News Release
Teradek
www.teradek.com
For release May 5, 2020
Teradek Cube Streams News to the California Bread Basket for @centralvalleytv
Carlos Rodriguez and his partner Gabby Muro
It’s been just over a decade since Carlos Rodriguez stepped in and rescued a floundering California Central Valley television station from likely extinction. The young
news journalist looked at the broadcast options for his humble agricultural community that was desperately in need of local news sources. He dipped his toe into live streaming but it was Facebook Live and other social media that gave him the opportunity to reach audiences previously unheard of.
Broadcasting on social media has its benefits. Whereas news in Central Valley would typically travel slowly due to the lack of news networks and logistics required to set up satellites, Rodriguez takes out his Panasonic HPX3100 and Teradek Cube encoder and streams to Facebook within minutes, beating big media outlets that still use satellite. Having a trusted news source like Central Valley TV is vital in the face of a pandemic.
“I’ve been on the front lines of this whole COVID-19 situation since the week after the
Super Bowl. I took several assignments daily, from working at Travis AFB in Fairfield
reporting on quarantined cruise ship passengers, to interviewing some after they were
cleared and released.”
He explains that the need for live streaming is critically important in today’s situation. “People are consuming information and data as quick as they can that helps them
determine what decisions they need to make in their daily lives during the stay at home recommendations. Residents want to know where they can pick up supplies if needed,
where they can find groceries if one outlet is sold out, etc.”
CVTV is more than just a news source. They’ve been using their live streaming capabilities to serve their community where possible. “Recently when Governor Newsom issued stay at home orders, the local food bank had to cancel their biggest fundraiser of
the year,” Rodrigues reported. “It was sold out, so they were greatly disappointed. In less
than 48 hours, we planned a virtual auction that we live-streamed to their Facebook
page. They were extremely happy with the results. It felt great to lend a hand.”
He calls today, “The wild west” filled with long days that keep Carlos and his partner
Gabby Muro busy, like the nurses strike and the outbreak of 90 new Coronavirus cases
at the local senior home. The fact that CVTV reports breaking news is a service that the
community really appreciates, especially during these grueling economic times. CVTV
has no paywall for its viewers and has been 100% free from the start.
Rodriguez and his partner have less resources and staff than traditional large broadcast
stations so he chooses gear that’s easy for a small team to use, scalable, and won’t let
them down. “We use a 600 Series Cube along with Live:Air Action. It is super portable,
easy to use and streams straight to our Facebook page without a hitch. We were early
adopters of Teradek since the beginning, and we still use our first gen unit from time to
time. We love having these units in our arsenal!”
The Teradek Cube encoder has been a popular device used by production companies,
broadcasters, and even local government offices as a means to deliver important
information quickly and reliably. The HEVC and H.264 codecs offer unparalleled image
quality for live streaming, IP video, and point-to-point needs.
CVTV is about to move to a new headquarters nearby in Stockton, where Rodriguez
says, “We will continue to grow and serve the community any way we can.”
For more information contact www.teradek.com
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For additional photos and other news, please go to www.aboutthegear.com
Information Prepared by Lewis Communications: susan@lewiscommunications.net