Beach TV News

What Beach TV News does

Beach TV News (BTVN) is a student-produced newscast operated by California State University, Long Beach's Department of Journalism & Public Relations. It produces a nightly newscast alongside feature stories, sports coverage, and multimedia content distributed across regional cable (Spectrum Cable 95, Frontier FiOS Channel 25 in Long Beach; Spectrum Channel 28 in Lakewood), a 24/7 live stream on cablecast.tv, and major streaming platforms (Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV), reaching approximately 100,000 local households plus a digital audience. The program also publishes content on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and X. Production relies on professional Sony cameras and Adobe Premiere Pro editing software, with students operating in a simulated newsroom environment under deadline pressure.

The program is led by Founder & News Director Jesús Ayala, a veteran ABC News producer turned professor who brings 20+ years of professional experience, 5 national Emmys, and 7 Edward R. Murrow Awards, and has mentored 11 Emmy winners and 9 Murrow Award winners. Under his leadership, students have won over 90 national collegiate journalism awards, including a College Television Award, 4 Hearst Awards, a Pacemaker Award, and an Edward R. Murrow Award. The program is structured around three journalism courses — Jour 321 (introductory video editing), Jour 325 (vertical video innovation), and Jour 482 (signature nightly newscast production) — supplemented by a Fall 2025 Content Creators Program that allows broader student participation. Recent awards include the 2025 Innovation Pacemaker Award, 2025 Best All-Around Newscast, 2024 Broadcast Pacemaker Award, and 2024 TV Station of the Year.

Beach TV News is an academic program, not a commercial enterprise. It does not generate revenue, has no external investors or funding rounds, and operates without disclosed pricing models. Its value proposition is educational: providing students with employable broadcast journalism skills through hands-on production experience. The organization's sustainability is institutionally tied to CSULB's Department of Journalism & PR rather than market-based revenue.

Name

Beach TV News

Legal name

Beach TV News

Website

https://beachtvnews.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Beach TV News is CSULB's student-produced newscast and academic training program, preparing journalism students for broadcast careers under award-winning faculty leadership. It distributes content via regional cable, streaming platforms, and social media to Long Beach-area viewers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Broadcast Journalism Education

NAICS

Television Broadcasting Stations (516120)

SIC

Television Broadcasting Stations (4833)

akta.pro primary industry

Rolling News & Breaking News Channels (MPABAIAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

Student Media & Publications (Newspaper, Radio, TV) (EDALAHAE)

Keywords

• Student journalism
• Broadcast news production
• Collegiate media
• Newsroom training
• Television news

Headquarters

HQ city

Long Beach

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Educational Program: Beach TV News operates as a student-produced newscast at California State University, Long Beach, preparing students for careers in television news through academic coursework and practical experience.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Beach TV News is CSULB's award-winning student-produced nightly newscast that prepares students for careers in television news through hands-on multimedia journalist bootcamps covering writing, shooting, editing, producing, and directing live broadcasts. The newscast is distributed via Spectrum Cable 95, Frontier FiOS Channel 25 (Long Beach), Spectrum Channel 28 (Lakewood), a 24/7 live stream, and streaming apps on Roku, Apple TV, and Amazon Fire TV, with content also distributed across YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram.

Product overview

Beach TV News is a single unified offering: CSULB's award-winning student-produced newscast that prepares students for careers in television journalism. The organization produces nightly newscasts, feature stories, and multimedia content distributed across television, website, and social platforms (TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, X). Related offerings include the Content Creators Program for students working on prerequisites, and three journalism courses (Jour 482, Jour 325, Jour 321) that feed into BTVN productions, providing hands-on training in TV news production, vertical video innovation, and video editing with Sony cameras and Adobe Premiere Pro.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Beach TV News Newscast CSULB's award-winning student-produced nightly newscast broadcasting news, politics, international, culture, entertainment, sports, and trending stories to Long Beach and Lakewood viewers via cable, live stream, and streaming apps. Produced by journalism students under the direction of News Director Jesús Ayala.
• Content Creators Program Program launched in Fall 2025 allowing CSULB students to contribute published work across multiple Beach TV News platforms including nightly newscast, IGTV, TikTok shows, the website, and social media.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 90 national collegiate journalism awards won by students under current leadership
• +2 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• KOMU-TV (University of Missouri): University of Missouri's professional-grade NBC-affiliated student TV station. Comparable as a flagship university-affiliated broadcast operation training MMJs and producing award-winning local news.
• Daily Bruin (UCLA): UCLA's student-run news outlet covering LA-area news across digital and print. Comparable as another SoCal university news brand operating under a journalism school.
• Cronkite News (Arizona State University): ASU's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication student news hub. Comparable as a top-ranked university broadcast journalism program that has won similar collegiate awards.
• The Daily Californian (UC Berkeley): UC Berkeley's independent student newspaper and multimedia outlet. Comparable as a major UC-system student news brand with broadcast/digital ambitions.
• The Stanford Daily: Stanford's independent student news organization producing multimedia journalism. Comparable as a high-caliber university-based news operation, though more print/online than TV.
• Mustang News (Cal Poly San Luis Obispo): Cal Poly's student-produced news organization across print, broadcast, and digital. Comparable as another CSU-affiliated student media outlet with broadcast production.
• Annenberg Media (USC): USC's student-run multimedia news outlet producing TV newscasts, radio, and digital journalism from the Annenberg School. Highly comparable as a flagship university-based broadcast journalism program in Southern California.

Broad incumbents

• KQED: Northern California's flagship public broadcaster producing TV, radio, and digital news. Comparable as a regional public-service broadcaster serving a similar community-information role.
• ABC7 Los Angeles (KABC-TV): LA-market ABC affiliate and former employer of Director Jesús Ayala. Comparable as a professional broadcast news outlet where BTVN alumni place and which defines the production standards BTVN trains against.
• Spectrum News 1 (Charter): Charter's regional cable news network that carries Beach TV News on Spectrum Cable 95. Comparable as a hyperlocal regional cable news operation in the same market.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/BeachTVNews
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@BeachTVNews
• Instagraminstagram.com/beachtvnews
• TikToktiktok.com/@beachtvnews?lang=en
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/beachtvnews

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Beach TV News