Multimedia to merge with Public Affairs to better highlight AF efforts

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Eric Schloeffel
  • 23rd Wing Public Affairs
MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. --  Moody's Multimedia elements will merge with the Public Affairs office Sept. 17, creating a combination of talents in an effort to better tell the Air Force story. 

The realignment of these two missions was set into motion in 2006 by an Air Force Chief of Staff directive. The merger will move Moody's video and photography elements into the Public Affairs career field. 

"Once the merger occurs and we begin to move through it, we will tailor our mission to allow us to most effectively communicate the wing's messages," said Capt. Dustin Hart, 23rd Wing Public Affairs chief. "There will be some speed bumps as the transition occurs, but this allows us to expand our capabilities exponentially." 

Multimedia, which previously fell under the 23rd Communications Squadron, will now be aligned with Public Affairs as a wing staff agency. 

One of the major changes associated with the realignment is the Air Force decision to eliminate the graphics career field, which will take effect Oct. 1. At that time, base-level graphics support will no longer be available, per Air Force directive, said Master Sgt. Michael Featherston, 23rd Communications Squadron Visual Information Flight superintendent. 

"There will still be several on-and-off-base options available for certain levels of graphics support," said Sergeant Featherston. "We will help provide guidance and direct people to these sources as well as answer questions people may have about producing graphics." 

Advances in technology are one of the factors that fueled the decision to cease base-level graphics support, said Sergeant Featherston. 

"The Air Force has come to expect a certain level of support from within, but technology has driven the graphics skill-set into the hands of consumers," the sergeant said. "What used to be hand-crafted calligraphy produced by Airmen in the graphics career field is now a font in a computer program." 

The photography and videography aspects of the multimedia mission will also experience adjustments from the merger, said Sergeant Featherston. The video mission has already merged into the broadcast career field with the intent to better support an operational and historical documentation function, for internal and external release in a broader spectrum. 

"The main focus of these changes is to better market Moody's contribution to the Air Force mission," said Sergeant Featherston. "From a video standpoint, there will be more coverage of mission impact to produce these stories for mass consumption. This allows Public Affairs to better tell the Moody and Air Force story." 

The photography mission will follow a similar path of focusing on Moody's mission capabilities, and the efforts of Airmen performing and accomplishing those missions, said Sergeant Featherston. As the mission focus changes, some traditional photography services will be no longer be provided. 

Unit-specific events which have little or no newsworthy function will no longer be directly supported; however, self-help cameras will be available to assist units with their internal needs. 

Although the combination of these two elements of Moody's information-based mission is changing the way business is done, the benefits entail a more efficient strategy of communicating the monumental efforts of the base's Airmen, said Captain Hart. 

"We're combining these two capabilities under one umbrella to highlight the impact of Moody's capabilities on the Global War on Terrorism," the captain said. "Our mission of telling the world what we do at Moody is not changing; if anything, the merger will only allow us to do this even better."