Just like the rise of professional sports here in Las Vegas, collegiate esports is on the rise. With the scene still being in its infancy, there's no telling just how popular it can be.
Beasley Media Group, along with UNLV, are delving into this ever evolving world with their newest show Checkpoint XP On Campus. One person who is overseeing the production of this new show is the head of Rebel Media Group: Professor Ben Morse. Prof. Morse sat down with Rebel Report to discuss the show; his involvement and what opportunities the show offers to students.
Ethan Schneider: Who is Ben Morse?
Ben Morse: Who is Ben Morse? I would say primarily now my biggest role in life is father; husband and teacher. I spent a lot of years kind of living out my childhood dreams. Getting to do all the things I wanted to do as a kid and now I am finding out what I want to do as an adult.
ES: So for Checkpoint Xp On Campus, what would you describe your position on the show?
BM: Um. . . technically I think I am listed as faculty, faculty advisor or something like that. But, in terms of what I do for the show, I think I bring my experience of what I’ve done in the past. That is I have produced live streaming shows before, I hosted live streaming shows before, I’ve written content for live streaming shows before. So I think basically, even though it is not an official title, I would call myself either producer, consultant or something like that. Basically lending my expertise. But other than that I don’t really have an official title. I think I am there just to advise and consult and help anyway I can.
ES: So when this was starting out and you got the pitch from Beasley and Checkpoint. What made you want to get involved with the show?
BM: Like anything I do these days, it is a good opportunity to work with students. It’s something I thought that you guys would be passionate about and that it is an opportunity for something that’s cool for UNLV, for Greenspun Rebel Media Group. So it was cool for me to help hook it up. When this came up, I knew specific students who were interested in this and will be good at this, and will give them a chance to get some reps in. Hopefully for something they might want to do professionally and for me it was a chance to be involved in a fun project and use some creativity; utilize some of the skills I have.
ES: Going back to the show, what experiences do you hope that students working on the show gain from this?
BM: The thing with everything I do is students. Whether its with Rebel Media Group; whether its with bringing in a guest speaker. I always have the same goal in mind and that is to try and prepare you guys to do something you want to do when you graduate college. For me when I got out of college I worked on a website; I worked on a newspaper. I had done some stuff with comics and I had the opportunity thanks to people like Geoff Johns who was kind of my mentor. I had the opportunity to continue doing something I loved for a living. For me my passion was comics and I wanted to write about comics and I wanted to work on comics and I had the opportunity to do that. For you guys, whether your passion is esports, public relations, social media, podcasting. I want you guys to graduate and do something you’re passionate about. Checkpoint is an extension of that.
ES: What is your goal/vision of the show going forward?
BM: My goal for the show is for it to become an established brand that means something to people. So that when people think about college esports, they instantly think of Checkpoint XP On Campus. Whether you are a gamer, a caster or someone who works in the space, I want you to see this as this is the resource we need to use.
You can check out Checkpoint Xp On Campus live Thursdays 7pm pt/10pm et on Twitch and YouTube.
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