Alumni Newsletter

| by Kyle Schimming, ’12

Broadcast alumnae Bliss Davis, ’10, has established herself as the daytime producer at WKEF-TV in Dayton, Ohio.

Davis used her time at BGSU volunteering on campus and completing internships to give her plenty of experience despite her young age.  “I spent a lot of time interning and doing just about anything I could to gain experience while in college,” Davis said.

That experience included four years at BG24 News and internships at WKYC in Cleveland and WBGU in Bowling Green.

Her internship at WBGU led to a job as a production assistant at the station while still working on her undergraduate studies. “I did a little bit of everything while I was there,” Davis said. “It was really good for me because I was able to get experience doing everything from the camera work to the website while I worked there.”

Davis said she felt very prepared to work in journalism after graduation. “A good thing about studying journalism at BG is that it puts you out into the journalism world early on,” Davis said. “Between the internships that are required and BG24 News, it makes it real-world friendly. It’s hard to graduate without knowing how the field is with so many options available.”

Journalism seemed like a natural fit early on for the Cleveland native. “I caught the journalism bug in middle school when I read a book where the main character was a journalist,” Davis said. “I’ve always been nosey, and I love to write. When I read the book I realized it was everything I wanted to do, and I’d also get paid for it.”

Davis, however, also liked science, and she first enrolled at BGSU as a biology major and briefly thought about education.

She eventually settled on broadcast journalism. “It’s real important to do what you like doing, because if you’re not then it will get old quickly,” Davis said. “This isn’t a job that you do for money but because you really enjoy doing it.”

Immediately after graduation, Davis landed a job in Midland, Texas, at KWES-TV, where she also worked as a producer. “I really liked what I did in Texas at my job, but it was definitely not a place I loved living,” Davis said. “It was such a desert. One day I was driving and tumbleweed actually blew out in front of my car like what you’d see in the movies.”

In 2011, the job in Dayton brought her back to Ohio.

Davis has advice for students pursuing a journalism career. “I encourage all students to jump into it as early as you can to make sure you’re doing what you really enjoy doing,” Davis said. “Don’t be afraid to talk to as many people as you can and get help. Most will be willing to help you out.”

That includes Davis, who has always been willing to help others.

While at BGSU, she was part of a project that allowed her to travel to Rogers High School, an inner city school in Toledo, to teach journalism to the students. “As a young African-American woman, she was a great role model for the Rogers students,” project coordinator Kelly Taylor said. “She got them excited about the power of the press and the impact they could make on their school and in society.”

Her willingness to give back is also evident in future career goals. Davis wants to one day work to produce humanitarian projects that focus on African-American and Latino issues in America. “I want to do projects that look into people and the issues they are having,” Davis said. “Those type of special stories can do a lot of good.”