“She had a fabulous work ethic. She did not like being on the air, but she loved directing.”
“I really liked being in charge.”
“When I got the word Saturday night that she had won it was a thrill for me because I love seeing my students do well outside of the program.”
“Mr. B was huge, he was really supportive. You don’t always find people really taking an interest in your life.”
“She was one of these people that would make people better around her.”
“It was one of those things where you feel like what you’re doing matters.”
Kacee Farmer graduated from Union in 2014 with a degree in media communications. She tells me that she can’t believe it’s been five years already, that it goes by so fast. I laughed, admitting that there are days when it feels like it won’t go fast enough. There are days when the alarm goes off way too early and you don’t get to go to bed as soon as you would like to. These are the days that feel long and make time feel as though it is crawling by.
If anyone is familiar with alarms that go off way too early, it’s Farmer. Soon after graduating from Union, Farmer was picked up by Channel 5 News out of Nashville to produce the 4 a.m. newscast. That means that she was up working during all hours of the night in order to make that happen. She worked that shift for a year and a half.
“That was the worst year of my life,” Farmer said. “But I learned so much, it paid off. In our generation we hear a lot of ‘don’t do a job you hate, make sure you love your job,’ but I think there is something to be said for working your way up.”
Following that year, Farmer was moved to the 5 a.m. newscast. She produced that newscast for nine months before she was moved to the 6 a.m. newscast. After producing the 6 a.m. newscast for nine months, she is now producing the 6 p.m. newscast, the top rated newscast in the station.
“I needed someone to take a chance on me,” Farmer said. “Don’t ever turn down a job because it’s not the hours you want. People can tell when you’re willing to work hard for something.”
Farmer was the president of the Broadcasting Society during her time at Union.
“Kacee flourished in producing newscasts, structuring broadcasts and selecting stories,” said Steve Beverly, associate professor of communication arts at Union.
Her hard work, both in school and in her career, has certainly not gone unnoticed. Farmer is one of five graduates from Union’s broadcasting program to win an Emmy.
The Emmy Academy is divided into many chapters. Farmer is a part of the mid-south chapter, which includes Tennessee, as well as parts of North Carolina and Alabama. You pay to be a member in the chapter that you’re a part of depending on your region, and the news station you work for submits entries.
When it comes time for the Emmys, the managers will select the shows you submit to them that they like. They pick one newscast for each category that they will sponsor. The station then pays the Emmy entry fee for the newscasts that they choose to sponsor; however, others may pay their own entry fee and enter their newscasts as well. Farmer’s managers chose to sponsor one of her newscasts and paid her entry fee.
Six months later, the submissions are sent to other news stations in the Pacific Northwest. These stations will assign point values in metrics and send those in. The entries are then reviewed and the top five newscasts that received the most points are nominated for an Emmy. Finally, following the nominations, the Emmy awards ceremony is held and the winner is announced.
Farmer was nominated and won an Emmy in the Newscast Morning category for her newscast about the Waffle House shooting manhunt.
“It was a little awkward to give a really happy acceptance speech, I’ll tell you that,” she said.
Accomplishing such a task has been no easy journey for Farmer. There are a lot of sacrifices that have to be made in order to truly give something all of your attention and effort. Farmer has sacrificed time, sleep and relationships. This past month is the first time she has ever gone to sleep at the same time as her husband. They’ve been married a little over two years. Her career comes first, and the people she surrounds herself with know that.
“You find ways to make it work, it pays off. You make sure the people that you’re with appreciate and value your priorities.”
Being a passive person makes it extremely hard to be successful. You have to be a decision maker, and you have to be confident in those decisions. Beverly explained to me that he saw leadership in Farmer when she was at Union. That’s what it takes to be a producer. Producers have to be good, strong leaders. Farmer in no way fell short of this requirement.
I asked Farmer if she thought her time at Union prepared her for the “real world,” or for the challenges she would face when she left college. She explained to me that she doesn’t think anyone is really prepared when they graduate college, but that Union prepared her the best that it could have. She said that the faculty at Union really gave her a chance to pursue her own ideas, that they really believe in dreams.
“Every season is special,” she said, and she made the most out of the season she was given at Union.
“It’s all about being intentional with your career, friends and relationships. You work for it hard enough, and it will happen.”
“Kacee’s success as a producer was no surprise to me at all because she had it written all over her.”
