The HV30 is not broadcast quality, if you consider that to be what you get from the best ENG or studio cameras.
It gives really-good-looking results in sunlight or fairly bright interiors. Or think of it as giving good results in the kind of lighting most professional videographers would strive to get if they could.
It is much less good on low contrast or dark subjects where the elaborate camera controls and better sensors of more expensive cameras can save the day. It is much harder to pull-out a decent image on these kinds of subjects. With any kind of camera you basically have to do your adjustments in the camera to get the best results, with the HV30 (and all of its brethren) you must often resort to post...hello noise, hello clipping, blah blah blah.
In theory you can work with the HV30's mostly automatic settings by always lighting carefully, pack lots of shiny reflectors to pump up contrast in interiors or days with flat lighting, maybe a couple Lowell lights or such. And pack at least one assistant to hold same, maybe he or she can hold the reflector in their teeth while dealing with the mic. If you must go low contrast, be sure it's BRIGHT low contrast. Personally, if I were a one man crew I'd opt for a better camera if the budget would allow, but I would use an HV30 with only moderate kicking and screaming.
One should note that a many obviously consumer DV and HDV quality documentaries are being picked up by say PBS and others. I saw a PBS documentary on the astronomer John Dobson the other night, the video quality was clearly consumer DV at best, way below what could have been done with an HV30. But hey, so what? The information was there and well presented. But again, how many excellent pieces never make it to the air for tech reasons, dunno.