MDC-TV Launches New Program — Campus Talk
More than a decade ago, the first episode of Presidential Talk aired on MDC-TV, Miami Dade College’s award-winning television station that reaches more than 1.3 million homes across South Florida.
Hosted by Juan C. Mendieta, who served as the College’s director of communications for more than 18 years, the show featured campus presidents and faculty discussing the happenings at MDC’s eight campuses.
The show ended after 54 episodes when Mendieta left the College in October of 2022.
This fall, MDC-TV launched Campus Talk—a reboot of Presidential Talk— a show that aims to introduce audiences to campus presidents, educational opportunities, events and the College community.
The first episode aired on Oct. 2.
“It’s a really cool format that we haven’t done before,” said Daniel M. Rodriguez, a producer and television writer in the College’s Media Relations Department who is spearheading the project. “Whereas before it would be in a TV production studio, this time we’re going on location to understand what the College is doing on a daily basis.”
The show is hosted by MDC students who do on-site interviews. The program’s first episode spotlighted Wolfson Campus’ AI Center and Book Fair.
“I really hope to see more faces—less recognizable faces—and just more students of different backgrounds, different cultures that are able to connect with faculty,” said Arquimedes “Archie” Rivero, who serves as the Student Government Association President at Wolfson Campus and is a reporter for the show.
The idea to revive the show bloomed last summer. To make it a reality, Rodriguez enlisted the help of his colleague and longtime friend Ariel Rubalcava, the executive director at MDC-TV.
Planning for each episode begins with Rodriguez creating the outline of the interviews and Rubalcava creating storyboards to visualize the scenes that are written.
The series is shot using a Sony FS7 and two GoPro cameras because they are portable, easy to work with and provide quality shots.
“My favorite part of doing this show is being on set and seeing the conversation come to life,” Rodriguez said. “The day that we film everything and see the guests light up when they are asked about the different programs…that is my favorite part of filming the talk show.”
Students like Victoria Perez, a sophomore in the Honors College at Kendall Campus who’s studying mass communications, believe the show is a tool that can augment her education. She interviewed Michael Mannino, the director of the AI Center for the program’s inaugural episode.
“I found out information I’d never known about before,” Perez said. “It was just a really cool experience to see what MDC is accomplishing and how much they’re expanding.”
Campus Talk airs once a semester on Comcast channel 78, Atlantic Broadband channel 78, AT&T U-Verse channel 99 and on MDC-TV’s YouTube channel. To participate in the show or for more information contact Daniel M. Rodriguez at drodri26@mdc.edu.
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