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Disclosure: I am NOT an agent or a consultant. I have worked in TV newsrooms (and seen the good, the bad and the really ugly) for more than 15 years. I am offering advice that serves only as my opinion for TV journalists. Oh yeah... and it is free. :)
Monday
Friday
Horrible Hit And Run: Do More Than Superficial Reporting; Take Action In Your Community
The media has been quick to promote a horrible story, with video, of a 78-year old hit and run victim who lay in the middle of a Hartford, CT street. Bystanders and passersby look and gawk… but no one comes to the rescue of the man who seconds ago was struck by a speeding car. Horrible. It’s the kind of video that TV producers live for. Take a look.
Yes, the media should jump on this story… not because of the good video but because there are incidents every day across the country that harm our senior citizens… and no one helps. Those are not caught on tape. As I watched the media coverage last night and this morning, I was reminded of how superficial and limiting the broadcast media really is. “How could they do that” and “Why would no one help this poor man,” I heard. Less than two minutes later, it was on to the next story. Every single person on the street is an embarrassment to society.
Politicians this cycle speak of change in America. The real change needs to happen in individuals as well. If you Google ‘senior citizens abused’ this morning, you will find countless news stories of the horrific treatment inflicted on sometimes helpless friends and neighbors. Yes, change is needed. The media as a whole, and certainly in the Hartford market, should dig far deeper than just showing the video over and over for shock value… and superficial man-on-the-street reporting. Challenge you community to take action. Rally neighborhoods, politicians, public servants and more to celebrate… life. These stories should force media to think about how they are serving their communities. Don’t just report the problem… be a part of the solutions. Every single person on that street in Hartford should not be allowed to ever forget what they did… even when the mass media stops showing the video and superficially reporting the story. Take action! In fact, we all would be well served if the mass media across the country would use this to spark action in their communities as well.
READ MORE MEDIA NEWS AT: Watching The Media For You
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Yes, the media should jump on this story… not because of the good video but because there are incidents every day across the country that harm our senior citizens… and no one helps. Those are not caught on tape. As I watched the media coverage last night and this morning, I was reminded of how superficial and limiting the broadcast media really is. “How could they do that” and “Why would no one help this poor man,” I heard. Less than two minutes later, it was on to the next story. Every single person on the street is an embarrassment to society.
Politicians this cycle speak of change in America. The real change needs to happen in individuals as well. If you Google ‘senior citizens abused’ this morning, you will find countless news stories of the horrific treatment inflicted on sometimes helpless friends and neighbors. Yes, change is needed. The media as a whole, and certainly in the Hartford market, should dig far deeper than just showing the video over and over for shock value… and superficial man-on-the-street reporting. Challenge you community to take action. Rally neighborhoods, politicians, public servants and more to celebrate… life. These stories should force media to think about how they are serving their communities. Don’t just report the problem… be a part of the solutions. Every single person on that street in Hartford should not be allowed to ever forget what they did… even when the mass media stops showing the video and superficially reporting the story. Take action! In fact, we all would be well served if the mass media across the country would use this to spark action in their communities as well.
READ MORE MEDIA NEWS AT: Watching The Media For You
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When I’m applying for a new job in media, how high should I aim?
The easy answer is to always shoot for the stars… shoot for the markets, stations and companies you have always wanted to work for. But, know a few things going in. The quality of your work and your experience SHOULD be what gets you the job. Always dream big. But be realistic. If you only shoot for the stars, you may be disappointed in a search. Plot your market and position moves over a longer period of time than a 2 or 3 year contract. Where do want to be and what do you want to be doing. A very few people are lucky enough to go from college to dream jobs. Most of us have to be realistic and work at it.
Tuesday
Why The Title Of News Director Should Change
Why The Title Of News Director Should Be Eliminated
((From April)
Three weeks and counting… until the start of the next sweeps period. TV news directors are busy making certain their plans are in place to keep the prime time audience and grow all news time periods.
“What do we need to do to grow our share and demos?”
“How do we make certain we win the big story tonight?”
“Is our plan to win weather ready for hurricane season?”
“Just how much will the prime time lead-in deliver?”
All are fair questions for coverage today. But while news directors are ‘minding the store’ today, technology is ripping off the TV news headquarters. The trouble is that newsroom and station managers have not realized how to stop the theft. Everyone is so focused on how to win tonight’s newscast that they’ve forgotten the bigger picture problems. That bigger picture is not next month or even next year. The bigger picture was last month and last year when increasing number of news consumers realized that there’s no longer a need to make an appointment to watch the 6 or 11 p.m. newscasts. News for consumers today is when, where and how they want to receive it. With that in mind, consider these questions (and my answers).
Is TV news dead?
No. Much like radio evolved after television launched, relevant TV news will always exist. It will simply be a much smaller piece of the media buffet than it has ever been. TV news as we knew it three, five, even 10 years ago has changed. Viewers no longer feel obligated to tune into their favorite channel for the news. It’s easy to say the internet has changed the TV news business. But that statement and concept are very shortsighted. In reality, technology and the consumer demand for instant information have changed the TV news business. The reach extends far beyond the “web”.
What should I know about my viewers today?
The term “viewer” is a relic. The definition paints a picture of someone who actively watches television. The number of people doing that today is far less than a decade ago. Today, news directors and station managers are better served to define their customers as ‘consumers’ of information. Local stations produce valuable local content. The challenge for TV news managers is to solve the problem of greater distribution of that local news content beyond the boundaries of a newscast, web site or mobile device. Distribution of the relevant local content is the future. Viewership is the past. To survive, we must achieve success in both and accept that the decreases in the latter are forever changing the local TV news business.
What do you mean by “distribution”?
I recently had a general manager of a large market station simply reject even a conversation about the future of local news content as “products”. Consider this: TV newsrooms produce hundreds of elements each day compiled for on-air newscasts and web sites. If you pull together hundreds of elements for a single product like newscasts, why not consider each of those elements as a valuable piece of information or a product that a consumer or advertiser might want independently of each other? Traditionally, our news staff efforts are combined for a TV newscast or web site that generates revenue from advertisers. This new ‘product’ approach in local TV news will still offer that larger product. But, it also offers every single element as a potential additional revenue stream. Today’s “news directors” really should be “content directors”. News directors must deliver much more than quality journalism. They must deliver a strong, aggressive and strategic approach to distributing a local station’s content to consumers on all traditional and contemporary platforms.
When did all of this really start?
For five decades TV news has delivered its menu of content as a three course meal at specific times of the day. Viewers either liked the news, weather and sports menu or they often sat passively waiting for the next program. The remote control started a change. But 9/11 signified the biggest change ever in our TV news direction. When the attacks against Americans happened, the world wanted to know every detail as quickly as possible. While it was only a matter of minutes, it seemed an eternity for TV news to refocus coverage with live city cameras of smoke coming from one of the towers. Seconds mattered more than ever in TV news. The demand for information exceeded the speed at which even TV could deliver. More importantly, viewers wanted more than TV news could deliver at any given moment in a simple audio and video stream. In a mad search for more information, “viewers” turned to the web. The attacks changed Americans. It also changed the media forever. Consumer demand information when, how and with as much depth as their want.
((From April)
Three weeks and counting… until the start of the next sweeps period. TV news directors are busy making certain their plans are in place to keep the prime time audience and grow all news time periods.
“What do we need to do to grow our share and demos?”
“How do we make certain we win the big story tonight?”
“Is our plan to win weather ready for hurricane season?”
“Just how much will the prime time lead-in deliver?”
All are fair questions for coverage today. But while news directors are ‘minding the store’ today, technology is ripping off the TV news headquarters. The trouble is that newsroom and station managers have not realized how to stop the theft. Everyone is so focused on how to win tonight’s newscast that they’ve forgotten the bigger picture problems. That bigger picture is not next month or even next year. The bigger picture was last month and last year when increasing number of news consumers realized that there’s no longer a need to make an appointment to watch the 6 or 11 p.m. newscasts. News for consumers today is when, where and how they want to receive it. With that in mind, consider these questions (and my answers).
Is TV news dead?
No. Much like radio evolved after television launched, relevant TV news will always exist. It will simply be a much smaller piece of the media buffet than it has ever been. TV news as we knew it three, five, even 10 years ago has changed. Viewers no longer feel obligated to tune into their favorite channel for the news. It’s easy to say the internet has changed the TV news business. But that statement and concept are very shortsighted. In reality, technology and the consumer demand for instant information have changed the TV news business. The reach extends far beyond the “web”.
What should I know about my viewers today?
The term “viewer” is a relic. The definition paints a picture of someone who actively watches television. The number of people doing that today is far less than a decade ago. Today, news directors and station managers are better served to define their customers as ‘consumers’ of information. Local stations produce valuable local content. The challenge for TV news managers is to solve the problem of greater distribution of that local news content beyond the boundaries of a newscast, web site or mobile device. Distribution of the relevant local content is the future. Viewership is the past. To survive, we must achieve success in both and accept that the decreases in the latter are forever changing the local TV news business.
What do you mean by “distribution”?
I recently had a general manager of a large market station simply reject even a conversation about the future of local news content as “products”. Consider this: TV newsrooms produce hundreds of elements each day compiled for on-air newscasts and web sites. If you pull together hundreds of elements for a single product like newscasts, why not consider each of those elements as a valuable piece of information or a product that a consumer or advertiser might want independently of each other? Traditionally, our news staff efforts are combined for a TV newscast or web site that generates revenue from advertisers. This new ‘product’ approach in local TV news will still offer that larger product. But, it also offers every single element as a potential additional revenue stream. Today’s “news directors” really should be “content directors”. News directors must deliver much more than quality journalism. They must deliver a strong, aggressive and strategic approach to distributing a local station’s content to consumers on all traditional and contemporary platforms.
When did all of this really start?
For five decades TV news has delivered its menu of content as a three course meal at specific times of the day. Viewers either liked the news, weather and sports menu or they often sat passively waiting for the next program. The remote control started a change. But 9/11 signified the biggest change ever in our TV news direction. When the attacks against Americans happened, the world wanted to know every detail as quickly as possible. While it was only a matter of minutes, it seemed an eternity for TV news to refocus coverage with live city cameras of smoke coming from one of the towers. Seconds mattered more than ever in TV news. The demand for information exceeded the speed at which even TV could deliver. More importantly, viewers wanted more than TV news could deliver at any given moment in a simple audio and video stream. In a mad search for more information, “viewers” turned to the web. The attacks changed Americans. It also changed the media forever. Consumer demand information when, how and with as much depth as their want.
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