SVG Sit-Down: NESN's All-Women Front Bench for Men's Hockey East Championship Talks Career Paths, Production Philosophies, the Future Key advice: learn all you can about every part of production By Jason Dachman, Chief Editor
Tuesday, March 22, 2022 - 1:25 pm
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
During NESN's coverage of the Men's Hockey East Tournament Semifinals and Final at TD Garden in Boston last weekend, the front bench was composed entirely of women. NESN Senior Producer Amy Johnson, NESN Coordinating Director Rose Mirakian, and Program Productions Inc. (PPI) Technical Director Michelle Schlickman produced the games for college hockey fans in New England and beyond.
This was not the first time the three have worked together in game production, having been at the front bench for a handful of Boston Bruins games and the Beanpot Championship for NESN in the past couple of years. While women-led live sports productions have become more common in the industry (including a recent ESPN NBA production and NBC Sports LPGA broadcast), the hope is that women at the front bench (and throughout the control room) will become ubiquitous.
Following last weekend's games, SVG sat down with Johnson, Mirakian, and Schlickman to discuss how they got started in the industry, their live-production philosophies, advice they have for other women in the industry, and their hopes for the sports-production industry in the future.
NESN's front bench for Men's Hockey East Championship: (from left) NESN's Amy Johnson and Rose Mirakian and PPI's Michelle Schlickman
How did you get started in the sports-broadcasting industry, and what has your career trajectory been?
Amy Johnson: I started working in production at the student TV station at Syracuse and interned with the Red Sox broadcast before my senior year. After a year in local news and as a sideline reporter in minor-league baseball, I started at NESN as a production assistant. Since then, I've been an associate producer, pre/postgame producer, and in-game graphics producer. Currently, I am a senior producer in remote, working primarily on Red Sox broadcasts and college hockey.
Rose Mirakian: I graduated from Emerson College with an interdisciplinary major in television and dance. I started as a receptionist at NESN in 1984. After my day shifts, I often stayed to observe the productions out of our NESN studio. I took many manuals home and read them to learn the switcher, graphics, and editing systems. I also learned about baseball and hockey as I was not a huge sports fan before I got to NESN. Within a couple of years, I was fulltime in production working Sox and Bruins pre/postgame shows. I was an editor, technical director, and did some producing as well. I started producing/directing college sports in 1986, [including] soccer, lacrosse, and hockey. I was the main producer/director for Hockey East from 1988 to '96. In 1997, I produced and directed the Bruins home games, and, in 2000, NESN obtained all the Bruins games, and I've been directing the games ever since.
Michelle Schlickman: I was given a chance [when] I was working as a director/TD at WMUR in Manchester, NH. One day, I found out a cameraman had been freelancing in Boston, and I felt that was something I wanted to do. I was given Paul Goldman's name from Greenline Group and spoke with him. Penny Starks, the crewer at the time had me sit in on a game with Rich Berlant, the away TD in Boston. He told me he was impressed how I handled myself on a DVE problem. He took the time to train me in the sports-TD philosophy because it was so much different from the news background I had. I owe my career to him. I both worked a full-time job and freelanced for quite a while, and I went full freelance in 2010. I've been very grateful how my career has gone. I'm continually learning as the job keeps changing, and I'm always trying to do better.
Is there one core philosophy or goal for each game production?
AJ: Put everyone on the crew, from the booth to the truck, in the best position to succeed. Then, when it's first pitch or puck drop, we can all tell the stories of the game and cover the big moments at the highest level.
RM: Our broadcasts involve many talented people. We're like an orchestra, and we all play important parts. We strive to perform in sync to produce the highest-quality broadcast. Our productions are successful because we're all on the same page. Specifically, as a director, my goal is to execute the game plan and highlight the features of the game: speed, physicality, and especially emotion.
MS: My goal is to have a clean show.
What advice do you have for women coming up in the industry or looking to break into it?
AJ: Learn as much as you can about all aspects of production. It will make you better at any role you're in and at any level you advance to. It will build your confidence in new situations, help you make connections with the rest of the crew, and you might find a role/position that you love that you hadn't considered before. Then, be generous with that knowledge to those coming up after you.
RM: When I first started, I didn't think about the fact that I was a woman. I worked hard and learned as much as possible. My advice would be to get involved with all aspects of production, find your niche, and develop it to its full potential. Don't be afraid to make mistakes and try to learn from them. Ask questions and make yourself available for extra shifts. Enthusiasm and determination go far in this business.
MS: The first job won't be the dream job. Meet people. It's a clich , but I got my job at WMUR because I knew someone who knew someone who worked there. Same can be said about getting into freelancing. Working in the stadiums is a great way to learn e
Most recent headlines
09/11/2025
Dalet today announced a transformative leap forward for media operations: Agentic Artificial Intelligence (AI) that unifies the Dalet ecosystem under one natura...
15/10/2025
Across the world, early-career reporters are interrogating systems that shape daily life, from mortuaries and classrooms to the corridors of legal education and...
15/10/2025
St. Louis Blues Pay Tribute to Ozzy Osbourne in New Pregame Open VideoThe NHL franchise worked with production firms 2WEI and 4th Floor CreativeBy Mark J Burns,...
15/10/2025
Cobalt Digital, G3DVu, Proxima Vision, and Telos Alliance Renew Premier Sponsors...
15/10/2025
By Paige Bethmann
Before my grandmother passed away in 2019, I went to visit her in the hospital where she'd been for a few weeks. When I arrived, the nurs...
15/10/2025
Two years ago, Spotify set out to grow the entire publishing industry by making ...
15/10/2025
People turn to DJ for a listening experience that feels personal, dynamic, and j...
15/10/2025
Las personas recurren a DJ para vivir una experiencia de escucha personal, din m...
15/10/2025
Rock legend Bruce Springsteen and luminary actor Jeremy Allen White came togethe...
15/10/2025
At Spotify, we're all about supporting rising talent and helping them connec...
15/10/2025
New SBS Documentary Series THE CANCER KILLERS Premieres 4 November on SBS & SBS ...
15/10/2025
SBS celebrates the Festivals of Lights with bold, illuminating stories across th...
15/10/2025
One of humanity's most profound questions continues: Is there any place in our galaxy suitable for life beyond Earth? NASA intends to find out, with the hel...
15/10/2025
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......
15/10/2025
Scality, a global leader in cyber-resilient storage software for the AI era, today announced the advancement of its comprehensive AI ecosystem certification pro...
15/10/2025
The Hollywood Professional Association (HPA) today unveiled key highlights of the 2026 HPA Tech Retreat, scheduled for Feb. 15 19 at the Westin Rancho Mirage Go...
15/10/2025
At NAB Show New York 2025 (Stand 244), Interra Systems will showcase the future of media QC, monitoring, and captioning, highlighting its award-winning, AI- and...
15/10/2025
Grass Valley today announced that RMC BFM, part of the CMA-CGM Group and France's third-largest private media group, has chosen Grass Valley's productio...
15/10/2025
Appear, the global leader in live production technology, will demonstrate how its powerful hardware and software innovations are shaping the future of hybrid, s...
15/10/2025
Rakim to Join Berklee's Hip-Hop Hall of Fame at Signature Series Concert The rap icon becomes the latest inductee, following luminaries such as Roxanne Sh...
15/10/2025
Berklee Brings Live Music to the Head of the Charles Student artists will perform on multiple riverfront stages during the 60th anniversary of the world's...
15/10/2025
CobbTV, the government access television channel for Cobb County, Ga. recently acquired an automated playout system from Pebble, a global provider of automation...
15/10/2025
OSLO, Norway Appear, the global leader in live production technology, will demonstrate how its powerful hardware and software innovations are shaping the future...
15/10/2025
NEW YORK The NBA is making major changes to the NBA App and NBA TV as it takes control of them from TNT Sports, which has long managed the league's digital ...
15/10/2025
SAN MATEO, Calif. In what promises to be a major expansion of interactive features and personalized content on the DirecTV platform, the operator and Glance hav...
15/10/2025
SAN JOSE, Calif. Roku has launched changes to its user interface (UI) that the streaming platform says will better showcase original programming on the platform...
15/10/2025
LOS ANGELES Software-defined data storage and data services provider OpenDrives has elevated Alex Dunfey to chief technology officer, responsible for driving th...
15/10/2025
Abu Dhabi, UAE October 15, 2025: Space42 (ADX: SPACE42), the UAE-based AI-powe...
15/10/2025
Sheldon Nichols and Will Trickett to find and prepare more classic cars for budget conscious would-be owners from Wiser Films
UKTV have recommissioned the clas...
15/10/2025
Wednesday 15 October 2025
Nick Cave
JPEG (275 KB)
Explore the creative univer...
15/10/2025
Wednesday 15 October 2025
From breaking up with your partner to quitting your job - new polling shows some messages are just too scary to send
Over a fifth (...
15/10/2025
Rohde & Schwarz unveils compact MXO 3 oscilloscopes with 4 and 8 channels: Advan...
15/10/2025
Back to All News
Revenge Series The Resurrected' Captivates Audiences Across Asia
Entertainment
15 October 2025
GlobalTaiwan
Link copied to clipboard
...
15/10/2025
Back to All News
Bringing the Best in VFX and Virtual Production Together as Eyeline
Jeffrey Shapiro
CEO, Eyeline
Business
15 October 2025
GlobalCanadaInd...
15/10/2025
Deployed by Astound Business Solutions, Harmonic's Primary Distribution Solution Ensures Outstanding Video Quality and Seamless Ad Insertion at the Edge
SA...
15/10/2025
Collaboration extends a trusted relationship as RMC BFM invests in scalable, fut...
15/10/2025
Series coming in 2026 stars Tom Vaughan-Lawlor, Justine Mitchell and Jason O'Mara released today
RT today released first look images of new comedy-drama ...
14/10/2025
SVG Europe Summit 2025: All Sessions Now Available to Watch on SVG PLAYNetworking event that preceded IBC2025 shone a light on elite live sports innovation acro...
14/10/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Author Rich Podolsky on Writing Madden & Summerall: How They Revo...
14/10/2025
SVG All-Stars: Michael Reiners, Coordinating Producer, FloRacingThe Illinois State grad steers a vast schedule of motorsports events at tracks across the countr...
14/10/2025
Content protection: Getting the right management for your DRM By Neal Romanek
Friday, October 10, 2025 - 10:11
Print This Story
Eluvio power the EPCR'...
14/10/2025
As League Takes Over Ops, NBA TV and NBA App Add 60 Games, Weekday Studio Show, ...
14/10/2025
Time and effort: World's largest student-led broadcast prepares to go On Air...
14/10/2025
(L-R) Guest, Kimberly Robinson Jones, Geeta Gandbhir, Pamela Dias, and Takema Ro...
14/10/2025
Lossless ist jetzt mit Spotify Premium verf gbar.
Verlustfreies Audio war eine...
14/10/2025
La qualit Lossless est disponible sur Spotify Premium.
Le format sans perte de...
14/10/2025
For the seventh edition of Spotify and FC Barcelona's artist jersey series, ...
14/10/2025
Spotify is committed to bringing the best listening experience to all our users, and that includes parents and families. That's why we're expanding mana...
14/10/2025
Since its debut, the Spotify Original podcast Caso 63 has been more than just a story; it's been a cultural sensation. The science fiction thriller captivat...
SVG Sit-Down: NESN's All-Women Front Bench for Men's Hockey East Championship Talks Career Paths, Production Philosophies, the Future Key advice: learn all you can about every part of production By Jason Dachman, Chief Editor 
