baby
not only lived, he thrived. Harry’s life was saved in
infancy by a machine so new at the time that it was
being exhibited as a curiosity at the Panama Pacific
Exposition in San Francisco. It was called an incubator.
There were only three in the Bay Area. Harry’s father, a
furrier, used his business connections to get the use of
one for his tiny son.
The year was 1915. Harry conquered his Lilliputian
beginning and mastered the violin, saxophone and
clarinet to become a professional musician. He traveled
the world heading his own band on luxury liners. His
band also played San Francisco’s finest hotels.
He next became a theatrical agent with the Music
Corporation of America (MCA) where he represented
such talents as Jackie Gleason, Frank Sinatra, Ted
Lewis and bands like Ray Noble and Ernie Heckshire.
When he tired of traveling he returned to San Francisco
and got a job as director of sales development at KPIX-
ch-5 where he stayed for 20 years.
Harry’s brother Leo, also a well-known San
Franciscan (Leo Diner Films), preceded him in death in
1991 at age 78.
Harry bought a vineyard in the Napa Valley wine
country some years ago where he met his wife Elaine
who was with him when he passed. He was also
active in the Broadcast Legends.
DUPLICATE EMMY® STATUETTES
Stations or Production Companies can purchase a “duplicate
Emmy® statuette” honoring winning programs and shows.
The wording on the statuette will be the same as the individual
statuette with the additional inscription “Duplicate.”
The cost is $250 each plus shipping.
REPLACEMENT EMMY® STATUETTES
For a limited time you may replace your rectangular base
statuette with the new round base statuette.
You must return the original statuette to the Academy Office.
The cost is $175 plus $35 band engraving and shipping.
WALL PLAQUES FOR NOMINATION & PRODUCTION CERT.
Contact the Academy office emmy@emmysf.tv 650-341-7786
 HARRY FULLER and FRIENDS

Harry Fuller, executive editor, C|Net (former GM & Friday, July 7th at MacArthur Park. It turned into quite a
news director, KPIX; former news director, KGO) sent reunion when everyone showed up.
out an e-mail inviting a few friends to join him on Photos by Lynn R Friedman © 2006.
7
THE BOARD OF GOVERNORS
OFFICERS:
Lynn R Friedman, ABC 7, President
Javier Valencia, KRON 4, VP, SF (Awards)
Thomas Drayton, Fox 40, VP, Sacramento
Nancy Osborne, ABC 30, VP, Fresno
Terri Russell, KOLO 8, VP, Reno SAN FRANCISCO
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
Duncan Armstrong, NBC 8, VP, Hawaii
Tamar Maghdissian, Freelance, VP, Sm. Mkts. 4317 Camden Avenue
San Mateo, CA 94403
Keith Sanders, SJ State University, Secretary
(650) 341-7786 F: (650) 372-0279
Sharon Navratil, KTVU 2, Treasurer
David Mills, CBS 5, Past President (Alt. Trustee)
Tamar Maghdissian, Freelance
NATIONAL TRUSTEES: Danny McGuire, Independent
Linda Giannecchini, KQED 9 (Museum) Kym McNicholas, KFTY 50
Alison Gibson, Media Cool (Education) Deanne Moenster-Poitras, KTVU 2
Cynthia Zeiden, Zeiden Media (Activities) Jeanette Pavini, CBS 5
Wayne Philippo, CBS 5
GOVERNORS: Sheraz Sadiq, KQED 9
Dan Adams, KXTV 10 Gary Schultz, ABC 7
Terri Amos, Cornerstone Productions Annika Wood, Independent
Brian Avery, Avery Media (Membership) Pamela Young, KITV 4
Samuel Belilty, Univision 21
John Burgess, KFTY 50 COMMITTEE CHAIRS:
John Catchings, Catchings & Assoc.(Museum)
Joe Cherubini, KRON 4
Darryl Cohen, Cohen & Cooper (Legal)
Martin Christian, KVIE 6
James Spalding, Spalding & Co. (Finance)
Janice Edwards, NBC 11
Wayne Freedman, ABC 7 EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR:
Albert Garcia, Univision 19 Darryl R. Compton, NATAS
Bob Goldberger, ABC 7
Justin Kanno, KOLO 8 Off Camera
Ronald Louie, KTVU 2 Bob Goldberger, Editor
Terry Lowry, LaCosse Productions Darryl Compton, Publisher
Off Camera, August 2006, page 8