tvnewsgrapevine

In case you hadn't noticed, your News Director might also be looking for a job

2012-01-30T06:03:00.000-06:00

"Get me outta here" is the time honored battle cry of newsroom staffers who can't wait to find a new job.

But guess what? Your News Director might also feel the same way.

Ever check the "moving on" section of tvjobs.com? Scroll down a little more and you'll see the list of new News Directors who have changed addresses. Hmmmm, lots of moves there as well. Basically, the average ND stays at a job between two and three years... just like most reporters.

And if your ND is looking for a job, this might explain a few things. A few things to look for that are clues he might be sending out tapes as fast as you are:

-Your News Director used to be very involved in the operation, but has grown distant and doesn't seem to care much.

-You find him making copies of the latest ratings book.

-You notice he doesn't have a good relationship with the GM, corporate, or both.

-He is increasingly frustrated with cheap ownership, and not shy about saying so.

-Every time a new piece of large equipment arrives, he takes the box home. Packing!

-He takes an odd day off in the middle of the week. Interview!

Yes, News Directors also want to move up the ladder, just as much as you do. If you're a reporter in Palookaville and can't wait to move on, do you think he wants to stay in Palookaville as well? He has dreams and goals too.

There are other reasons NDs move on... helicopter General Managers, companies that throw nickels around like manhole covers, frustration with the production department. On the other side of the coin, you may work for a good company that promotes from within, and your ND may have been promised the next step up the ladder when a spot opens up within the group. So if you see an announcement about another ND within the chain moving on, don't be surprised if your guy fills that spot.

All the more reason I warn you guys to have an "escape tape" ready to go. The new guy might come in and clean house, or just not like your style for whatever reason.

Just keep in mind that News Directors move on as well... so don't be surprised if you run into yours at the post office.

--

In today's newsroom, you need a "cut man" in your corner

2012-01-26T09:35:00.001-06:00

The alarm clock goes off, and the reporter slams the snooze button, fighting for every last minute in the safe cocoon of his bed. He used to throw back the covers and jump into the shower, ready to seize the day and tell the world a story. But now the career has turned into a job, one that has become increasingly painful. Not because he hates reporting. On the contrary, he loves being a journalist.

It's because he's taken too many shots at work. All of them psychological.

He finally drags himself out of bed, walking like an old man of 70, and later feels his blood pressure rise steadily as he pulls into the station parking lot. He feels like a quarterback who's gonna get sacked, and most of the shots he'll take will come from the blind side.

Not from management. From other members of the staff.

Every boxer takes a lot of hits, hence, the need for a "cut man" who can patch things up between rounds. The most famous would be Mickey from the Rocky movies, a guy who could not only repair physical damage but rebuild confidence after shots to the psyche.

Newsrooms can be a lot like a boxing ring, if you're in a dysfunctional shop. And many times said dysfunction has absolutely nothing to do with the News Director. Co-workers can be the most vicious people you'll encounter along the way. They might be jealous, afraid you're trying to take their jobs, hate the fact that you were born good looking, or just resent the lack of dues you've paid. Doesn't matter.

They love to blitz from the blind side, hitting you with a cutting remark that will ruin your day, stick in your craw, and gnaw at your confidence.

If this happens to you on a regular basis, you need a cut man.

As creative souls we are wired differently than the rest of the world. Most of us can be very sensitive when it comes to our work. We might have all sorts of awards and make a great salary in a nice market, but we still cringe when someone says something nasty. And we'll often take that comment home and let it ruin the rest of the day.

That's when you call in your cut man. Someone who can build you up and remind you you're talented. Someone honest enough to give you constructive criticism when you need it, while also telling you that you knocked out a great story when it happens. Someone you can talk with about anything, someone who always has a shoulder to cry on, someone who knows what makes you tick.

I'm not talking about Mom or Dad. They think their kid should be at the network from day one.

Your cut man might be a close friend, or another co-worker who values your work and friendship.

And by the way, you can be a cut man yourself. If you see someone getting psychologically beaten up day after day, step in, fix the cut, and shove them back in the ring with more confidence that what they had when they left.

Sometimes life in a newsroom can be a breeze, and sometimes it can feel like a street fight. You may think you can survive on your own, but you really can't. A good friend is your strongest defense against those things that can bring you down.

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What you can learn from the Oscar nominations: or, what you think the public needs to know isn't necessarily what they want to know

2012-01-24T09:33:00.001-06:00

While at my very first job we got into a newsroom discussion about stories from the Middle East. Some people in the newsroom thought the stories were very important, and should be considered lead stories. Others, while agreeing this was the case, made the point that the viewers, for the most part, wanted local news and didn't care much about a war that had been going on since the beginning of time.

Finally, someone made the point (okay, that someone was me) that we could take any network feed on the Middle East from the past year, run it, and no one would know the difference. In other words, the story was always the same. It had become video wallpaper.

Which brings us to today's Oscar nominations. (I know, you're wondering how I can tie in war coverage from the 1980s to the Academy Awards. Patience, grasshopper.)

So I look at the nominees for Best Picture, and I've seen a grand total of one movie and five minutes of another. You guessed it, I saw Moneyball. As for the others, I hadn't even heard of half, and had no desire to see the rest.

Hollywood, in case you didn't know, had a bad year in 2012. They raked it in with Harry Potter, Bridesmaids and the Hangover sequel, but had a down year overall. One of the problems with Hollywood is that they put out too many "lecture movies." In other words, movies that are trying to make a point. Hollywood, is, of course, very political, so they often try to sneak in some jabs at a certain political party. Which, of course, turns off half the country. Few of the movies on the Best Picture list made a lot of money. Doesn't mean they weren't good movies, it's just that people didn't have much desire to see them.

Anyway, back to the list of movies. One is called The Descendants. When it first came out with rave reviews, I went online to look up the plot. Basically it's about a guy who has a wife in a coma, finds out she was having an affair and decides to look up her lover while reconnecting with his daughters. Yeah, that's something I wanna plunk down ten bucks to see. Might be a really good movie, might even have a good message, but I'll never see it. I much prefer Harry vs. Voldemort, the Bridesmaids having a wickedly bad reaction to Mexican food, or the Hangover guys waking up in a drunken stupor. Call me shallow, but I want to be entertained for my money.

All of this brings us to news. You may have knocked out an award winning story, but if it's on a topic that no one cares about, it will be the video version of the proverbial tree that falls in the forest. As a producer you may stuff your newscast with every scanner tale you can find, but if you did it yesterday and the day before and the day before that it's nothing different than that 1980s Middle East war video.

When looking for stories, or when putting together your newscast, consider the viewpoint of the viewers. You may think a story is important, that the public needs to know it, but in many cases the public doesn't care. Most viewers have a limited amount of time for news, and if you waste it on things that don't really concern them or don't appeal, you're gonna lose them. If your newscast is filled with nothing but bad news, if it's as depressing as some of the plots of those nominated movies, why would anyone want to watch?

Make your stories count, make them appeal to the average viewer. At the end of the day, a viewer wants to watch stories that are interesting. You may think viewers "need to know" certain stories, but in many cases they don't necessarily want to know.

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Six degrees of separation is a good game to play in broadcasting; or, why you should be friends with the crash dummy in your newsroom

2012-01-19T15:26:00.000-06:00

If you take nothing else from this post, take this: the person at the next desk is not your competition.

Oh sure, the other reporter sitting next to you is gunning for the same anchor job as you are, but he's not the enemy. In fact, he may be the key to your next job.

You all know that "Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon" game, in which you can connect actors in one way or another to Kevin Bacon by linking them to other actors in other movies. Eventually, everyone is linked. It's a premise used by social networking, but in the case of television news, you need to take it to a personal level.

Example: I have a client who wants to go to Minneapolis. I don't know anyone in Minneapolis, but I have an old News Director who used to work there. I mention that I have a talented client who wants to work there. He tells me he's still good friends with a main anchor there, and he'll be happy to put in a good word for my client. That's several degrees of separation, but just like that my client "knows" someone in Minneapolis that he has never met.

Of course, most of you don't have mentors, agents, or guardian angels looking after you, so you have to play the game from scratch. You start on day one, job one, by being nice and making friends with everyone in the building. Doesn't matter if they're backstabbers or have the intelligence of a crash dummy. The business is unfair, and eventually some of those people will move up the ladder.

So now you wanna move to San Diego. That crash dummy got a job in New Orleans. You keep in touch via email, and mention you want to go to San Diego. The crash dummy mentions that his station just lost an anchor to that market, and he'll be happy to give the guy a call on your behalf.

But none of that happens if you don't befriend the crash dummy.

This business is very small. Sometimes it seems as though everyone knows everyone, especially if you've been in this business awhile. But we're all connected in one way or another. Give me a market and I'll probably find someone who knows someone who knows someone. That's how the game works when you need to "know somebody." You still have to get the job on your own, you still need a great tape, but a helping hand from someone you might not even know can get your tape to the top of the stack. Some anchor in some faraway place could walk into a ND's office and say, "My old News Director says he heard this reporter is really good." And that's all it takes.

And yes, the competition is at the other station, but there's no reason you can't be polite while competing. Making friends with people at the other stations is fine as long as you don't get too close and trade stories. Those people can also help you down the road.

The crash dummy may be the most brainless idiot you've ever met, but the crash dummy may have connections in the future that you can't imagine. Play the six degrees of separation game and improve your chances... just by being nice.

--

Control freaks

2012-01-17T09:03:00.000-06:00

Ever buy a lottery ticket? If you have, you realize that you have absolutely no control over winning or not. If the universe chooses to smile on you, you win. If not, you're out a buck.

But you have controlled the only part of the equation that you can control: buying the ticket. You've done all you can.

In some ways, job hunting is a lot like buying a lottery ticket. But the problem with many of you is that you think you can control more of the process, when, in reality, much of it is out of your hands.

Many people reach a point in a job search at which they ask themselves, "There must be something else I can do. I'm not doing enough or I would have found a job." But in most cases, you're already doing as much as is humanly possible.

Things you can control in a job search:

-The quality of your tape. Granted, most of us will overthink this to death, but you are responsible for the work that goes on your tape. If you've done solid work, it will come through.

-Sending your tape. You're really playing the lottery if you knock out a great resume tape and then fail to put it in the mail. You control where your tape goes. If you have an agent, you work with the agent to determine what desks on which your tape will land.

-Cover letter. All on you. You control whether or not your letter is a standard I'll-be-a-team-player-and-work-hard piece of bull, or if you've put on your creative hat and dazzled the News Director with your writing ability.

-Hunting for jobs. It's not enough to simply read the job postings. You have to work the phones, send tapes to stations even if there aren't any openings.

-Following up on positive responses. If a ND sends you a nice note and says, "Keep in touch," it's up to you to send him a new tape every two months.

Things you can't control:

-What a News Director is looking for. He needs a woman and you're a guy. He needs someone who is a great ad libber and you're not. He needs a feature guy and you're an investigative type without an outgoing personality. He needs young and you're old. He needs older and you're young. He needs a certain demographic and you don't fit. He can't afford you. He needs someone who is local and you're not. The list is endless.

-What the GM or corporate wants. See above. Many times a ND is overruled.

-Timing. A ND needs a reporter right now and your contract isn't up for three months.

Get the picture? Remember, while you are responsible for your own career, certain things are, and always will be, out of your control. All you can do is continue to knock out good work every day and hope the stars align. And also keep in mind that the best person often does not get the job. The person who gets the job is often the best fit. And that's something you can't control.

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When job hunting, why not throw a Hail Mary?

2012-01-16T08:05:00.000-06:00

If you watched the Giants game yesterday, you saw them hit a Hail Mary pass for a touchdown on the last play of the half. In all the years I've been watching my team, I'm not sure I've ever seen them complete one of those.

Just goes to show you that even when something is a longshot, you should take a shot.

Even if you think you have no chance for a job, throw up a Hail Mary. (In this case, send a tape.) You have nothing to lose, and you might get a great job.

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Somebody please hire this man to run a television newsroom

2012-01-15T13:27:00.002-06:00

What most of us have been saying all along...

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204257504577151241294892410.html

--

A resume tape looks different on paper than it does when you edit it

2012-01-13T06:17:00.000-06:00

Last week the Denver Broncos upset the Pittsburgh Steelers in a playoff game. On paper, it didn't look like Denver had a shot. But, as my sports anchor friend likes to say, that's why you play the games. Things in real life are often very different than on paper.

I'm in the process of helping a client put together her resume tape. We've got the packages lined up just right... that's not the problem.

The problem is the montage, and it is two-fold. First, the client has so much good stuff I've had to watch all her standups and live shots many times in order to whittle things down. (A nice problem to have... you should all be so lucky.) The second problem came after I sent her the order for the montage.

As always, I ask clients to show me the finished product before giving them the okay to send out the tapes. But in this case, the montage I'd written on paper didn't look right when edited. It didn't "flow" correctly.

What that means was that one standup brought the montage to a screeching halt. It was a terrific standup, very clever, but the pace was so different from the rest that it just didn't work in the position I'd placed it. So what next?

Well, I'm going to juggle the order on paper and see if things "flow" better with a different order. I like the clever standup, but maybe it just needs to be in a different spot.

The point is that resume tapes are just like football games. On paper, you may have what you think is the perfect montage. But when you get it edited, it just doesn't look right. In this ear of non-linear editing, it's simple to switch things around, so do so. If you think your montage doesn't flow, play with it until it does.

Remember, it's not "paper or plastic" but "paper or tape" when it comes to putting together your reel.

--

When you think no one's watching, someone's watching

2012-01-11T17:01:00.000-06:00

I've heard it from just about everyone who worked weekends. Especially when referring to Saturday night. "Nobody's watching."

And I've said it myself as a manager, when referring to a noon newscast. "Let's break her in anchoring on the noon. Nobody's watching."

Yes, we may be conditioned into thinking everyone on the planet is out on a date on Saturday night and the only people watching noon shows are agoraphobes who don't like soap operas.

We all couldn't be more wrong.

Check the prime time ratings for the past week. The number one show, and by a longshot, aired on, get this, Saturday night. Granted, it was a NFL playoff game, but still... the number one show aired on a Saturday night. A lot of "someones" were watching.

Back in the 80's the top prime time show aired on Friday night. Dallas was number one for years, and for a time Miami Vice was right on its heels... also airing on Friday night. And this was when a lot of people couldn't even afford a VCR.

Point is, someone out there is always watching. Maybe not in the numbers that usually top the ratings charts, but they're out there. Yet another reason not to phone it in.

--

What your muse needs

2012-01-09T07:03:00.000-06:00

A muse may be something from Greek mythology, but in my opinion a muse is very real.

For those who don't know, muses are the goddesses who inspire those creative souls who deal in anything artistic. While much of television news falls way outside the realm of art, a lot of what springs from your head may be coming from your muse.

Do you have a muse? Well, if you've ever written something and wondered how that script seemed to work out just perfectly when you were dog tired as you wrote it, you've got one. If you write everything according to Strunk and White and have absolutely no voice in your reporting, you don't. Either that or you're ignoring the one you've got. Many times you write your best stuff when you stop thinking and just let the words flow.

Back to those things that work out perfectly... how does that happen? It happens because you've been giving the muse what she wants. And since a muse doles out creativity and inspiration, that's what you must feed it.

When an author spends his whole life reading books, the starts to write his own, he draws on what's he's read. His subconscious has picked up phrases and styles that he's experienced while reading. He's been feeding the muse all along. By the same token, if you're a young reporter you need to watch a lot of other newscasts, and not just from your own market. Watch anchors, reporters... you don't have to take notes, because the muse is doing it for you. Watch without being critical, without looking for mistakes. Just watch and absorb what you see and hear.

Subconsciously you'll pick up things you like, and your muse will sort them out for your own use. Do this long enough and words will flow easier; you'll turn a phrase without batting an eye, your stories will come together perfectly.

Whether or not you believe in a muse makes no difference. The point is, you can't learn by only watching yourself. By the end of your career you'll have a style all your own... but in reality, it's a combination of little things you've picked up from other people along the way.

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Proof that photogs can write

2012-01-08T09:23:00.000-06:00

Well, I guess I'm not the only one in the business to get bitten by the fiction bug. One of the best photogs who ever shot for me, Rick Portier, has knocked out a kick-ass novel about a shooter in Louisiana. (Hmmmm... he's a shooter in Louisiana.) Check it out:

Rick is almost as sarcastic as I am. I think he might have a few New Yorkers in his roots.

-

The 2012 interview wardrobe

2012-01-05T06:57:00.000-06:00

I thought I'd help you get the jump on job hunting since you all probably made New Years resolutions to get the hell out of Dodge.

Anyway, this just in: the outfits people are wearing for job interviews this year:

-polo shirts
-khaki pants
-white tee shirts visible under the polo shirts
-docksiders
-jeans

I've come up with this list because just a few days into the new year, this is what I'm seeing on various local news stations. Oh, yes, wrinkled clothes are encouraged as well, so throw away your steam iron and ironing board.

You know that old saying about being in sweeps every day? Well, you guys are on a job interview every day. Today might be the day you knock out a great resume tape piece, or have your best live shot... and there you are, on camera, dressed like you're gonna mow the lawn.

Most of the problem lies with the men. While we are notorious for hating clothes shopping, there's no excuse for not wearing a decent shirt and tie. If, back in the day, I'd dressed like some reporters I saw this week, my News Director would have sent me home to change.

Just as you're in sweeps every day, you're on a job interview every day. You never know who's watching, what stories will end up on the feed, what pieces will go on your resume tape or when you might end up doing something for the network.

You wouldn't wear a tee shirt and jeans to a real job interview, so why do it on camera?

--

Re-voicing other packages

2012-01-04T06:27:00.000-06:00

Every station does it. They have their local anchors re-voice a network or syndicated package in an attempt to make the viewer think it was their own.

Back in the day we had a service that sent us regular medical packages to voice. Slight problem...they produced all the packages in New York City. We were in the South and inevitably there'd be a sound bite from a doctor that sounded like this:

"Ya need ta tawk to ya doctah when ya hava problem."

No viewer would possibly believe the story was produced locally.

On the occasion they'd send a piece without a physician who didn't talk in Brooklynese, we'd get calls from viewers wanting an appointment with the guy... and then we had to confess he was in New York.

You can get around this problem easily by taking a little time to include someone local in your package. You can still use the same b-roll from the original piece, but don't send up a red flag to viewers that the story is not your own.

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Mailbag: Raucus caucus

2012-01-03T07:22:00.000-06:00

Grape,

I'm so sick of talking about the Iowa primary, and I know none of our viewers (I'm not in Iowa) has any idea of what a caucus is. Any ideas on how to make this story more interesting?

Yeah. You kinda answered your own question. Why not do a package on how the caucus process works? Then your viewers will know what a caucus is. The rest of you dayside people might do that today as well.

Dear Grapevine,

Hope you had a good holiday. My ND mentioned that awards season is coming up and for us to start thinking about what we wanted to enter. I'm a rookie and have no idea what would stand a good chance of winning. Thoughts?

Well, first you must realize that in many cases these awards are judged without a whole lot of effort. That's why you often see stations promoting someone as "Best reporter in Podunk as voted by whoever!" when everyone in the market knows that reporter isn't very good.

I've entered stuff I thought was a stone cold lock to win and didn't get an honorable mention, and I've entered packages I just slammed together that won awards. On the times I've judged awards I liked stuff that was different and stood out from the crowd. Stories that make a difference can often jump the line to the top spot.

Hi Grape,

Predictions for 2012?

Sure, here you go:

-Stations will be flush with cash thanks to political advertising. Politicians spent four billion in 2010 and with the Presidential race this year, that number will be even higher. We may despise politicians, but they keep our business afloat.

-Talented young people will limited experience continue to make huge market jumps as my generation continues to bail on the business.

-Job applicants will still call News Directors even though the ad reads "no phone calls."

-The Mets will be awful.

Resolutions you might consider

2011-12-30T12:22:00.000-06:00

Most people make pretty normal resolutions...you know, lose weight, quit smoking, send out ten resume tapes each month, etc. But if you're stuck for something meaningful you might give it a little more thought, and it might even help your career.

Considering the state of local news, the business in general, and the fact that viewers are leaving in droves you might think the biz has no future. Let's face it, it is not exactly a growth industry. But while TV News as we know it has an uncertain future, you can still make it better in the present. I'm always reminded of the great Carole Kneeland, the late News Director who worked in Texas and coined the phrase, "It is never the wrong time to do the right thing." Carole had a wonderful view of the news business, as she basically turned down the police scanner and did stories that actually affected people. She also believed in treating people well, something that is often lost in many newsrooms today. If you simply let her famous quote weave its way through your life and career, you might see things in a different light...and make this business a little better.

So, with that in mind, here are a few suggestions to "re-invent" yourself in 2012:

-Make a difference with a story. Once each month, make it a point to knock out a package that makes the world a better place.

-Don't "advance" a story for the sake of advancing. Too often this leads to speculation, rumors and misinformation. We're not in the rumor business. If you have nothing new in the way of hard facts, tell the public just that. Viewers would appreciate the honesty.

-Praise a co-worker in front of someone else. Don't just tell the photog he shot some great video, make sure someone hears you say it.

-Welcome the new person at your station. Too often the new guy gets the cold shoulder because someone else wasn't promoted from within.

-Do stories that really affect the viewer. Don't just take a press release and pass it on. Find two sides of the story, then look for the third point of view... one that affects the average person.

-If you're an on-air person, be nice to the people who make you look good. Treat a photog to lunch, thank the truck op for pulling cables, buy a box of donuts for the morning meeting.

-Don't yell in the newsroom. Ever.

-Bury the ego.

-Spend time in someone else's shoes. If you're a reporter, don't criticize a producer if you've never spent a minute in the control room. If you're a producer, don't send field crews on assignments that can't be completed unless you've spent time in the field. Find out what everyone in the newsroom does and you might have a better appreciation of other points of view.

-Print out the phrase "It is never the wrong time to do the right thing" and stick it above your computer. It might help you make good decisions in the future.

Setting goals for 2012

2011-12-28T09:11:00.000-06:00

I know, most of you only have one. "Find a new job."

But achieving that goal takes many steps. Sure, you can send out one tape and get lucky, but in most cases moving up the ladder is a process. Just because you have three good packages and a decent montage doesn't mean you're going anywhere.

The problem is that many young people are so focused on finding those resume tape stories they forget about the day-to-day job of reporting...and taking your eye off the ball can make you miss what could be the story that gets you...wait for it...outta Dodge.

If you do your best every day, the resume tape stories will magically appear.

But you need a set of goals to make those resume tape stories routine. If you're serious about moving on, and I know most of you are, here are the goals you need to set for 2012:

-I will treat every story as if the News Director at the station I want to work for is watching. Even if I receive a horrible assignment, I will go all out and treat it as if it is the last story I will ever do.

-I will pitch at least one enterprise story every day. I will treat looking for enterprise stories as part of my daily routine, even on off days.

-I will look beyond the two sides of the story for the third angle to make my story unique. I will never do a package with a single-source sound bite unless it is a profile piece.

-I will do a creative standup in every story. (Funerals are the exception.)

-I will write to my video and turn a clever phrase when it is appropriate.

-I will use nat sound and creative editing in every story.

-If I am shooting my own video I will always use a tripod.

-If I am working with a photog I will ask for his input as to how the story might be covered.

-I will dress professionally for every story that requires it.

-I will watch reporters and anchors from other markets and networks to get ideas on how to improve my own skills.

-Finally, I will send tapes to any station, whether or not it has an opening, regardless of my experience.

--

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T10:24:00.000-06:00

And Happy Hanukkah to my Jewish friends as well.

Sorry, I've just had enough of this politically correct "happy holidays" stuff.

May the PC police get coal in their stockings.

--

The one-man-band's night before Christmas

2011-12-16T19:46:00.001-06:00

'Twas the night before Christmas,
and all thru the station,
the photogs were gone,
on permanent vacation.

Reporters all stared
at the equipment with fear,
and hoped a new job offer
soon would be near.

When out from the scanner
there arose such a clatter.
It was a big story,
one that truly would matter.

The reporter then loaded
the car she would drive.
The gear weighed one fifty,
she was just a buck-five.

She drove to the story,
and hoped things would jell,
one hand on the steering wheel,
the other on her cell.

It took her four trips
to set up the gear,
then she turned on her camera,
and cranked up the fear.

Was the video in focus?
Was the audio clear?
The interview subject
soon would be here.

Would her standup look good,
and the shot be in frame?
She did not want
to return looking lame.

The man started talking,
she pressed the red button.
The lights started flashing,
but then she got nothin'.

The levels weren't moving,
her camera stopped rolling,
the battery was dead,
the producer was calling.

"No Video! No Audio!
No B-Roll! No Nats!
This technical garbage
is driving me bats!"

She swapped out the battery
and answered the call.
Her mike gave out feedback,
her mike flag would fall.

She started to feel all stressed out and bitter,
as the producer reminded her about Facebook and Twitter.
Her camera was dead, her mike was still screaming,
she hoped against hope that she was just dreaming.

She started to tremble and kept on trying,
a photog looked over and thought she'd start crying.
He reached for her camera, and flipped just one switch,
then everything worked, without nary a hitch.

She smiled at the photog,
turned back to the story.
She'd ask a great question,
go home with some glory.

But the man had stopped talking,
he was no longer there.
She'd missed the whole story,
the cupboard was bare.

The photog came over,
gave her shoulders a rub.
He said, "Don't worry, kid,
I'll make you a dub."

"One person cannot
do the job of two.
It isn't your fault,
shooting is what I do."

He handed her the tape,
and wished her the best.
She gave him a hug,
felt a tug in her chest.

On that Christmas Eve,
as she watched the yule log,
the one gift she wanted
was a job with a photog.

TVNEWSGRAPEVINE, copyright 2011 © Randy Tatano

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New look

2011-12-14T13:57:00.000-06:00

Maybe you've noticed this blog has undergone an extreme makeover. Gone is the hot-pink-mauve-rose-plum-whatever background color (which originally was called "wine"... get it? grapevine, wine....)

Anyway, an author friend of mine named Dwight Okita has a lot more artistic talent than I (my art development stopped with finger paint) so he was nice enough to design what's called a "header" at the top of the blog, incorporating the TV lights you see with the name of the blog.

Anyway, if you have a blog and it is currently "headless" and in need of some artwork, touch base with Dwight. Here's a little explanation of what he does:

"I recently noticed that a lot of blogs out in the blogosphere are running around headless! The header to a blog is prime real estate. It's the first thing visitors see that establishes your identity/personality/brand. I wanted to offer a service to bloggers by designing personalized headers at an affordable price -- currently $75. See my website for other header styles: http://dwightland.homestead.com."

Meanwhile, you might check out his book which was one of the top three finishers in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award contest. I personally think it's a pretty amazing story.

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The Albert Pujols waterskiing yacht hypothesis

2011-12-09T08:56:00.000-06:00

I know, that sounds like a title of an episode of "The Big Bang Theory" but it has more to do with television than you might think.

Yesterday St. Louis Cardinal icon Albert Pujols signed a 254 million dollar contract with the Angels. Think about that number for a moment. A quarter of a billion dollars. Those are the kinds of numbers thrown around in Congress when we're talking budget cuts.

Anyway, by all accounts Albert was blissfully happy in St Louis, one of America's best baseball towns. The fans adored him, he was seemingly a good guy who stayed out of the police blotter, and on his way to the Hall of Fame.

Bottom line, the guy had a great life.

But he turned down about 220 million from the Cardinals.

So amazingly, once again, we must quote Charlie Sheen. (Not the tiger blood Internet Charlie Sheen, but the Bud Fox Charlie Sheen from the movie Wall Street.)

"How many yachts can you waterski behind?"

-Charlie Sheen to Michael Douglas

Basically Sheen's character is wondering, "How much money can you possibly spend?" Which brings us to a question for Albert: What's the difference between 220 million and 254 million? (And yes, I know it's 34 million, but that's not the point.) Second question: How are you going to feel when all those notoriously laid back LA fans leave the stadium in the seventh inning to beat the traffic?

And that brings me back to an anchor I know who was very successful in a decent sized market. He'd been there several years, was very popular. He liked management, management liked him. Good company.

So contract time rolls around and he hires an agent who plays hardball. Asks for more money. A lot more money. Won't budge on the figure.

You guessed it, finally the station moved on and rescinded its offer. Which left that anchor scrambling for another job. He ended up moving to a place he didn't like, and didn't stay there when that contract ended. Bottom line, the happy job experience was gone forever.

I got an email from someone recently who was very happy in her job, making a great salary, loved her company and co-workers, yet was still looking to move on.

Perhaps she hasn't realized she can only waterski behind one yacht.

You can't put a price on comfort and happiness. As someone who has worked in places I loved and places I hated, I can tell you all the money in the world won't make a place you don't like any better. Think long and hard before leaving a perfect situation, because there aren't many out there.

If you've found your yacht, why look for another?

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Covering the second coming

2011-12-02T09:25:00.001-06:00

Years ago we had a News Director who would get extremely excited when assigning a "nothing" story. He'd act as if we should call the network when the story was actually nothing more than a time-filler. We used to joke when we'd get an assignment like this, saying, "You'd think we're heading out to cover the second coming." That reference is, of course, to the return of Jesus to this planet. Which would, naturally, be the biggest story in the history of the news business.

So a while back this thought ran through my head. What would television news people do if we really did have to cover the second coming?

The answer is in my second novel. It's titled "The End" since it might be the end of the world...or it might not. In any event, you'll have to buy the book to find out how television news would cover the arrival of a messenger from heaven... and how judgment day would play out in high-definition via satellite. It's published under my pen name, Nick Harlow.

Right now it's available in the electronic version on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, the iTunes bookstore, etc. for the whopping sum of $2.99. You can also download it to any computer if you don't have an e-reader by downloading the free app provided by the bookseller.

I hope you'll check it out or give it to someone for Christmas. Oh, same deal as before. Send me a receipt proving you've bought the book and I'll critique one story or anchor segment free.

http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/the-end/id474993680?mt=11

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-end-nick-harlow/1106574268?ean=2940013266940&itm=1&usri=nick+harlow

TVNEWSGRAPEVINE, copyright 2011 © Randy Tatano

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Sometimes, great people trump a bad company

2011-11-26T09:17:00.000-06:00

Whenever people ask me about the best and worst places I've worked, the answer is often the same station.

Huh?

Well, you can think of stops during your career in two ways. The people with whom you share a newsroom, and the company itself. And let's face it, these days many companies aren't remotely human, having been taken over by beancounters and non-creative types.

And very often, if you're being treated badly by management or your company throws nickels around like manhole covers, you seek solace in your co-workers. After all, you're in the same boat, and misery loves company.

I can remember one station that started out terrific. Great News Director who was a friendly guy, company that paid well and had great benefits, members of management who had a heart.

And then we got sold. To a company that was just the opposite, and a News Director who reminded everyone of Mister Potter from "It's a Wonderful Life." Nasty and cheap is not a good combination and makes for a toxic work environment.

I remember a line from another reporter about the new guy. "He said he wants to unite the newsroom. Well, he's done it." Problem was, we were all united. Against him.

Ironically, this brought us all closer even though we were pretty close before. The friendships became tighter, any competition in the newsroom disappeared, as we were all united in one cause: the resistance.

I still have plenty of friends from that place. One of the best...and worst places I've ever worked.

It just illustrates the importance of a news team in this environment. If you're in an "every man for himself" shop that's owned by a bad company, you've got the worst of both worlds. If you work together and help one another, even the worst environment can be a positive one. You simply have to tune out that junk rolling downhill from corporate and focus on the friendships in the newsroom.

Is your newsroom a "family" and does every day seem like a Thanksgiving get-together? Or are you all doing your own thing?

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A Black Friday story you might consider

2011-11-21T08:16:00.000-06:00

If I'm a reporter covering Black Friday, I could write my script today. It's the same everywhere, local and network, from every reporter. The opening nat sound of the store security chain going up, the hordes rushing in. The soundbites with a few shoppers who scored bargains and a store manager who says business was great. Nat breaks of gifts being scanned at the checkout counter. Shots of people in sleeping bags (who aren't interested in Occupying the Store forever.)

Seriously, do we have to see the same damn package every year?

Many years ago I got sick of doing this story. I mean, if I was going to get up at the crack of dawn (which you all know I hate) I was going to do something fun and different.

Hence the advent of "This season's most obnoxious toys" package.

I got the idea when I was at a dinner party at the home of a couple who had a demon child that simply wouldn't go to bed. Nothing but adults in the house, and this kid kept getting up and annoying people. Finally he started following me around wanting to play a game. I asked him if he wanted to play hide and seek, told him to go hide, and never looked for him. Problem solved.

So it occurred to me the couple that had spawned this hatchling from Hades needed a little payback and a taste of their own medicine. If their kid was gonna annoy others, he might as well annoy his own parents.

We set up a story with one of the biggest toy stores in the area and I asked the manager to round up the noisiest, most obnoxious toys in the store. He didn't disappoint. A mechanical Santa that did nothing but rap. A CD of the chipmunks version of "Achy Breaky Heart." A battery operated chicken that squawked incessantly. You get the idea. It turned out to be a hilarious package. And then it became an annual affair, as viewers got a real kick out of it. I often wonder how many parents received these lovely stocking stuffers and maybe got the idea their kid wasn't Macaulay Culkin.

Anyway, you might float that one by your ND if you want to get out of the usual Black Friday mold.

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Chemistry: the intangible that can get you...or cost you...a job

2011-11-18T07:33:00.000-06:00

We all know the most talented person often doesn't get the job. Same with the most experienced, the best looking, yadda, yadda, yadda.

But there's one factor we've not talked about here over the years when it comes to anchor jobs...and that's chemistry.

During my career I co-anchored with a lot of people. Some were great friends with whom I had a lot in common, others were people who I couldn't stand that made me leave skid marks on the set at 6:31 pm. Some seemed to be on the same wavelength when it came to cross talk and ad-libs, while others would hand you a dead fish coming out of a break.

Which brings us to the "chemistry interview."

Awhile back I was working at a station and we lost our female co-anchor. So we did the usual; ran an ad, went through the tapes, held a gong show, and narrowed things down to the three finalists. Had this been a solo anchor job we would have offered it to the person at the top of the list, but because the woman we hired would have to work with a co-anchor, we had to see if there was a spark of chemistry. Viewers love on-air "couples" with chemistry.

So we arranged to bring all three women in to do a mock newscast with the guy who would be their co-anchor. In effect, we needed his opinion before picking, as one anchor once put it, "My on-air wife." But first, we sent each one to lunch with the guy. No management, just the two of them. We couldn't just pull people off the street, throw them on the set and expect chemistry. We needed to at least let them get to know each other for an hour or two in a casual setting. Then we brought them back to the newsroom, let the woman sit next to the guy as he prepared his newscast.

When the newscast was done we simply re-loaded the prompter and let the two of them do a mock show.

When we were done with all three, we watched each tape to see if there was chemistry. Then we brought the anchor in to ask who he'd like to work with. You might think management had all the power in such decisions, but this is one occasion where an anchor's opinion carries a good deal of weight. The anchor told us who he liked, who he felt comfortable with, who he had the most in common with. Then we made our decision. It was as important for him to be comfortable with the hire as we were.

So, how can you improve your chances in this scenario? You really can't. You can't fake chemistry, and you can't snap your fingers and produce it. It's either there or it's not. And it may be the reason the person most deserving of the job didn't get it.

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In national stories, money and/or fame are often motivating factors

2011-11-16T09:04:00.000-06:00

About five years ago we were hot on the trail of a suspected murderer in one of the country's highest profile cases. A bunch of reporters were staying in the same hotel, and we had just scored an interview with someone who knew the suspect years ago. The woman said very nice things about the guy, what a good person he was, couldn't imagine him killing anyone, etc.

The next morning I was talking to a reporter from a national tabloid who told me she'd seen our interview. "I'm talking to her today," the reporter said. "She looked like a good interview."

"She was," I said. We all went our separate ways that day, looking for more sidebars and clues.

A few days later the tabloid hit the stands, and the woman I'd interviewed had changed her story 180 degrees. The photog was so incensed we went back to the woman's home and asked her how she could have changed her story so drastically.

"I just remembered a few other things," she said, smiling like she'd just won the lottery.

Right.

Checkbook journalism? Fifteen minutes of fame? Both? You make the call.

Which is why you need to be very careful if you end up covering a story like Penn State or the allegations against Herman Cain. While much of what you hear may be true, there are always people out there looking for money, fame or both.

And when I see someone give an interview accompanied by one of those high profile victim attorneys, the red flags go up.

But really, how do you know? In a he-said-she-said story, how can you tell who's telling the truth? And who's just looking for a payday? (Check out the recent Justin Bieber paternity suit for an example.)

The Penn State story is beyond creepy and sad, but you know there will be some people jumping on the lawsuit bandwagon who don't have a legitimate claim. Herman Cain's story reminds me of Bill Clinton's first run for President, when his "bimbo eruptions" made headlines. It seemed he'd had affairs with every woman in Arkansas. Who was telling the truth and who was looking for a payday? Impossible to tell.

But when covering allegations, it helps to look into the background of the person making the accusations before convicting the accused in the media. Is the accuser someone who has a history of being litigious, who's looking for a big check? Does the accuser have a motive beyond a financial one? And what's the history of any attorney involved? Dig a little deeper before jumping to conclusions. And in the Penn State case, the most interesting part of that story is the District Attorney who disappeared. Solve that mystery and you might find the truth in the whole story.

In many cases, accusations imply guilt. It's like the classic no-win question to a politician. "When did you stop beating your wife?" Guilty before answering, because the question offers a no-win scenario. In sexual harassment accusations, there is no real definition of sexual harassment when it comes to spoken word. What's funny to one woman might be offensive to another.

So be careful before jumping to any conclusions. While the "where there's smoke, there's fire" line is often true, sometimes the people feeding the fire are doing so for self-serving reasons.

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