Swinging for the fences: USC student builds digital skills on the path to a broadcasting career

Image credit: Raj Das.

Carlo Jiménez has called play-by-play from announcer’s booths at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Notre Dame Stadium, and even Hinkle Fieldhouse during the 2021 NCAA March Madness tournament.

Really impressive for a senior in college.

As a journalism major at the University of Southern California (USC) Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism, Jiménez is honing his craft with a goal of one day becoming a professional broadcaster. He announces men’s and women’s games for USC Trojan Athletics, covering football, basketball, baseball, soccer, volleyball, water polo, and lacrosse. He spends his summers calling college baseball games for organizations like the Cape Cod League and the West Coast League. He writes articles for the Daily Trojan newspaper.

His accomplishments have already led to acclaim. Jiménez was named to the Jim Nantz Award 2022 All-American First Team by the Sportscasters Talent Agency of America (STAA). He was the only junior in the group to receive recognition as a top collegiate sportscaster. He has also received the 2021 Chick Hearn Memorial Scholarship, named in honor of the famed Los Angeles Lakers broadcaster, and the Allan Malamud Scholarship, named after the longtime Los Angeles Times sports journalist.

But on-air experience is only part of what makes a great broadcaster. With digital mediums such as social media and streaming services becoming such an important way to connect with audiences, modern broadcasters need to do it all: editing video, creating clips, and updating social media accounts. “I know that a lot of companies and sports teams are asking broadcasters to do more than just broadcast, especially in entry-level jobs,” says Jiménez. “That’s why Adobe Creative Cloud apps are essential for what I do.”

Bringing a new level of quality to campus media

Jiménez had never used Adobe Creative Cloud apps prior to starting college, but he quickly recognized how important the apps would be to a broadcasting career. He took an Adobe Premiere Pro certification course his first year, supplemented by Adobe Premiere Pro and Adobe Illustrator training in his classes and at the Annenberg Digital Lounge. But for the most part, Jiménez is self-taught, picking up skills through YouTube and Adobe tutorial videos.

Jiménez says the common interfaces across the apps make it easy to pick up new creative skills. “Once you learn one Adobe app you can learn the rest,” he says, “because you know where to look for things.”

Today, Jiménez edits all of his audio, video, and images with Adobe Creative Cloud apps. He cuts audio clips, mixes audio, and listens back to his broadcasts with Adobe Audition. He edits video of his reporting and interviews with Adobe Premiere Pro. He uses Adobe Photoshop to create images of game broadcasts for USC’s MixCloud streaming site. And he’s dabbled in pamphlet design with Adobe Illustrator and logo animation with Adobe After Effects.

The apps have allowed Jiménez and the student radio team to make their streaming operation look sleeker and feel more professional. “When I called a recent game, I was able to cut an audio clip in Audition, line it up with the broadcast video in Premiere Pro, and put it out on Twitter really fast,” he says. “Now our radio station has a bigger presence — more people know about us — because things look better.”

Standing out from the competition with digital skills

Jiménez uses Adobe Creative Cloud apps for class projects as well. For one class, he created an audio-visual documentary about long-time MLB coach Joe Amalfitano. He used Adobe Audition to edit interview clips, and Adobe Photoshop to create slideshow images with text. Everything was brought together with Adobe Premiere Pro. “I was able to edit directly in Photoshop and Audition from Premiere Pro, going back and forth with a two-finger click, which saved a lot of time.”

As he looks to the future, Jiménez sees that his knowledge of Adobe Creative Cloud apps will help him distinguish himself in his field. He uses Adobe Creative Cloud apps to showcase his broadcasting and writing skills to potential employers via his personal website.

“Having digital skills makes me a more versatile candidate,” Jiménez says. “I can do a broadcast, but I can also create social media content, edit highlight reels, and more — and I can do it efficiently and well. Even when I have a quick turnaround, it’s fast and easy to deliver quality clips for employers. My skills using Adobe Creative Cloud have definitely helped me land jobs.”