Meet Scott Hays | Co-Founder / Executive Producer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Scott Hays and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Scott, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Orange County, California, has no broadcast media that reaches our highly diverse, culturally influential population of 3.2 million people. In fact, we are perhaps the largest “news desert” in the nation – way too big and too significant to go without public affairs programming that engages directly with residents. My business partner Dr. Manuel Gomez and I started OC WORLD, a nonprofit multimedia company, in 2021 to inform, inspire, and engage our community by delivering high-quality programming and diverse perspectives on local issues. We envision OC WORLD as a catalyst for positive change, fostering a deeper understanding of the challenges and opportunities within Orange County, and promoting civic engagement and participation.

We stand by our motto: “Common values and shared narratives among people with diverse points of view.”

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
OC WORLD is a local multimedia news organization promoting public affairs programming. We broadcast on KLCS-PBS to 15+ million households from Santa Barbara to San Diego, and on YouTube. We create compelling narratives of real-world issues and cover news that matters to Orange County residents. Our work amplifies the voices of underserved members of Orange County’s diverse communities while stimulating spirited discussions that raise community awareness. We also serve as a hub for community engagement and empowerment—offering resources, support, and opportunities for residents to actively participate in shaping the future of their neighborhoods.

OC WORLD’s real value is providing stories that impact the quality of life in our communities. We illuminate issues with a floodlight rather than a flashlight. We facilitate meaningful dialogue by inviting key stakeholders, experts, and community leaders to share their perspectives on timely and relevant issues. Our programs provide a more compelling visual experience that penetrates more viscerally and comprehensively than the written word.

We make a positive difference in our community by focusing on three key areas: creating compelling content around real life and relevant issues, enhancing community engagement, and raising broader awareness on issues of significance to people’s lives. Specifically, OC WORLD covers important business stories, health news, the arts, nonprofits, and public affairs specific to Orange County, providing insightful information unavailable elsewhere. Unlike traditional news outlets, we don’t focus on daily stories or the routine operations of city and county governments. Instead, we delve deeply into stories that impact the community’s quality of life, including major governmental decisions and cultural shifts.

Some of the more significant recognitions received by OC World programs featured on our platforms include: 2023 Best Long Form Documentary by Golden Mike Awards; 44th Annual Telly Awards — Bronze and Silver; 2023 Best of Festival by Los Angeles Television Scripts and Film Festivals; and Official Selection at the 2022 Marina Del Rey Film Festival and the 2022 DTLA Film Festival; and the “Real O.C” award at last year’s OC Press Club’s Excellence in Journalism Awards Gala, which is an award given for the “story, review, feature, column, photo or broadcast video that best captures something special, surprising, telling, or essential about Orange County.”

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
We have taken calculated risks since the beginning of OC WORLD. Our first year during the pandemic we took a risk in producing three documentary shorts. In our second year of business we took a risk by producing roughly 25 original programs annually (and with limited resources) for distribution by KLCS-PBS.

Now in our third year of business, we continue to take risks by exploring new and diverse content formats and launching initiatives that push beyond traditional legacy print boundaries. Our next risk-taking adventure is engaging more thoroughly with Orange County’s culturally diverse communities and creating valuable partnerships and collaborations. For examples:

For example, OC WORLD is partnering with and partially funded by the University of California, Irvine in the Student Achievement Guided by Experience (SAGE) Scholars Program. The SAGE program aims to strengthen the pipeline of talented and diverse students entering the workforce and provide support to students during their undergraduate careers at UC Irvine. The SAGE Scholars Program provides undergraduates with significant financial support and the tools to invest in their future through leadership training, career exploration, graduate school planning, and access to internship and scholarship opportunities. We are actively preparing the next generation of journalists.

OC WORLD recently co-sponsored a panel discussion exploring the OC Media Landscape with OC Forum, founded in 1990 by a group of Orange County business and civic leaders. Speakers included a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, a reporter/columnist for the Los Angeles Times, an Editor of Orange County Register, and the VP of Community Engagement at LAist.

Website: OC World (www.OCWorld.org) OC World Media Club (www.OCWorldMediaClub.org) Scott Hays (www.ScottHays.com)