Week Seven of winter term is full of activities for Duck TV. This week Duck TV is having a fundraiser hosted by Yogurt Extreme, as well as our weekly screening in Allen Hall where you can watch new episodes of News, Sports, and the creative shows Special Delivery and Social Skills.

On Thursday, February 20th, Yogurt Extreme on 13th Avenue is hosting a fundraiser for Duck TV. All you need to do is either bring in a flyer or show it to the cashier on your phone, enjoy some fro-yo and Duck TV will receive 25% of the proceeds. Flyers will be passed out by Duck TV members and can also be found attached to this article. This is a great opportunity for students on campus to support their campus television network.

On the previous episode of Social Skills, we met Mitch and James, friends who have completely opposite personalities. While Mitch is good with people and believes he knows everything, James is an introvert who is lacking in social skills. The show opens with Mitch and James discussing how coffee cups are the “catalyst of cute”. Then they run into two guys who know Mitch, but when introduced to James, James over complicates a simple handshake. Mitch then decides he is going to teach James some social skills with the help of their friend Lily who is introduced at the end of the episode.

In the first scene of Special Delivery, the audience is introduced to Cedric, the pizza man, who the show follows as he travels to different houses in Eugene. Someone dressed as a rat answers the door and is mistakenly under the impression that Cedric is a famous singer, Tom Petty. Cedric follows the rat inside the house and is given a slice of cheese instead of payment for the pizza he has delivered. Cedric then listens to the experiences of the lab rat family before they ask him to perform for them and he storms out.

Join Duck TV this week Wednesday in Allen 221 at 8pm to catch the second episodes of both Social Skills and Special Delivery. And don’t forget to swing by Yogurt Extreme on Thursday!

By Erin Coates

Women dominated in this week’s screenings. Both Franken Affairs and Link’d featured dramatic performances from prominent female characters. Though their roles are significantly different, both ladies left a lasting impression on-screen and off during their interviews.

I first spoke with Kristina Pflug, who plays Vina in Link’d. A senior advertising major from Greenwich, CT, Pflug exudes a natural vivacity that shines even through the somber circumstances of her character on the show. She laughs several times as she discusses her first experience with acting.

Q: What are some challenges that come with the character you portray?

A: One of the things that [are] hard is that she’s so mellow, happy, but mellow. And I’m not at all. The snow this past week was really bad, and there was that one scene where I had to run in the snow, and I kept slipping. I feel Vina is a kind of juxtaposition to Than, a flip of the coin. This week’s episode definitely shows the more somber side of the show. I think it’s supposed to be more of a dramedy than super serious all the time.

Q: What has your experience with a Duck TV production been like so far?

A: It’s really hard for me to get overwhelmed. This is the weirdest group of people I’ve ever been around, and the most welcoming group of people. The directors are always stressed, but they’re great at putting out an excellent product. They really try to make sure we have a great time. This show is their baby, and when they entrust that vision to you, it’s a big responsibility. Give them all the credit because they’re amazing!

Jessie Foster of Bend, OR also gave a thrilling performance in the second episode of Franken Affairs. Her talents are not relegated to the dramatic stage, however. She also serves as a news anchor for Duck TV. The sophomore journalism and political science major told me what it’s really like to play the fairest in the land.

Q: How do you relate to your character, if at all?

A: Deliah is really sweet and kind of innocent. I find her easy to relate to because she’s not super intense, and I definitely can be, so it’s a nice release, to be able to relax. I like to think of myself being like her, sort of sweet and very approachable. She’s not very loud, either, and she’s pretty humble.

Q: Why did you first get involved in Duck TV?

A: I joined last fall. I was on the news staff. This past summer I was involved in pageants, and I was rodeo queen. I had to do a lot of speaking and I found I really enjoyed it. When I came back this year, I wanted to see if broadcast journalism is what I wanted to do, so I joined the news staff. I actually just ended up checking the box that said I’d be willing to act, and it worked out. It’s such a fun group of people.

By Kaylee Tornay

After working 35 years in broadcast journalism, Rebecca Force is now one of the leading instructors at the University of Oregon’s School of Journalism and Communication.

Force initially earned a degree in biology, with a minor in geology, at Vassar College, before taking up a job as the account payable clerk for KPTV, a news station in Portland, OR. Two years later, Force started to pressure her superiors for a position in broadcast. “One might say I lucked into it. I really didn’t like accounting and I thought journalism would be incredibly fun.”

She started producing news stories the first day on the job. “I got thrown into the deep end of the pool.” Force said that learning to make an effective story, to engage people’s interests, is where the craft becomes interesting. “It doesn’t come overnight. You learn to write by writing,” she said.

As her career developed, Force said she felt a sense of accomplishment. “I don’t think that in covering small market television news you’re going to necessarily have the opportunity to cover the next Pulitzer Prize winning story,” she said “but I do think that you can earn a place of trust in letting a community know what is happening in it, to it, for it. That’s a real service.”

Force said she believes democracy is well served by the body of the populace knowing what is going on around them. “Quality news is important,” she said. “I have what I call the 50-year rule. If news is not done well today, it probably won’t make a difference tomorrow, but in 50 years it’ll make a difference. News needs to be done well.”
In the spring of 2010, Force was inducted into the National Academy of Television Arts and Science’s Silver Circle in honor of her years of service in television. “I was in credibly surprised. Most of the time that goes to people who work in the larger markets, but I guess if you’re around long enough you just might get it.”

As a journalism instructor at the University of Oregon, Force has taught several classes and is the advisor for Duck TV, the school’s student-produced television program. “I’m 67 years old. I could retire tomorrow, but I won’t because I am still connected to the student body here and to this institution.”

Force said she thinks storytelling is the most crucial aspect of how we connect to one another, and that her career in communication has been highly rewarding. “Journalism has sort of been my life and it has not been without great reward. I now get to work with young people and help them turn the key in their careers.”

Force plans on remaining active on campus for the foreseeable future. “I want to do that until I drop dead in front of a class, which I think will be incredibly good for the students. They will have to then cover that and report on it.”

By Garrett Guinn