WNUR Sports Director Cameron Songer talks about his experience as a broadcaster with WNUR Sports.

“You get out what you put in.” As a journalist and broadcaster, you are frequently told to avoid clichés. Sometimes, cliché is just unavoidable.

If there is a better example of “you get out what you put in” at Northwestern than WNUR Sports, I haven’t seen it. Our staff comes from all over the country, from different schools within Northwestern, and with different strengths and interests. Everyone shares the same passion for Northwestern athletics and a desire to broadcast, but not everyone can devote the same amount of time to that pursuit.

There are countless organizations on this campus that offer journalistic experience or a sense of camaraderie or even the opportunity to travel around the region to improve your skills. But WNUR Sports is unique in the way it welcomes new members. In a field that requires plenty of practice and specialized skill, WNUR Sports allows anyone to join and have opportunities to get on the air in their first weeks on staff. Our meetings are set up to help everyone improve their broadcasting techniques, but are also a time each week to catch up with friends and hang out.

As one of the sports directors this year (and an exec board member each of the previous two years), the time I have spent on WNUR Sports has increased every year to the point that it’s my biggest commitment outside of academics right now. The best part about it is that it doesn’t usually feel like work. I have lost count of the times that I have been preparing for a broadcast by researching players and teams, only to find that two hours or more had passed in a flash. In contrast, doing homework for some of my classes can make time crawl to a near stop for me.

While WNUR Sports gives on-air opportunities to everybody who is willing to try, the biggest broadcasts of the year are reserved for the upperclassmen and leaders of the staff. Those opportunities are unforgettable. We send a crew to every home and away football and women’s basketball game, as well as many home and away men’s basketball games. I have been fortunate enough to witness some great Northwestern moments in the last three years and I’m even more fortunate to say I’ve been on the broadcast for many of them. WNUR Sports has taken me to historic venues like Assembly Hall in Bloomington, Indiana and Beaver Stadium in State College, Pennsylvania. Broadcasting Wildcat wins at those places are memories I cherish for the rest of my life.

A donation to WNUR Sportsathon supports opportunities for future broadcasters to make special memories during their time at Northwestern. Students on our hardworking staff put in as much effort as they can while balancing academic success and other obligations. Generous support from our fans help us get the most out of that effort.