Season 50 Season Summary

He’s on The List By: Chelsy Grover Being “on the list” can mean a person has the inside scoop or a pass to a prestigious party. One Studio One alumnus uses his reporting skills to help put together The List on a daily basis.

Studio One alumnus, Mike Brookbank, works as a reporter for the nightly news magazine show The List. The E.W. Scripps Company says their television show, The List, is a 30 min program that takes on the lighter side of news and pop culture. The first show aired on September 17, 2012 in six markets. The List and a game show called Let’s Ask America took over the time slots of Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy! in markets such as Cleveland. “The show will expand once the Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy’s contracts expire,” says Brookbank. This former intern works as a field reporter for the show but he is also on air talent. He helps find stories then writes and produces them. “One of my favorite [stories] was a few weeks ago, when I suited up with firefighters from a suburban Cleveland department in honor of Fire Prevention Month. I went through a handful of training exercises. It was very much a hands‐on shoot and gave me greater knowledge of just how dangerous their job is,” says Brookbank. Click here to watch the segment.

This alumnus says his career in Television started by putting his name on the list for an internship. As an intern with Studio One, he worked as a photographer, floor director, reporter, discovery reporter, producer and weather anchor. “I really liked being the weather anchor because I solely came to UND for meteorology, but then changed my major because [I]decided I liked writing and telling stories about people better,” Brookbank says. Brookbank also says he liked that Studio One was a live show. “Most college campuses don’t have the opportunity to practice working on a program that goes live,” he says.

Brookbank’s favorite Studio One story was his first semester as an intern when the program moved into its new home at the Rural Technology Center in 1997. “I was a part of the team that aired the first show from the new digs. And one of the most memorable quotes from Barry, which I still remember today, ‘set two alarms, it's going to snow like crazy!’ That was the last semester we were on in the early mornings and boy was it hard to get out of bed before the sun on those ‐20 degree mornings,” he says.

A 14 year TV industry veteran, Brookbank’s advice for current Studio One interns is to be aware of the TV industry and what it’s really about. “Be realistic because you aren’t going to be an anchor right out of college,” he says. “The TV industry is so much different than you think.”

When working toward networking opportunities or a new career, Studio One alumnus, Mike Brookbank shows that college experience can help applicants stand out on the list.