David Ballerstein demonstrates camera operation to a trainee from the Future Farmers of Amercia.
David Ballerstein, Communications Specialist, Marshfield Broadcasting
The November Producer of the Month has been interested in radio and television broadcasting going all the way back to 1993 while living in Wisconsin Rapids. David Ballerstein discovered Wisconsin Rapids Public Access Channel 4 when he was in middle school and fell in love with producing community TV. “I didn’t know there was a thing like that. Mind you I was 12 years old at that point and I got to do in-studio programs, baseball games and [much] more.” Now he works as a Communications Specialist for the City of Marshfield.
“Working in PEG [Public, Education and Government Access TV] today is more than just making shows, interviews, and live programs,” Ballerstein said. “It’s a way to connect to those that need information that is so desired nowadays. At the end of the day, even if I or others in the PEG world makes just one person more informed, educated and connected to the community – job well done.”
After graduating from Colby High School, Ballerstein moved on to work in commercial television at a station in Wausau. “There was an opening at WSAW NewsChannel 7 in Wausau for a camera operator. That was the foot in the door I needed to get in the field. The early morning shift started at 3 a.m., getting the studio ready and cleaned, and getting lights up to full temp. Ripping 200 pages of script was never fun, but I was in a place where enjoyed what I did. After a few years I moved up to master control operator and newsroom videographer.”
Under the direction of the City of Marshfield’s Communications Director Tom Loucks, Ballerstein oversees three community cable channels, brings government meetings to audiences live, produces programming, and encourages community members to produce their own shows. Loucks said, “I quickly learned that David was like finding a needle in a haystack and put his skills to work. I also learned a lot from him about the broadcasting industry. He understands both sides of community TV, engineering, and production, which is a huge asset.”
Ballerstein is the “go-to” person for the more IT aspects of video production, which he has been interested in for a long time. When he took the position in Marshfield, he brought along a video sharing platform that he developed while working at Wisconsin Rapids Community Media (then called River Cities Community Access) that enables community producers to submit their programs easily to the station and hold raw footage while they work on their productions.
Last year when Wisconsin Community Media (WCM) was researching upgrade options to its state-wide program sharing platform, Ballerstein volunteered to customize this platform for WCM’s use. He’s been working with WCM Executive Director Mary Cardona for the last several months to get the video sharing platform up and running. “When WCM put out this question on looking for a replacement for MediaFire, I gave my pitch,” said Ballerstein. “A group of people tested it out and liked it.” Producers can upload shows quickly, input descriptions, and announce to members that a new show has dropped. People looking for shows can preview shows in the library, easily report to producers they are running it on their channels and download large files at fast speeds.
The roll-out did not go entirely smoothly according to Ballerstein. “I messed things up on it twice [while bringing it online having to do with the strict online security technicalities required] and learned more about computer code.” As a result, the system’s debut was delayed a month, but it has been up and running since October 1. WCM member media centers and independent producer members (producers who are not associated with a member media center) have access to the system called WCM File Share.
If you are a “key” person at a member media center or an Independent Producer member, you can see the video sharing platform in action by going to the member home page and clicking WCM File Share.
Ballerstein is excited about its potential. “This is a real server that we all own together, it’s a tool we all can use to share our passion with others and share stories that mend the fabric across all our communities across Wisconsin.”
“We should all be proud of what we do as a group and for each other, and this is my way of doing my part to help others. I did not do it for myself. This is a way for me to give back to all of you.”
- James Wyngaard
