Senior media studies and production major Natalie Koranda is best known as one of the main anchors for OwlSports Update. Yet, Koranda never saw her career path winding up on the big screen, let alone being nominated for a National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences College Production Award in the Mid-Atlantic Region.  

Koranda was recently nominated for a Best Sports Story or Segment based on her OwlSports Update package, “Novice On The Water.”  

She found out about her nomination on her last day in Paris, France, as she was providing coverage about the effects of the 2024 Olympic Games on behalf of TUTV – Temple University Television.  

“Professor Paul Gluck called me, and he said, ‘I need to congratulate you first on kicking butt on TUTV in Paris and second for your nomination,” said Koranda. “I think I teared up on the train in Paris and I was just so excited. When you look back at your work from a year ago, you never think it’s as good as what you are capable of doing now. I was very shocked, but in my mind, I was like, ‘What can I do to make it better?’”  

At the beginning of her freshman year, Koranda was a communication studies major. She knew she wanted to work in the media but was unsure in what capacity. During Temple Fest, she signed up for OwlSports Update. By the end of her freshman year, she solidified her love for OwlSports Update and appeared on camera during a segment of their final show of the year. 

It would take another year for Koranda to go on screen again, as at the start of her sophomore year, she became a senior producer, a high honor rarely given to underclassmen.  

Heading into her junior year, Koranda had the itch to get back on screen. There was an opening for an anchor position, but faculty advisor Professor Matt Fine was hesitant to let her try out. Once he saw her audition, putting her back on screen was an easy decision.  

“She just hit the ground running and was excellent from the get-go," said Fine. “I saw a lot of those qualities when she was as a producer, in terms of being deadline oriented, creative and leading a team. When she got on the desk, she just took all those different things and capitalized on them.” 

The only stipulation was that she would need to find a replacement for her prior role as senior producer. Koranda found her replacement in senior media studies and production major Kylie Haberstroh. The two produced together during their sophomore year, and Haberstroh knew her work ethic would be unmatched in this new position.  

“She works hard, and it’s clear in a lot of her work. I feel like every story and package she does is better than the one she did before,” said Haberstroh. “She works really hard to make them good. She gives her partners a lot of credit and is teaching them along the way while producing these really great stories.” 

After Koranda announced her student production award nomination online, WGAL 8 TV reached out and offered her a position as a news intern for the fall. She now commutes two hours twice a week to Lancaster, Pa., while she continues to anchor for OwlSports Update and complete her work-study job.  

Although Koranda is only a few weeks into her senior year, she is already looking ahead to May. Post graduation, Koranda is looking to stay local to Philadelphia and become a multimedia journalist. She plans to take the skills she learned as a producer and anchor and bring them to life for a local television station.   

The NATAS Mid-Atlantic College Production Awards were held in Pittsburgh on Saturday, September 21. While Koranda did not win, she is pleased with what the nomination can bring to OwlSports Update and Temple University.  

“Although we are a collegiate station, we act like professionals here, and we are winning these awards and getting these nominations," said Koranda. “Even if we don’t win, just having the nomination is just an honor. It is so important for the school to use that as a marketing tool. We are not just a television station, but we are a nationally award-winning television station.”