Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, January 20, 1994 TAG: 9401200375
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: S-9 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: NANCY BELL STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
The 25-year-old television sports researcher, whose father is principal at Monterey, covers the Olympics and other sporting events for CBS news and ESPN - in France, China, and soon in Norway.
During the last Olympic games, in Alberville, France, Bell phoned in Olympic updates to Monterey students assembled in the school library. He has promised to do the same in February, when he will be working behind the scenes for CBS sports at the Olympic games in Norway.
"The students will be able to ask him questions about the country, the people and the games themselves, and he will provide immediate feedback," George Bell said.
"The world is becoming a global village. We are attempting to prepare children for the real world. Deaton will be the voice from the other side of the world."
In Norway, Bell will monitor bobsled and luge events and hunt down stories about athletes and the games. From his home in Atlanta, Bell, who majored in broadcast journalism at the University of North Carolina, has begun researching the athletes' lives and the history of the two sports he has been assigned to cover.
Some of Bell's research will serve as color commentary for on-air reporters and on-camera reporters Paula Zahn and Harry Smith. Some, such as medal counts and other statistics, will be used to produce on-air graphics. The rest will become part of The Olympic Journal, a daily newsletter for people working behind the scenes.
The fact that he is a free-lance researcher means he can pick and choose assignments and learn much about many different things, he said.
"I can remember being 10 or 11 and suddenly deciding that I wanted to be a writer - especially if I could write about sports."
About a year later, Bell, a soccer enthusiast, won a trip to California when his first piece of writing was published in Soccer Corner magazine.
"As I grew older, I became more interested in broadcast journalism." After college, Bell applied and reapplied at CBS, eventually landing a job as a runner at the Alberville games.
"Knowing a little about a lot of different things has served me well," Bell told fourth graders at Monterey.
"It's important to find out what you don't want to do as much as what you do want to do," said Bell, who admits refocusing his career several times.
Bell once interned at CNN and for an Atlanta radio station. "Internships open doors and provide an opportunity to try a career," he said. "Don't be afraid to sharpen pencils, bring coffee, because one day you'll get the chance to prove yourself."
Although Bell worked hard landing his first CBS job, he readily admits he got a lucky break.
"I was literally in the right place at the right time." He was promoted from runner to researcher during the Alberville Olympics when a replacement was needed for a sick staff member.
"The Olympics are an amazing experience," Bell said. "The games bring people of different countries together. The cultural interaction is a very positive thing."
Representatives from each class at Monterey will participate in Bell's live question-and-answer sessions from Norway in February.
by CNB