A WTCI film about a Chattanooga boxing program that serves at-risk youth has been nominated for a Midsouth Regional Emmy Award by the Nashville/Midsouth Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.
Shaun Townley, vice president of content and digital strategy, and Emily Compton, senior producer, were nominated in the Documentary/Topical category for "Fighting for Change," a part of the local PBS station's ongoing Greater Chattanooga series. Bo Wheeler served as photographer for the production.
"For the Fallen," another part of the Greater Chattanooga series, won an Emmy Award in 2017.
"WTCI's dedicated production staff serves their community every day, telling the stories that make our region unique, educating, engaging and inspiring a lifetime of learning in all of our neighbors," said WTCI President and CEO Paul Grove.
"Fighting for Change" focuses on the team at the YMCA's Y-CAP Boxing Club, which uses a model of early intervention and prevention programming for youth ages 10-15 who are referred through the juvenile court system or the school system. Each student and their family have a personalized treatment plan that addresses their educational, behavioral and spiritual needs, including mentoring, hot meals, family nights and group therapy as methods for combating juvenile crime. Participants learn discipline, self-control, coordination and teamwork. The club has produced dozens of national and world championship titles, 14 Golden Gloves titles, three professional boxers and one team manager for the 2008 Olympic Games.
There were 76 television stations, production companies and independent producers nominated for Midsouth Regional Emmys this year. Winners will be announced at the 33rd annual gala at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center in Nashville on Feb. 16.
Compton, who produced and edited the film, has won three Emmy Awards: in 2014 for her work on the spot "One With Courage" for the Children's Advocacy Center of Hamilton County, in 2016 as producer of "From the Streets to the Stage," a hourlong WTCI documentary, and in 2017 as associate producer on the Greater Chattanooga film "For the Fallen." A Chattanooga native and graduate of Hollins University, Compton began at WTCI as a student intern and is now producer of the interview series "The A List With Alison Lebovitz."
Townley, a Chickamauga, Georgia, native, has served at WTCI since 2007 and was among 25 producers selected to attend the CPB/PBS Producer's Academy in Boston in 2013. He has earned two Emmy Awards as executive producer of "From the Streets to the Stage" and the Greater Chattanooga film "For the Fallen." As vice president of content and digital strategy, he has spearheaded WTCI's local programming, including the development of the Emmy Award-winning short-film series, Greater Chattanooga.