TV News Producer- PIT List

Station Groups

2012-02-10T12:49:00.000-08:00

I spotted this article on TVnewscheck.com-- it's about TV station groups. You may not get too much into the nitty gritty of the business, but I thought the summaries of each of the top players (at the bottom of the article) were interesting.

http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/2011/03/30/50206/tv-group-ranking-could-see-shakeup-in-11

Live Presser, Interrupted

2012-01-29T14:46:00.000-08:00

This is why I love live television news. You never know what's going to happen. Press conference, meet irate bus driver.

Here is the link in case my hyperlink doesn't work.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=hMKzIJWnZt0#!

Filling (A Bunch of) Time

2012-01-23T11:45:00.000-08:00

I got a letter from a poor producer who now has a HUGE amount of extra time in his show to fill. He asked for ideas so I include them below.

1. Choose where you'll focus your effort.
You can't do it all, so decide, ok, I can do tasks #1, #2, and #3 well
but the rest are going to slide. I know that's an awful thing to tell
you, but you know that all parts of your show are not created equally and you only have so much energy, staff etc. Make headlines, teases super simple and when possible... if the reporter is doing something--- have them tease their part of the story... weather guy does his tease etc.

2. Talk to your boss.
Schedule a time, tell him you need 5-10 minutes b/c you'd like to get "feedback" now
that the new mega-show's up and running. Don't go in with -- this
sucks and it's not working, even though that's the case.
Instead say... how do you like how things are going? How do you
envision this? Do you think resources are managed appropriately?
Maybe by his answers, you can get him/her to the conclusions you have
already made. Probably not. But just by asking, you may open lines of communication that may benefit you. Maybe take a note of one issue he says during the meeting-- like-- he really wants to do XYZ. File that away... and then maybe you notice, there's an overlap of reporters on say Wednesdays... and in a future
conversation, you can say, hey you know I remember you really wanted
to focus on XYZ. I notice Suzie Smith is not overutilized on
Wednesdays. Since we have two reporters that day, would it be possible
to have her do XYZ for my mega-show? Also... maybe you can sneak in reporters from other shows into your show. Meaning if a reporter works 2-11, say, and they're out on something... have them do JUST a straight liveshot or a quick Q&A (no pkg or vosot or big scripted thing) for your show. You can sell this to your ND as a tease for the other shows... say hey, if I get Suzie Q to do a 1:00 story/extended
tease for one of my shows, this drives people to the other show for more info.

3. Nothing eats time more than guests. I'd develop a deep rolodex and
use it. Have some go-to PR people. For example, if you have a strong
relationship with a University or hospital nearby, maybe they have experts they
can send your way quickly. Talk to them in advance and tell them if they can get you folks quickly, you'll put them on air. So if the big GOP debate was last night,
you do a vo or vo/sot to cover that and then launch into Dr. Politics
discussing the big night. Big storm last night? Have a NWS service guy
come in. New cold research? In comes the good doctor. There are tons of things like these that you can tie in to daily news to add depth and fill time. Maybe you have standing guests-- feature or otherwise, depending on style of your show. Maybe
it's Back to Work Mondays... Politics Tuesdays. Whatever. You can do hard news
but I'd also check out more evergreen talk about items. Anything that
people are interested in and would want to hear more about qualifies
in my book. There are all kinds of things you can come up with when you have no time constraints. Get creative. Talk to people who are not in news for their ideas.

4. Be a spot news whore. If you have one reporter... make them live
guy. Let's say there's a fire at 8am. Send them. They go live. Make
sure you let them know they don't file a whole bunch of elements
(don't feed vo or edited pkg) just take them talking about whatever it
is that's going on behind them. Then big accident at 9a? Send live guy. Spot news is easy, especially if you are just letting them ad lib about what's going, not making them file a super comlpicated story. Obviously this type of thing is better
suited toward some reporters than others so wade in carefully. Before
they leave a scene, you can ask them to file a look live--
basically they just repeat the liveshot they just did and you record it back at the station for use in a future hour.

5. Be your weather man's best friend. These guys can ad lib about
anything. Give them extra time. Mabye there's bad weather somewhere nationally
overnight... get some vo cut and let them knock themselves out. Maybe
there's a segment they've always wanted to do? Wx people are great
educators-- maybe it's today's weather term of the day-- what's
tornadic activity vs a tornado? Straight line winds? Make it connect to the current weather outlook.

6. Sports guys & Extra Content. Do we have sports departments in local news anymore? I keep hearing that they've been cut way back.. but if you do have
resources... tell them that you're open to content. Were they out on
an interview with the coach of the big game Fri? Is that something
where you could just take a 2:00 chunk and roll with it? Same with
reporters-- did they go out on an ongoing story where you could
repurpose a one of two minute chunk of that interview? Better-- let people know you're looking for this stuff ahead of time-- so if they go out on the big accident or fire-- can the last question they ask be about general driving or fire safety you could use? Interviewing the mayor or councilperson? Ask the reporter to let them ramble on another issue that you could use. If you let it be known (to sports, weather, reporters, photogs) that you've got time and you're willing to check out their pet projects... maybe you'll get some interesting stuff. Journalists often feel padlocked by the 1:20 format we've gotten into. Also, if it's as simple as just asking another question at then end of an interview (as in, they don't have to write it or front it) you may be able to add content that way. Look at your assigments in the am and then figure out what questions could be used later that day or the next from the people who are already going out on today's stories.

7. Viewer submissions. There, I said it. Most of them I've seen can be ghastly, but that said, on breaking news, it's the guy with a cell phone who has the best (because he was there first) video. I'd start with weather video. Ask viewers to send their best weather video or pics each day and pick one or two (or 8 depending on time) to use and identify the person who sent it in (see "Wasting Time with Wx Guy, above). You can create a segment each day-- "Your View of the City." If you get folks in the habit of sending you videos/pics when nothing is going on and they know you'll use them, then when real news happens, you may get better submissions. I picked weather because just about everyone can do a good weather pic. Maybe out of that you notice a few people aren't bad at it and they send you things regularly. Maybe you ask them to do a quick video about a story in their community (nothing controversial-- just stuff that's interesting and easy to confirm). You could call it-- "What's up in the city?" And Joe Viewer delivers his small piece of it. Maybe it's Joe viewer's favorite pizza shop-- and open it to discussion -- is he out of his mind? Rinaldi's is the best? What about Grimaldi's? Just a thought.

Throwing spaghetti at the wall in hopes that some of it will stick and that some of you can find something that's useful.

Colbert Mocks Photog Layoffs

2011-12-07T13:00:00.000-08:00

This has been out there, but I wanted to share in case you hadn't seen it.

The Colbert Report
Get More: Colbert Report Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,Video Archive

Is Your Expert Being Paid to Hawk a Product?

2011-12-07T12:24:00.000-08:00

I ran across a disturbing article in the Washington Post (came across it via ProPublica). Basically, the article says some of the experts you have coming on your shows... could have financial interests that compel them to push certain products. The Post highlights the case of one consumer "expert" who was pushing a security product for kids-- when she was being paid by the makers of the security product she pushed. The article is frightening, definitely worth a read-- looks like the practice is fairly widespread.

We know how it happens. You have a 2:00 hole to fill and company XYZ, whose rep is super savvy, offers up a timely, fun --good TV-- segment that's a no brainer to put in your show. But are you asking the right questions when you're setting up the segment? Namely, are you asking the guest: "Do you have a financial connection to any of the products or companies you're promoting in this segment?" Your viewers deserve better than watching essentially a 2:00 commercial. They deserve your extra effort to make sure the product or products being recommended are being done so gratis. Ditto so many of the satelitte interview oppotunities that come across your desk (also mentioned in the Post piece).

The line in TV is being blurred. Many stations have paid programming shows that look an awful lot like morning shows except the guests have paid to take part. At the end of the show, there's usually some disclosure. Disclosed or not, paid segments or products have no place in newscasts. I'm guessing the majority of these just slide by because producers are more and more harried, being asked to do more with less. But there are PLENTY of people who want to be on TV to give their opinions without being paid by some company to do so.

Plagiarism is not the Sincerest Form of Flattery

2011-11-04T15:08:00.000-07:00

So here's why you always want to rewrite "suggested intros." Not only because you are producer and it is your JOB... but also because not doing so could land you on Conan. Guessing that's what happened here.

The link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GME5nq_oSR4&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Ouch.
(With thanks for the clip to consultant Doug Drew.)

**Update: Someone posted on Doug's FB page that the story was part of a Newspath pkg-- and producers grabbed the script Newspath sent.

If I can rant just a bit further... You see why your future is golden as a producer? So much of your potential competition for that next job won't even rewrite an intro. It is so discouraging to see producers (from how many markets in that clip?) just phoning it in.

Production Crews and Breaking News

2011-10-31T08:43:00.000-07:00

I (not so recently-- sorry for being a slacker) received an email from a producer having trouble getting her production crews on board for breaking news cut-ins. Here's the advice I offered her...

Production crews generally didn't sign up for the news aspect as much as the television aspect of things. Does that make sense? What I'm getting at is-- you and I are probably stoked because of breaking news... the thrill is why we got in/stay in. For production crews, there's a different pay-off for their work. Try to figure out what that is and emphasize it. Why do they do what they do? What thrills them?

Also, a lot of crews generally feel under-appreciated. So every time there's breaking news and they've done a good job, I'd make a point to say that. Go around and say thank-you to everyone. Emphasize how much you apreciate their effort and how each of their individual contributions helped make your on air product really work. It doesn't hurt to bring in treats every once in a while either! So maybe if there's been a bunch of breaking news or a particularly hectic week, bring in some treats and say--"I know this week has been killer... just want to say thanks!!"

Finally, I found production crews to be a great resource in a number of different ways. Since many don't follow news minute by minute like those on the editorial side, they can give you a fresh perspective/good feedback on your newscasts. Listen to the comments made in the booth during a show. If they didn't get something or thought something didn't work.. chances are their views are more in line with your viewers. A second great way they can help is.. since many come from a production side of things, they've worked on non-news stuff. That experience can add something to your newscasts. Ask for their opinions about set positions... trying new things.. graphics... etc.

TV News Less Diverse?

2011-10-31T07:52:00.000-07:00

There's a new study out looking at share agreements and their impact on TV news. The theory is that if we're all sending someone to get the Mayor's groundbreaking ceremony, why not just send one photog and share the video? How different is that than a courtroom or any other pool?

In general I think these arrangements are a bad idea. The talents of each individual photographer on staff add a lot to make your newscast and product look unique. But I think the horse is out of the barn on this one. These agreements aren't going away so how do you make the best of them? I was out of local news before share agreements became popular. What do you guys think of them.

The study I mentioned was commissioned by a labor group so consider the source.

To Accept Free Stuff or Not to Accept Free Stuff?

2011-09-26T18:44:00.000-07:00

Tickets. T-shirts. Meals. In TV, you get a lots of offers for freebies. Should you take it?

Let me start by saying I have a lot of good friends, good people, who disagree with me, think I'm off my rocker. That said, my feeling is this-- avoid even the appearance of impropriety. I don't like to take anything the general public wouldn't be offered. We know you wouldnt do a segment on the gym just because you got a free membership-- but what if you wanted to get an exercise expert, would you feel like you needed to call that gym? Slippery slope. Lot easier to make those decisions without having accepted stuff.

Case in point. I did dirty restaurant reports for years. Once a month we did a restaurant that got a 100. Since it was usually lunchtime when we shot there, we'd eat there at our expense. One time I overheard a customer-- who saw us eating-- say oh now I know why they are here, implying we did a shoot for a free lunch. We started eating elsewhere after that.

The media already has a bad rep. Why make it worse ?

East Coast Hurricane Coverage

2011-09-26T11:38:00.000-07:00

Day late and a dollar short but... Someone asked whether I thought the coverage of the Hurricane Irene was overblown. I am ashamed to admit that at the start of the coverage, I remember myself saying something snarky like-- a Cat 1 is like a Cat 5 in terms of news coverage if it hits anywhere near NYC. This is because I work in the middle of the country and so I feel the news that happens here often gets ignored. I whine about it all the time. But in the case of Irene, I was wrong. Really wrong. Dozens of deaths, billions in damage and the worst flooding in Vermont's history can't be over covered.

Police Arrest Photog

2011-09-26T11:36:00.000-07:00

You guys see this? What do you think?

http://www.fox6now.com/news/witi-20110920-fox6-photojournalist-arrested,0,6130946.story

Journalism Conference

2011-07-05T13:17:00.000-07:00

This year's RTNDA/SPJ conference in New Orleans looks like a good one. There are lots of heavy hitters speaking and some interesting pre-conference workshops. It's not cheap though-- $275 for early bird registration. But it's a great place (outside of the newsroom) to refresh your skills, learn new ones as well as mix and mingle. Plus, New Orleans is awesome. The conference website is http://excellenceinjournalism.org/

They trust us. A Little.

2011-07-05T11:22:00.000-07:00

New Gallup data shows Americans Regain Some Confidence in Newspapers, TV News. Our ranking among American institutions? #11. The military was #1. For what it's worth, we beat Congress at #16.

Americans Regain Some Confidence in Newspapers, TV News

Preventing Mistakes

2011-07-01T11:36:00.000-07:00

I received an email from a producer majorly stressing about catching mistakes, errors and misspellings. Here's my best advice...

It helps to build in layers of prevention. For example, if you're worried about bad fonts... have someone, anyone... else look over your fonts a half hour before the newscast. Any set of eyes other than yours will catch mistakes.

Ditto with scripts-- do you have an EP? They should be looking over all of the scripts of your show. If not, maybe look to an anchor or writer as a second set of eyes.

We're all human. You will make mistakes... so as many systems or extra people you can have looking at things, the better. Also, don't underestimate the power of the final readthrough--- after you've approved all scripts, do one final read through, reading everything out loud. Your ears will catch things your eyes won't. Make sure you are reading and consuming a lot of local news. By reading and listening and watching a lot of stuff, you'll catch nit-noid mistakes (wait-- was that 3 cars in that accident? I thought I read 4 somewhere...) My favorite (horrifying) mistake that made air was back when I was a writer-- I wrote that Easter celebrated the birth of Christ. I wrote it in a rush and two other people read it and didn't catch. I still cringe when I think of it today. We got calls. A lot of them.

To do a lot of these preventative checks.. you have to get your stuff done early. This is good practice anyway and allows everyone else time to do their jobs better. So shoot for generally having most everything done about an hour before the newscast. Then you can do your final checks, write teases and wait for the inevitable spot news to blow up your show. By being generally done by an hour-ish ahead of time... you can be free to respond to whatever crisis that pops up.

Do something non work related to make you better able to meet stress. Walk, run, swim-- whatever floats your boat... do something physical to help combat the inevitable irks that come your way. Also, do like I say and not like I did (as a show producer) and skip the 3 Mountain Dew/cheeseburger days. They do not help you stay calm cool and collected. Finally-- get a life outside of work! Join a club, hit a movie with friends. That gives you a better perspective when you do deal with work craziness.

And lighten up! Remember, it ain't brain surgery. No one dies if you screw up. Still, aim to give your best to your viewers and your co-workers each and every day.

Spoiling Your Appetite

2011-06-09T08:55:00.000-07:00

Remember when your mom told to not to fill up on a drink or snack before dinner so that you wouldn't spoil your appetite? Similar fine line with intros. We want enough interesting detail to keep people watching but you don't to end up putting everything in the intro and leaving your reporter nothing to report. On the other hand, your intro sets up the story. I remember having an argument with a reporter about him wanting to "save" a key detail for his pkg. But in my opinion, that detail needed to be in intro.

There's no "right" way to do things. I generally used to have pretty quick intros so we could get to the reporters (for pacing) and save big set-up intros for major stories-- or leads. But maybe there's an abundance of good stuff and you want to juice up your intro. I'd let the story drive it. And be sure to be clear with your reporter (early) about what you're doing. Have an open discussion and hear your reporter out. They might have something great that they couldn't use in their piece that you can toss in intro or even a headline or tease.

Show Me the Money

2011-06-09T08:33:00.000-07:00

I just received a question from someone looking to make a move to a bigger market. The bigger market wanted her to move for less money than she was expecting-- and also take a writer position (that might turn into producer position). My advice to her-- and my advice to you when you're looking at any new position-- is hold out for what you want. Even better-- ask for what you want. Lots of times we assume that when a prospective employer says "Here's what I got for you" that's really all they got. In reality, when a company or manager wants you, they have flexibility to find extra cash and/or can shuffle things around in your favor. The number they mention can be just the first offer in a neogitiation. Remember, the only negotiating power you really have is when you're coming in to a new shop. An example from my own experience-- I moved up markets and thought I had made a good deal for myself. Then I met and became friends with the gal who did the exact same show across the street at the competition. She was making $10,000 more than me and that was before overtime (did I mention I wasn't getting overtime?). I felt like an idiot and stewed about it. But who's fault is it if you're not getting paid what you're worth?

To that end, I just read a decent TV related money book-- from the co-anchor on "Morning Joe." It's "Knowing Your Value" by Mika Brzezinski. In it, she details her job related money mistakes and offers tips from experts. An even better book is "Women Don't Ask." It's targeted to women, but it can be helpful to anyone. Basically the premise is that women, more than men, don't like to negotiation and that this cuts them out of big bucks. For a sampling of just how much you'll lose if you don't negoitate well, check out the scary sampling of stats on their website.
Here's a teaser:
"By not negotiating a first salary, an individual stands to lose more than $500,000 by age 60—and men are more than four times as likely as women to negotiate a first salary."

Avoiding Cliches

2011-05-26T11:07:00.000-07:00

There's a lot of wild weather around-- and maybe it has hit your region. No better time to talk about cliches. Maybe I've been covering tornadoes too long, but I'd like to permanently ban AT LEAST these phrases:

"Tossed like toys"
"Looks like a war zone"

And there are many others. Cliches do your writing and your viewers a disservice. It's a cheap, lazy writer's way to fill a script. When you have truly moving material, look at it and find ways to tell these people's stories in an authentic way. Remember that there's always a family and community behind each obliterated home and block. What's special about them? How can you communicate that without relying on a writing crutch?

Nothing Good Happens on Facebook

2011-01-24T12:18:00.000-08:00

You've probably heard about the anchor and producer who got into a fight in Charlotte. In the article below....

Anchor Brien Blakely out at Fox Charlotte - CharlotteObserver.com

...it says the fight started beause of a posting the producer made on Facebook.

A former boss of mine says "Nothing good happens on Facebook."
I love Facebook.
You love Facebook.
We'd sooner cut of a finger than close our accounts.
But please use some sense. Use the rule I learned way back in the dark ages when email was first coming to my newsroom: "Never write anything you wouldn't want the world to read." You may think your privacy settings allow only friends, but some of you have 8000 friends and do you really know them all that well? Always assume there's someone out there you wouldn't want reading your innermost thoughts and act accordingly. Don't post anything embarassing about yourself or others. Pretend a current or potential employer can read your page. Or, pretend your mom can read your page. Better yet- friend her. That will make you think twice before saying or posting something that could come back to haunt you.

State of the News Media

2011-01-12T13:48:00.000-08:00

The fine folks at Pew's Project for Excellence in Journalism have released their annual study on the state of local news.

It's not pretty.

On the same website, there's also a fun little quiz about the news from 2010.

The Dangers of Having a TV Tower Near Your Station

2011-01-12T12:04:00.000-08:00

Commercial: Boot Camp for Photogs

2011-01-04T11:03:00.000-08:00

Thought this was fun...

One story Doth Not a Block Make

2010-12-28T11:23:00.000-08:00

I was watching a noon newscast today. I flipped to the channel-- the show came out of commercial-- and, what ? One vo, a tease and then back to break. For a minute (which was less than that whole block lasted) I thought I had missed something. And it wasn't even the last block! Bad producer. One story doesn't make a block. I'm sure you've got a lot stuffed into the first half of that show, but a one story block is cheap and cheats your viewers. At the very end of the show-- ok-- I get it-- but the second to last block? Remember: If you think the second half of the show is a throwaway, so will your viewers.

Because We Can

2010-12-28T10:58:00.000-08:00

I have been noticing a lot of "Because We Can" lately. That is, shows doing stuff-- graphics, effects or whatever-- that don't necessarily enhance the story. For example, the other day, I was watching a show where there was a box graphic floating around in the middle of the story. It didn't add to the story and actually was distracting. Why do it? Because we can.

That's not to put cold water on taking risks. By all means, knock yourself out. But review- at the end of the day, (try to) watch your show like a viewer and ask-- did this bring something to the party? Is it worth doing again? Is there a different way to accomplish the same task? Are some stories/video good enough just to run full and leave well enough alone? Judgement call. Sometimes you'll want to try it one way, sometimes another. Use your best judgement and don't get locked into any hard rules.

I know some of you are stuck with stuff that has been mandated for your show. I feel for you. But where you have flexibility, use it-- and common sense-- to make your show stand out. In a good way.

Orlando TV Crew Attacked

2010-11-09T08:19:00.000-08:00

Be careful out there. A crew in Orlando was covering a memorial when they were attacked by friends and family of the victim. No news story is worth getting hurt. Whether it's a funeral or trying to contact family of someone who's just been killed or arrested, understand there's a potential for things to go downhill. Try to be as respectful as possible, and put yourself in their situation to get a sense of how they might be feeling-- but as it seems in this case, something things come out of nowhere. If you're a line producer, understand that asking your reporters and photographers to do these things involves them taking a risk, so it's up to them to decide what their level of comfort is. Don't encourage anyone to go beyond that.

It's all a Matter of Timing

2010-11-04T07:40:00.000-07:00

As a show producer, you have to be a stickler on time. You're out at 10:59:30, not 10:59:29 or 10:59:31. Timing things to the second can be a real challenge, especially if you are on a new show or are with new talent. My advice is give yourself some breathing room. Until you get a really good feel for your show and your anchors, build flexibility into your show, especially toward the back end of it. I liked to "hide" time in my show. So the end of the show might be :45 in the rundown, instead of the :15 or :30 I really need. I'd also have "killables." That's a story here or there that's not teased that you know you can kill. So maybe before or after weather you have a killable story. Maybe there's one right after sports. Or maybe you have a few kickers and a weather update at the end of the show.

Timing sports can be a sore spot. It's not fair to kill sports stories (in a normal situation) because your part of the show is running heavy. It is fair to ask the sports producer (or anchor if he or she produces his own segment) -- "What can you kill if your segement starts to run heavy?" Having this conversation, every day, prior to the sports segment gets everyone on the same page. Make sure the sports anchor is included in it. Maybe the sports producer tells you-- I can kill this sot or this story at the end. It's best that they make that call-- not you. Of course, with BIG breaking news (I'm talking where you're killing significant portions of your show) - all bets are off and you need to do what you need to do to get off on time.

Speaking of breaking news-- for me, there was no greater joy I had as a show producer than the thrill of tossing out stuff, juggling, and producing a show on the fly. Every day, take a minute to look at your rundown and think-- if I had some big breaking news... what could I toss? This goes beyond normal "killables" that you jettison when you're running a little over. Think drastic cuts. Maybe write yourself a little post-it with the stories that you've teased. To that end, try not to tease everything in your show. Pick a handful of interesting/compelling stories that you tease several times in different ways. By thinking about this stuff ahead of time, every day, when you do get breaking news, you won't have to think too hard-- it comes almost automatically.

Finally, when you kill stories, any stories, remember to do it at a time when everyone is available to you. Killing the next story the anchor is about read as they are finishing one prevvious is a big no-no. Time your show well enough so that you can kill in breaks-- and tell everyone-- director/anchor/crew-- at the same time if you can. If killing in a break is impossible, tell people about kills during pkgs. If that's not possible-- kill during sots. And again-- if you have a sense ahead of time about what you're planning to do, let people know even if they might not need to act on that information. For example, you're running heavy. In the break you tell everyone "If I'm still heavy after weather, I'll kill C8." That way if you do kill the page, it's not a big surprise to everyone. Ditto at the top of the show-- and you think you're lead might not make it. Tell everyone "I think the lead's going to make it, but it will be tight. If not, we'll go to page A4. I'll make the call at the end of headlines." That way, everyone knows what your backup plan is-- and when they'll hear what you'll do.