Southeastern student named state's top student broadcaster
Thursday, April 19, 2018 
by: Tonya Lowentritt
BEST IN THE STATE – Wesley Boone, a Southeastern Louisiana University senior from Alexandria, was named Student Broadcaster of the Year by the Louisiana Association of Broadcasters recently at its 2018 Prestige Awards luncheon. A sports anchor/reporter for the Southeastern Channel, Boone is the fourth Southeastern Channel student to win the award in the five years it has been given.
HAMMOND – For the fourth time in the past five years, a Southeastern Louisiana
University student has been named the state’s top college broadcaster.
Wesley Boone, a senior from Alexandria, was named 2018 Louisiana Student Broadcaster
of the Year by the Louisiana Association of Broadcasters (LAB) at its annual Prestige
Awards luncheon.
Boone was selected from all college television and radio students from throughout
the state by the LAB, made up of all television and radio professionals and stations
in Louisiana.
“It’s huge and humbling that out of all the students who submitted their best
work, someone thought my work stood out. That’s mind-blowing to me,” Boone said. “I
try to do the best I can with everything the Southeastern Channel assigns me, and
it’s awesome that other people recognize it.”
Boone joins former Southeastern Channel reporters Erika Ferrando (2014), now
at KTHV Ch. 11 (CBS) in Little Rock, Ark.; Paul Rivera (2015), currently at WIS-TV
Ch. 10 (NBC) in Columbia, S.C.; and Dominique Brogle (2016), now at KTBS-TV Ch. 7
(ABC) in Shreveport, as previous Southeastern Channel winners of the award. A Southeastern
student has won the award in all but one year since the award was established in 2014.
“Wesley is a major on-camera talent with an original, unique style that flows
naturally from his engaging personality,” said Southeastern Channel General Manager
Rick Settoon. “He’s extremely entertaining and humorous, while at the same time an
incredibly creative storyteller who always delivers the most important information.
His writing, shooting and editing skills are stellar, and viewers love him. The career
that lies ahead for him is tremendous.”
All previous winners of the award have been news reporters. Boone is the first
sports reporter chosen. He was presented the LAB award by the Prestige Awards emcee,
former LSU sports play-by-play announcer Jim Hawthorne.
Boone is a sports anchor/reporter for the Southeastern Channel’s “The Big Game,”
recently honored as first in the nation for student sportscasts by College Broadcasters,
Inc. He also handles play-by-play and color commentary for Southeastern Channel football,
basketball, baseball and softball live game broadcasts. In addition, Boone produces,
writes and directs sketches and vignettes for the student comedy show “College Night”
and short films for the student film show “Cinematheque.”
“I went to three other schools before I came to Southeastern, and I wasn’t satisfied
or happy,” Boone said. “I started looking into schools where I could do what I enjoy,
which is tell stories. After looking into the Southeastern Channel, I discovered that
I can shoot skits and short films and work in sports broadcasting all under one roof.
If you’re someone who has multiple interests when it comes to video production, wants
to work in sports, and wants to work in news, it’s all there at the Southeastern Channel,
and it’s waiting for you.”
Boone recently won a second-place “Mark of Excellence” award from the Society
of Professional Journalists for “Television Sports Reporting.” He has also been named
a Finalist for 2018 Louisiana-Mississippi Associated Press College Broadcasters Awards
for “Best Sports Story,” “Best Feature Story,” and “Best Sports Videography.”
The Southeastern Channel has won over 300 national, international, regional and
state awards in the past 14 years, including 15 awards from the Emmys. The channel
can be seen on Charter Spectrum 199 in Tangipahoa, St. Tammany, Livingston and St.
Helena parishes. A live 24/7 webcast along with video on demand can be seen at www.thesoutheasternchannel.com. The Southeastern Channel is also on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
