The Silver Circle

Last night I had one of the coolest photography jobs thus far. I shot pictures for the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Southeast (those would be the people that give out the Emmy awards). The event was called the Silver Circle awards, and it honors people in the southeast who have been in television for at least 25 years, and who have made a significant contribution to the industry. There were seven honorees, and each one has amazing stories. There was Michael Carlin, a George Foster Peabody award winner (that's a big stinkin' deal, y'all); Karyn Greer, who works for 11Alive here in Atlanta, and who truly embodies the words 'grace' and 'charisma,' and Jeff Johnson from Peachtree TV, who is about as lovable a person as I've ever seen on a screen. There was Mike Manhatton, an anchor in Savannah who lives his stories; Bill Hoffman, who truly understands the power of TV to make a positive difference (and who, for the record, is also Rex's Big Boss); and Hammond Reynolds of Fox Sports Net, who has an incredible passion for sports television. But by far my favorite story of the night was James 'Butch' Townley. He is not a big name anchor, nor a high-powered executive. He is a teacher who is using his experience to instill passion and knowledge into the next generation of broadcasters. He had an incredible career with NBC news--he worked on the Barbara Walters interview of Anwar Sadat and also edited for Bob Dotson on a couple of series, as well as other Adventures in Journalism. Now he teaches at Chattahoochee Tech, which apparently has a kick-butt broadcasting program. The video that was made to honor him was great--scads of his present and former students thanking him for his work.this man has got great stories to tell!

I guess the thing that really struck me about the ceremony is that being honored for longevity is really rare in the business of television. There are so many hotshot kids now who can talk purty or make catchy titles for stores. There's always someone willing to work for less than the current staff in exchange for the 'glory' of television news. But these people have dedicated the better part of their lives to covering the news, be it in Atlanta or Iraq or wherever, whether it happened during on their days off or not, and who deserved to be honored for it. You may not think about it when you turn on the TV to watch the news, but there are myriad people who are working on that program. They may have driven in on icy roads so that you know not to, they may be giving up the day after Thanksgiving so that you can watch football, they may be missing out on their daughters dance recital because a tornado just touched down somewhere and people need to know about it.monica shows karyn some love.

five of the most important women in atlanta.

Have you hugged a newsie today? I have. Maybe you should, too.