Behind the Set of Atomic TV - By Josh Woodard
Richland High’s Atomic TV might sound to some like an exploding TV, but to the Richland High students and Alumni, it is truly something special. Atomic TV is a program at Richland High School that provides the school with announcements and live streams of all of Richland's home sporting events. Over the years, Atomic TV has grown into the program that we see today and has had a big impact on the school and community. As a student Athlete at Richland, I see what gets put into the streams and all the time students and teachers spend preparing. I wanted to write about this amazing program because I believe they don’t get enough credit for all the hard work they put in.
A teacher at Richland, Sean Murphy, started Atomic TV in the 2009-2010 school year. When I had a chance to speak with Mr. Murphy, he told me that before he started YouTube announcements, the school's ASB officers would have to go to the office and speak over the intercom to inform the school. Murphy thought that having the officers head down to the office was very inefficient and wanted to provide an easier and better way to get the announcements to the students. Murphy states how he always wanted to have announcements over the radio because that is what he did during his high school time, but he did YouTube instead because it was more modern. I also asked Mr. Murphy why he started Atomic TV, and he told me he wanted to provide it for people who didn't live here to be able to watch sporting events. My family members watch many of the live streams because they are out of town or getting to the age where it is easier to watch from home. Live streams also benefit the athletes because they can use it as a way of watching film. When speaking to Eastern Washington soccer commit Bella Bunnage, I asked her what she likes most about Atomic TV, and she said, “I love the fact that my grandparents are able to watch all the way from Canada.” I also asked her if the ability to rewatch games on Atomic TV has helped her become a better soccer player. She responded, “It helps correct my mistakes and learn from them to better myself for the next game.”
Since the 2009-2010 school year, Atomic TV has become a staple of Richland High. Murphy told me he never imagined that the program would be what it is today. He talked about how the entire idea of live-streaming sporting events and YouTube announcements had made its way down to the middle schools. The final question that I asked Mr. Murphy was, “What impacts have the students had on building the program and keeping the program going?” He told me the students have been an enormous part of Atomic TV. He named Karen Chhokar, a Richland graduate who was a freshman in 2009 when the program started. Mr. Murphy spoke highly of Chhokar and told me he was the one who helped build the YouTube channel. Flash forward during COVID, students were more critical than ever. During the COVID athletics, the Atomic TV crew filmed 121 streams in 90 days. They had to film not only varsity games but also freshman and JV games because very few people were allowed to attend the games. Hours before games, Atomic TV students were and still are down at the stadium or in the gym setting up for the sporting events that they are filming that night.
After the COVID year, Atomic TV’s live streams took off, with all fifty of their most watched live streams being after 2021. The number of streamers has grown over the years, and the highest watched game was 5,933 viewers when Atomic TV went to the Spokane Arena for the boys' basketball district tournament in the 2021-2022 season. This program has had many incredible live streams, with some being traveling with the basketball team to Utah and being a part of the State Basketball Tournament. This year, Atomic TV has received the green light to film the state championships for football at Husky Stadium. These kids put in lots of time and effort, and that's why they are able to travel and film all these outstanding events. I play football and show up to the games three hours before a 7:00 p.m. kickoff, and I can see broadcast kids already up the inbox getting their cameras and monitors set up. A big change in the streams Atomic TV has made is a live announcer during sporting events. One of my good friends, Max Schuster, is the announcer on Atomic TV, and he wants to go into announcing when he gets older. This gives watchers more of a normal stream because students announce the games like they do on TV. Max has been a part of the program since his sophomore year of high school and is now a senior continuing to announce for Atomic TV as the lead student for the program, taking over from Tanner True. Tanner True is a 2023 Richland graduate who is now attending Washington State University, where he is studying broadcast production. True was one of those guys who put in countless hours and didn’t receive much credit. True was the most important student Atomic TV has had over the years, as he took the live streams from average to arguably one of the best in the state. Tanner's ability to enhance live game graphics and add instant replays to the live streams made the games more entertaining for viewers. Tanner and Max both want to go into broadcasting, and this shows that the Atomic TV program provides a head start on learning about their career choice.
Atomic TV has now been passed to Tait Meyer, another teacher at Richland High School, because Mr. Murphy underwent surgery last year, which made it harder for him to be involved with the program. Meyer has tons of experience with broadcasting as he travels around the United States broadcasting hydroplane races. Atomic TV is in good hands with Meyer, and the program is going to continue to get better. I’m looking forward to seeing where Atomic TV is headed in the future.
