Charles Mahood
December 7, 2021
Charles Mahood (2021)
Charlies Mahood is a video producer/editor in Kansas City, currently working for Unity World Headquarters. He grew up in St. Louis and went to Duchesne High School in St. Charles before attending Truman. After he graduated in 2017, he worked and lived in Kirksville and St. Louis before moving to Kansas City. In his free time, Charles likes to write, absolutely crush at trivia nights, and bust up his car on a weekly basis.
What year did you graduate and what was your concentration?
I graduated in December of 2017 with a concentration in Journalism and a minor in Film Studies.
What extra-/co-curricular activities did you do?
I started working for the Truman Media Network at the end of 2015, mostly because they had a lot of camera equipment and I wanted to get more experience making videos. I was a reporter for TMN-TV (now KTRM Studios) for a couple semesters before producing some different content and a show for the media network. I also joined UpChuckles, the stand-up comedy club, in 2016 and stayed through my senior year.
Charles in the middle of a TMN-TV sandwich (2016).
Did you go to grad school? If so, where? Was it immediately after you left Truman or did you wait? Why?
I have not. I’ve thought about it, but not too hard.
What was your first job after graduation?
My first job out of college was as a Production Assistant for KTVO in Kirksville. There I worked live news shows, usually handling graphics or audio, and posted on social media.
What work do you do/What are you doing now?
Now I’m a video editor for Unity World Headquarters. I shoot and edit videos used for ads, events, conferences, etc.
Charles hard at work (2021).
How has your Liberal Arts/COMM education helped you?
I believe my COMM education has equipped me with a broadly applicable skill set that has allowed me to fit into different roles over the last four years. Becasue of all I’ve learned, from creative and critical writing to rhetoric to technical skills, I’ve found myself qualified for a wide range of positions.
Which class did you dislike at the time you took it, but now you’re grateful you took it?
I don’t think there’s a class I’ve done a complete 180 on. At the time, I might not have fully understood the need for Communication Law, but what I learned in that class has been useful on a weekly basis for me.
What was your greatest accomplishment at Truman?
I’m somewhat proud of the content I made for the Truman Media Network, though I haven’t seen any of it in years and would like to keep it that way. 
What I’m most proud of though, is the friendships I’ve made and held onto since my time at Truman. I think a lot of the use for my Communication education has been for collaborative projects and stories and other things that rely on group effort and building relationships. I was lucky to find friends, other students, and professors in the COMM Department who have helped me and pushed me both professionally and personally when I was a student. Some still do to this day.
Why is Truman a good place for a student to study?
Charles standing up and telling jokes (2017).
I think one of the reasons Truman is a good place to study is how intimate the environment feels. It’s easy to find peers and professors willing to help and spend time with you and it makes Truman feel really comfortable.
What would you say a COMM student should absolutely do while at Truman?
Get involved as much as you can (without overwhelming yourself). Like I said before, Communication can give you a broad skill set and joining COMM oriented clubs and organizations, such as student media, can really help you sharpen a variety of skills, as well as help you meet a bunch of different people. Being involved in different organizations can also help you figure out what you want to do later on.
What advice would you give someone who wants to go into the same line of work as you?
I would say the Journalism track helped me a lot by teaching me how to interview and put together stories, but also take advantage of what student media has to offer. There are computers with different editing software and access to different types of cameras and audio equipment. Take the opportunity to use different pieces of equipment, figure out what you like using, and go out and shoot whatever you can.
What do you miss most about campus/Kirksville?
I miss how tight knit of a community it is. There were always people to spend time with who were going through similar highs and lows that I was. There’s a good chance you won’t be in a situation with this many like minded people again, so take advantage of it.
What tag line would you create for the COMM department at Truman?
“COMM: We have the best cups and strings.” (Editor’s note: Your time in UpChuckles was well spent.)
Charles hiding in the back row in a very blurry UpChuckles group photo after a show (2016).
If you could come back to Truman and teach a class for a semester, what would be its title and what would it be about?
I think I would teach a class with more emphasis on technical/computer skills. I think I might want to teach an intro class dabbling in different software and techniques for photo and video editing, publication design, etc. Maybe I’d call it “Tech Basics” or something like that.
What did we not ask that you think is important for people to know?
Some students are skeptical about moving to Kirksville if they’re from a bigger city because they don’t think there will be much to do. I didn’t feel that way when I was at Truman. It wasn’t too hard to find something to do whether it was on or off campus. I think having things to do is more about the people than the events, and there are a lot of interesting people at Truman.