The Mackinac Center reaches people through various means, including the media.
Our communications team and policy staff share their research findings and views with reporters, editors and producers. We reach new audiences each day, whether by giving a quote for a story in The Detroit News, providing background information for a Wall Street Journal editorial, or doing a live radio interview on Michigan’s Big Show with Michael Patrick Shiels.
Many people also learn about the Mackinac Center from seeing us on TV!
The television landscape is evolving. Gone are the days of driving to a studio in Flint or Detroit to do a five-minute interview. Many shows were starting to shift away from in-person interviews before the pandemic, favoring the convenience of virtual interviews. Since then, interviews via Zoom or Skype have become the norm for most news stations.
Over the last few years, it became clear that we needed a higher-quality setup to do these interviews.
The Mackinac Center had explored the idea of building a studio for years, and thanks to the generosity of supporters of the Frank Beckmann Center for Journalism, we were finally able to make that dream a reality.
In fall 2023, we started to transform a publication and mail supplies storage room into a studio. Keeping external noise out of the studio was important, so we walled off a window, installed sound-proofing materials in the drywall and added a door that blocked out the sounds of a busy hallway. To make sure everyone looks good on camera, we replaced harsh fluorescent lights with adjustable ceiling lights, as well as some stand- based lights.
When no one is using the room for television, it is available for sit-down interviews, episodes of the Overton Window podcast and even virtual events. It’s equipped with two 4k cameras, wireless microphones, IFB earpieces and a control panel that pulls everything together. With our HD TV, we can put up any background, whether it be the state Capitol, the Detroit skyline, or the Midland Tridge.
In the past month, we’ve used the studio for appearances on ABC 12, CBS Detroit, Mid- Michigan Now, WOOD-TV and WXYZ. We’re continuing to expand our television outreach, so be on the lookout next time you turn on the news. You might just see a familiar face from the Mackinac Center.
