We were honored to have Rod Fowler of KLKN-TV Channel 8 as our speaker at Lincoln South Rotary on October 25..
Rod Fowler grew up on a small farm near Tama, Iowa, which is between Cedar Rapids and Des Moines. As a child he helped his family raise cattle and make hay. During this time he learned a love for Midwestern values found in the heartland.
At an early age, Rod had a desire to work in broadcasting which eventually lead him to work at a small radio station. It was just the spark he needed and Rod enrolled at Iowa State University in Ames. At that time, WOI-TV was only one of two TV stations owned and operated by a state university. During his college days he worked part time for WOI and was a D-J on a rock and roll radio station.
After graduation, with a bachelor's degree in Journalism and Mass Communications, Rod remained at WOI-TV as a full time reporter/anchor. When the opportunity arose for him to make a move within the company, he jumped on it. In 1995, Rod was offered the anchor position at sister station KLKN-TV. "The reason I wanted to come to Lincoln was because of the people and community pride here," says Rod. "The Midwest is home for me. I love the country and the people". Rod and his wife, Laurie, and two daughters and are proud to call Lincoln their home. "It's a growing community that still has Midwestern feel and value," he added.
During the meeting on Friday, Rod commented that he enjoys studying TV through his wife - by watching her reactions and listening to her comments. He said one of the biggest thing that he has learned is that Lincoln is a big city with small town characteristics.
he talked a little about how broadcasting has changed and what we might see in the future. He told stories of how big and heavy the cameras were when he started. Today we use our smart phones and lightweight tripods.
We also use social media which starts with a push notification through the smartphone apps when the news is first reported. As soon as they arrive on scene, they start to take video and record information. More details are delivered through those same push notification apps and other online programs. Everyone at the station is involved in updating social media constantly during the day.
Because the audience wants information immediately, it is a challenge as they want to provide the news, but need to check the facts.
It is about being the first, the fastest, but also want to be the best.
How adults receive their new information has changed dramatically - today 93.5% of adults receive at least some of their news online.