‘Daily Buzz’ gets big dose of UW-Green Bay

Daily_BuzzThree of the four finalists in a regional search for next local entertainment reporter for “The Daily Buzz” news show had one thing in common—they were all students from the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.

Not only that… One finalist already has a UW-Green Bay degree in communication and the other two are students seeking communication degrees.

All three, even, have worked for the UW-Green Bay student newspaper.

Kristen Rietz“The Daily Buzz” is a nationally syndicated talk/news program on the CW network. The Northeastern Wisconsin affiliate, WIWB TV-14, airs local cut-ins during the national show.

Enter students Kristen Rietz, Kari Merchant and Josh Palubicki, who made the final four of a regional audition. It was Rietz who won the position as entertainment reporter for The Daily Buzz’s “Buzzed into the (920),” the local segment.

“Having three of the four finalists come from UW-Green Bay’s Communication program really shows the strength of not only the program, but the students we have enrolled in the program,” said Prof. Tim Meyer, Communication chair. “This is one of the payoffs for our program’s attention to combining classroom principles with real world situations; it gives our communication students a competitive edge.”

Rietz, a Communication Processes degree-holder who is back at UW-Green Bay working on a second degree in History, is excited about the new gig and wants to “tap people in on what’s going on in the area.”

“I just want to find those stories that haven’t been told yet, and find a lot of fun stories that people otherwise might not hear about,” she said during an interview on the station’s website.

Rietz, of Sobieski, worked for the Fourth Estate student newspaper and was a host on the student-run news show, “Phoenix Connexion.”

Kari MerchantMerchant, a junior from Sturgeon Bay majoring in Communication with an emphasis in electronic media, also worked for the Fourth Estate and interned at WFRV, CBS Channel 5, in Green Bay. She is a current host of “Phoenix Connexion.” Merchant had an earlier claim-to-fame by winning more than $122,000 and two trips on the TV game show “Wheel of Fortune,” in 2006.

Josh Palubicki Palubicki also spent time with the Fourth Estate and had a communications internship at Integrys. He is from Pelican Lake, Wis., and participated with Big Brothers, Big Sisters. Palubicki is majoring in Communication with journalism and public relations areas of emphasis, and minoring in Corporate Communication.

The contest featured online voting and an audition at Bay Park Square Mall. Rietz was announced the winner on Nov. 13.

For more see a CW Channel video here.