Photo By Master Sgt. Thomas Smith | Staff Sgt. Samuel Burns, a broadcast journalist from American Forces Network-Tokyo,...... read more read more
YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan. - Staff Sergeant Samuel Burns' radio personality style is influenced by his love of entertaining people.
This is what earned him the Stripes Pacific Best of Pacific Radio Show award for 2019.
“I have always enjoyed making people laugh so I like to put in the extra effort to make my show fun for everyone listening,” said Burns.
Airmen who want to be considered for Stripes Best of Pacific Radio Show are automatically entered in to the contest alongside all other AFN radio show hosts in the region and are voted on by their listeners.
Now a radio show host at Yokota Air Base, Burns joined the Air Force with no formal training with public communication but what he did have was a YouTube channel.
“I started my YouTube channel when I was about 13 years old and it was mostly just to make exciting videos to show my friends,” said Burns.
When starting out, he said he realized his YouTube experience was very beneficial. Burns said learning the new technology in tech school was a big help.
“It was a bit intimidating at first. Trying to manage an entertaining conversation while also running the radio board can be pretty stressful but once I got the board figured out I started enjoying it,” said Burns.
His communication skills and confidence quickly improved over his first two years at American Forces Network (AFN) Tokyo.
“As a new show host he really showed a desire to learn more and grow as a DJ,” said Master Sergeant Michael Hutchinson, one of Burns’ mentors. “I think that drive to be the best is what has made him such a spectacular show host now.”
Burns said he doesn’t think he would have won this award or gotten to where he is today without the help of Master Sergeant Hutchinson and his other mentors.
“I was lucky to have some good teachers when I was beginning on radio like Master Sergeant Hutchinson,” Burns said. “He was able to point out the areas I needed work on and give me a few tricks to help me get my show where I wanted it to be.”
Listeners, who decide the award’s recipient, vote for their favorite based off of several factors including entertainment value, personality, information value and more.
“I take a lot of pride in my radio show, and to see all of my hard work and passion come together into something tangible like this award feels fulfilling,” said Burns. “I’m really honored that my listeners felt my work deserved this award.”
| Date Taken: | 06.23.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 06.24.2021 01:31 |
| Story ID: | 399599 |
| Location: | YOKOTA AB, TOKYO, JP |
| Hometown: | WHITE PLAINS, MD, US |
| Web Views: | 97 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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