Courtesy Charleston Gazette

(January 25, 2010) The broadcast star of the future just might be on the airwaves in our area today. STAA client Adam Cavalier is winning awards, logging airtime and learning the ropes. And he's catching the eye (or should we say "ear") of national media talent scouts.

Montgomery native Cavalier, 23, got his start as the public-address announcer for Charleston Catholic High School sports teams. A student and faculty favorite, it was a perfect fit. After high school, he headed to Huntington.

"I really didn't decide to go into broadcasting until I got to Marshall," Cavalier said. "I knew I wanted to go into journalism, particularly in sports, after I spent time behind the mic as the PA announcer for Charleston Catholic basketball and baseball.

"I had no clue whether I wanted to do print or broadcast when I got to Marshall. Janet Dooley, the assistant dean for the J-school, was running the orientation that day and asked whether I wanted to be print or broadcast; it was just by happenstance that I chose broadcast that day. I've been off and running ever since," he said.

As an undergraduate, Cavalier racked up the kudos. Awards included the 2009 National Radio Broadcast News Championship; second place in the Hearst Foundation awards ("the gran'daddy of all news reporting competitions," according to Cavalier); the 2009 Radio Sportscaster of the Year; Honorable Mention Reporter and Anchor of the Year by the West Virginia Associated Press; Best Sports Play-by-Play by the National Broadcasting Society, Davey Awards, 2008-2009; 2008 Radio Broadcast Journalist of the Year and Reporter of the Year by the West Virginia Associated Press and the Dean's List from 2005-2009. He graduated summa cum laude.

But the most coveted, and highest, honor Cavalier received was the 2009 Jim Nantz Award, presented by Sportscasters Talent Agency of America to the nation's most outstanding collegiate sports broadcaster.

How did it feel to be named top in the college field?

"It's gratifying, mainly because half the time I listen to myself I get angry because I perceive I messed something up," Cavalier said. "However, for other industry professionals, all of whom I have a strong sense of admiration for, to think I'm the nation's best among college students, well, that's pretty darn sweet."

Cavalier isn't really drawn to television like many young sportscasters today.

"Radio has a bit of mystique about it. I love being able to paint a picture for a listener, whether it is with a play-by-play or with a news feature," he said. "I will never rule out TV, but if I can have my pick, I'll take radio. I see the Web blending with both of those; if I'm doing radio, I'll also be involved with the Web."

Now in graduate school at Marshall, Cavalier is the station manager for WMUL-FM as well as the voice of Marshall women's basketball. He's the son of David and Jean Cavalier of Montgomery.

His master's thesis ties into his plans for the future -- how a Web presence for a media entity affects listenership/viewership of major sportscasts.

Corley Dennison, dean of the Marshall University School of Journalism and Mass Communications, called Cavalier an exceptional student. "He's a great kid -- very talented," Dennison said.

"Adam has true skill as a play-by-play announcer. When you hear Adam on the air, he sounds like a large-media-market professional."

Dennison said the Huntington/Charleston broadcast market was established at the very start of television news, making it a breeding ground for journalists.

"WSAZ was started in 1949, and it was a 'pre-freeze' station," established before the Federal Communications Commission's control over the markets," Dennison said. "Then WCHS came along in 1954. We were established very early as an important market, and those stations realized the economic power of local news."

Dennison pointed to the innovation by WSAZ to have a "dual" broadcast from two cities, started with a grant from AT&T to experiment with the split anchor desks in Huntington and Charleston.

"Huntley and Brinkley copied the concept on 'The NBC Nightly News,'" Dennison said.

"We had a school of journalism in place when WSAZ came on, so we've been able to work with the stations through internships and other programs. Every student does 300 hours of work in the field to get three credit hours. They leave here with a portfolio of work," Dennison said. "We really feel that has helped our students get jobs."

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