Case Study: Whitney High School achieves professional, award-winning daily newscast with Telestream Wirecast

Whitney High School Where the News is Unleashed Every Day

Whitney High School’s award‑winning broadcast media program, led by teacher Ben Barnholdt, grew from almost no equipment into a professional student-run station (WCTV19) that produces the daily 15‑minute newscast Unleashed. The main challenge was funding and building a real‑world production environment that teaches classroom‑to‑career skills while delivering polished daily and remote broadcasts on a tight budget.

The team solved this by leveraging cost‑efficient tools—most notably Telestream’s Wirecast (won as a prize)—plus inventive fundraising, donated gear, and a new mobile production trailer. Using a Wirecast‑driven, NDI‑based workflow and student teams for studio and remote roles, they now stream to cable and social platforms, have won multiple national awards, and consistently prepare students for media careers with hands‑on production experience.

Whitney High School

Ben Barnholdt

Teacher/Director of the Broadcast Media Program