How does someone win an Emmy? For Journalism and Media Communications alumnus Dillon Thomas (‘14), it was hard work at CSU and dedication to pushing the boundaries of his journalism experience after graduation.
Before attaining multiple Emmys and a position reporting and anchoring for CBS News Colorado, Thomas was an active part of the CSU media and communication community through his participation in CTV, Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) and Ram Productions. In his time at CSU, Thomas reported for the Denver Nuggets and from The White House. As an anchor for CBS, his awards include two 2022 Heartland Emmy wins – Best Video Journalist and Best News Special – for a 30-minute documentary he envisioned, shot, wrote, edited, and hosted entitled “SCARRED: Lessons from Cameron Peak.”
Read more about Thomas’s life and career in journalism.
What is your current job?
Currently I serve as MSJ (multiskilled journalist/reporter) and fill-in anchor for CBS News Colorado. I have also had the honor of working with CBS News and Stations by traveling the country helping educate other MSJ’s and their management on practices, workflow and recruiting/retention of talent across many newsrooms.
As northern Colorado’s only local television reporter, I predominantly cover breaking news and topics that impact residents in Larimer and Weld counties. Many of my stories are told in conjunction with CSU’s many researchers and experts.
What do you do outside of work (hobbies, volunteering, community involvement, etc.)?
I am very active in helping mentor current and recent CSU JMC students. Every semester since 2016, I have guest-lectured in classes for JMC professors. I speak with students about the journalism and TV industry, network, and offer to privately invest in each student. Recently I helped Rocky Mountain Student Media Corp. (student media) launch its new mentorship program. In the first semester of the program, I paired up with a student twice monthly to build her skillset, fine-tune her work, build a resume and apply to her first job.
Outside of journalism, I’ve enjoyed plugging into the community, from helping organizations raise millions of dollars for orphanages across the globe to work with local organizations helping preserve the Poudre River. In my free time, you can also find me watching or playing basketball or visiting with my family!
How does your liberal arts degree play a role in those?
Nearly all of my job’s requirements involve skills that I first started learning at CSU as early as 2010. As an MSJ I am required to find stories, pitch them, set them up, drive to them, shoot them with multiple cameras/drones, edit them, run my own live shot and lighting, and more.
CSU’s JTC (now JMC) program and student media were the first places I learned video editing, lighting, and more. Not only did CSU provide all of the tools and resources we would need to learn the profession, but it also provided live TV experience five nights a week for me and my peers. When I interned at CBS in 2012, the news director outright said it was clear which of the interns went to CSU and which did not.
There is a reason why CBS Colorado’s newsroom has been peppered with CSU graduates, and it all started in the halls of Clark C.
What are you most proud of personally and professionally?
Professionally, I am most proud of the documentary I envisioned and created in 2021 entitled “SCARRED: Lessons from Cameron Peak.” It all started as a question I had while on a hike in NoCo: I wonder how the Cameron Peak Fire’s burn scar still impacts the community?
That question turned into a 30-minute two-time Emmy Award-winning documentary which I shot, wrote and edited. The documentary featured studies completed by CSU researchers into the burn scar and more. It focused on how Fort Collins residents were combating the lasting impacts. The show won the Emmys for best News Special and best Visual Journalist.
Personally, I am most proud of my family, several of whom are CSU graduates. I love them dearly. I am very close to my family, and most of us still live around Fort Collins.
What would you like to share with other alumni and/or current CSU students?
The University and JMC program offered a foundation for a career that has taken me places I never imagined and introduced me to people I never expected to meet. From interviewing U.S. presidents to traveling the country to cover the performing arts, the opportunities the CSU liberal arts school and JMC/RMSMC offered set the cornerstone for my career.
Is there anything else you’d like to tell us about yourself?
I want to continue to get plugged into personal relationships with CSU, not just in the liberal arts school but throughout the system! I love engaging and volunteering my time and efforts into expanding the reach of the university and learning about all the amazing work being done along the way.
The CSU Department of Journalism and Media Communication in the College of Liberal Arts invites students to explore ever-changing communications options and impacts. With a passionate community of faculty and students, the department provides experiences and knowledge to the next generation of journalists, communicators, managers, and content creators.
