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Team Coverage: Keys to solid execution

Honing Skills, Producing, Survival Kit No Responses »
Apr 082013

Apparently, a lot of producers think that they must showcase how they handle team coverage in order to impress.  I am seeing a lot of team coverage newscasts both from potential clients and when judging EMMY award entries.  So if you are going to show it off, make sure it is done well, and that you put your own stamp on the coverage in some way.

So let’s spell out expectations for team coverage.

How to execute team coverage

  • Grab them
  • Spell out each element clearly
  • Do not assume viewers know story
  • Button up, then push ahead

Team coverage demands special opens.  These do not have to be 30 second mini packages with a lot of incredible wipes and sots and nats. (Although those are a blast to watch) You do have to showcase to the viewer, right away, that this is a big story that warrants their full attention.  And you need to spell out why, right away, then expand on the impact.

So once you showcase why this is team coverage (a child is rescued from a kidnapper by a good samaritan, a police chase leads to a deadly crash and now officers must answer for it, or this storm could set off a bunch of tornadoess) you need to make sure each reporter involved has a clear angle.  Very often the anchor says something, the reporter repeats the information, then the second reporter repeats the angle again.  Viewers pick up on this and get frustrated. “You just said that!” “Do you know anything else?” “Move on!”  Those are all phrases you will hear in focus groups.  The viewer loves more more and more, as long as there really is more to say.  Producers, you are supposed to explain to each crew what elements they are responsible for, and what to leave out.  You are judged on that.

If this is a story you have covered for more than one day, or even from newscast to newscast make sure the viewer understands what happened.  Too often I see team coverage where the viewer never gets the basics.  You still have to provide an “overview” even if this is day 5 of coverage of the same story.  How you do that is one way a producer can show some creativity.  I have seen cool timelines with killer graphics, telestrating with video of a police chase and crash, mini anchor packages walking viewers through the up until now elements.  Just going from live shot to live shot on a four box is not enough to own team coverage.  That is easy to do.  If you want to showcase your management of the team coverage, making sure the viewer is crystal clear on the timeline is a great place to start.

Another key element to team coverage is a button up.  That entails a brief summary of the latest information you just presented and if at all possible a push ahead with a fresh angle on the station webpage and/or next newscast.  These may seem mundane, but they are no different than the conclusion to a presentation.  Viewers like conclusions.  They are used to seeing them.   Use them to make it clear, we gave you all the information you need right now.  We are not letting go.  We will keep pushing for more for you.  You want viewers to see you do this.  It is part of a journalists advocacy role.  Do not blow off the button up.

Those are the basics for executing team coverage.  But if you want to really stand apart, you need incredible images, crisp and powerful elements that put your anchor into the story as well, and excellent use of nats, images and sound to weave the viewer from element to element in a clear way.  That is truly owning team coverage.

 

Moving To A Big Market.

Know Your Newsroom, Producing No Responses »
Apr 032013

It’s one of the most commonly asked questions among young producers in TV news – ‘how do I know if I’m ready to work in a big market?’   If your co-workers like your stuff and you have been consistently promoted, the answer is pretty simple.  You probably are.

Let’s say you’re a grinder.  You started in a small market, doing ten different things in the newsroom, learning, absorbing, doing. Then you made a jump to a slightly bigger market.  More responsibility, a few extra bucks.  Maybe you even jumped again, to a solid station, in say, Albany, Oklahoma City, or Winston-Salem.  Now you’re making a decent living and you’re doing a good job.  Every ambitious journalist (especially if you went to a hyper-competitive J-school) has that nagging feeling.  Could I cut it in a top ten market?

Confession: it happened to me. I spent the first five years of my career steadily moving up, first producing in Binghamton and then Syracuse.  I had opportunities to go elsewhere after Syracuse, including the midwest and the east coast, but my future wife and my family encouraged me to come back to my hometown of Albany.  At some point, I heard from the gang who had interned for me when I was doing the 11pm at WTVH in Syracuse.  They had become both good friends and fantastic producers, and they had moved on to markets like San Francisco, New York City, and Boston.  I won’t lie, it nagged at me.  “They are doing better than I am. Hell, I helped them get started. If I don’t try, how will I ever know?”  It was time to take the plunge.  My wife, a a reporter herself, wanted to move back to her (Top 10 market) hometown, so we had a target city in mind.  And not long after, I was offered a job in said city producing weekend nights.

I was nervous at the time, but quickly came to realize the experiences I had accumulated to that point had more than prepared me for what lie ahead.  And that’s where my advice to you begins.

Step Back

You may be a big shot where you are now (I was the senior producer in Albany when I left) but you need to be prepared to take a BIG step back.  As someone who hates mornings, I was lucky getting my start on weekend nights.  You might not be so lucky.  Expect to work weekends, mornings, even weekend mornings.  In all cases, the hours will be long, you’ll be expected to pull writer shifts during the week, and it will take a while to build up credibility with your far more experienced co-workers.

Keep An Open Mind

Your writing will get picked apart a lot.  Major market Executive Producers have been exposed to research and training.  They know what works and they will definitely push you to be more active and aggressive with your words.  Don’t take the criticism personally.  Find ways to incorporate the techniques into your style.  Do not be afraid to talk to your anchors about what they want to see!   It will take some time, but trust me, you will find your ‘big market’ voice.

It’s Not That Different

I used to say the only difference between a big market and a medium/small market is a helicopter and more bosses.  This is still true.  Sure, you will find more executive producers or managing editors and even more reporters and photographers.  And yes, most stations have helicopters (although more and more are sharing), but many of the changes made at the lower end of the DMA index are working their way to the top.  Truck operators who shoot, producers who edit VOs and teases, automated control rooms and more are now becoming the norm at top ten stations.  Your experience doing more things will serve you well.  Don’t be afraid of the work.  The pace and pressure may increase, but the basics will stay the same.  Remember, it’s the same dynamic, just on a larger scale.

Breaking News Is Big

In top 10 markets, breakers can turn into epic events. That means blowing out programming, coordinating team coverage and putting in long hours on the air.  It’s the same for weather.  Three to six inches of snow may be something we laugh about in Syracuse, but it can be crippling in a big city where the commutes are brutal under the best of circumstances.  I can’t tell you how many times I have been called in to work overnights for storm coverage, or even slept on the floor of my office because of a blizzard.  I once spent fifteen hours straight in the control room for the funeral of a legendary politician.  You will be expected to make the commitment.  And remember, we have people meters in big markets, so pretty much every day is ratings.  You will need to bring a sense of urgency to the table during every shift.

Mental Toughness

This is probably the most important thing.  We have already talked about added pressure from your bosses.  Your co-workers will be looking for you to lead.  Anchors, reporters, and photographers will be carefully eyeing you to see how confident (and how fast) you can make a decision.  Remember, they have been doing it a lot longer than you, and in most cases, and will be quick to second guess you.  Be confident you are making the right call.  Remember, if you’re not sure, no manager will fault you for seeking a second opinion.

No Jackpot

You may already know this, but you’re not going to get rich producing the news, even in a top ten.  Salaries are not what they were 10 years ago.  Producers are starting around $50,000, if you’re lucky, in many top 10 markets.  If you’re single and you want to live in the city, expect to need a roommate.

That’s really the worst thing I have to say about it.  If you crave the excitement and pressure that comes with major market local newscasts, you will not be disappointed in taking the plunge.  Just stay true to what you have already learned.  Try to soak up as much knowledge as you can from your co-workers, be confident, and you’ll find success at this level – and have fun, too.

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This article is written by an Executive Producer at a number 1 station in a top 10 market. While he wants to remain anonymous, you can email info@survivetvnewsjobs.com any questions and we will make sure you get an answer.

How to “go big” on national breaking news

Producing, Survival Kit, Writing Help Comments Off
Jan 242013

A producer recently emailed asking about ways to handle big, breaking national stories.  Do you sacrifice local and fill the a-block?  How without offending the viewer who might want a lot of local?  What a great topic, since it is so easy to go online and on cable news and get that national story.  So let’s delve in to ways to do this, without offending local viewers.  Also, I would love to hear your feedback on whether you think going big on a national story, locally, is effective since social media and online news are so relevant now.  Please go to our FB page and talk about it.  This debate will continue to grow as TV redefines its role.  When you discuss it, consider these key points.  They can help you decide how much to do on large scale national stories during your local newscast.

  • Viewers are used to getting news at this time of day, from you
  • Viewers feel a connection to your anchors

 

Both of the points listed above come down to one important point, when deciding how to cover a big national story:  Trust.  Viewers trust their familiar, local, anchors and like checking in that time of the day with those anchors.  They are prepared to see your anchors giving them the most important news at that time.  That’s why so many newsrooms go big, even when the story is not local.

The producer that emailed me specifically mentioned the Newtown school shootings.  This is a different scenario than the fiscal cliff, which is easy to localize.  The day of the shootings, you are still figuring out what the basic facts are, so localizing can be a little more difficult.  Blowing out an assumption, to turn local angles can backfire.  So localize as much as you can but, do not feel you must have a lot of local tie-ins in order to go big.  Large market producers will tell you this is an opportunity to let your anchors own the big story, just like a local breaker.  That means avoiding a national package.  If you are allowed to get a live shot from the affiliate feed, go for a custom and let your anchors debrief the anchors with questions you think your viewers would want answered.  Make sure you have a set up spelling out the basic facts and setting the scene, so the viewer understands the scope.  This can be done with vo/sots, a package you write for your anchors, or a combination of nat sound, vo’s, vo/sots and graphics.  Do what you need to really spell the story out in an effective way for your viewers.  The point is owning the story, instead of seeming to hand it off to a network reporter and moving on.  Handing it off can encourage a viewer to switch channels.  Remember, the viewer has a trust connection with your anchors.  They can tell the story well, and should.

When you can add tidbits of local reaction, do it.  Let your anchors help you find this information out.  It really is an effective technique to have your anchor say something like, “I just called so and so, and that agency would handle a situation like this, the same way.”  Again, your anchor is acting as an advocate for the viewer, let them ask the questions the viewers would love to ask themselves.  Let the anchor “own the story.”  The viewer trusts the anchor and wants to see him/her in that role.

Another solid technique is letting the viewer know about local stories coming up, and when they will see them during this national coverage.  Some mention it as an umbrella lead and some do it with teases off the top of the newscast.  Some just have the anchors mention there is a lot of local news coming up in 5 minutes.  That way, viewers know you are also on top of the “big” local news of the day as well.

The key when determining how much coverage to give a big national story is the potential impact it will have on your viewers.  For example, the Newtown school shootings were so shocking, viewers would crave information.  By not covering it much, you would actually encourage viewers, used to watching news at that time, to switch channels.  The viewer’s gut feeling would be “This is a huge story, I need to know about.”  They want to learn the information from journalists they trust.  You can encourage them to further believe that it is your anchors and reporters they need to trust.  Do not just shove a national pkg off a feed into the a-block and let it go.  Let your anchors ask the questions the viewers want answered.  Continue to build the trust. That way when a big story happens, your viewers will turn to your newscast first, no matter where the story came from.

Parroting bites

Reporting, Survival Kit, Videography, Writing Help Comments Off
Jan 212013

Ever heard that phrase?  Parroting bites is a common writing flaw in television news.  It seems like such an obvious no-no, but it happens a lot.  So let’s define it, to try and stop it from happening.

Parroting bites, means repeating what the sound bite said in the anchor copy, sometimes word for word.  It usually happens right before or right after the sound bite.  While writing for the ear involves some repetition, it is not a good idea to “parrot.”  It actually confuses the person listening.  The viewer wonders, why are they saying the same thing over and over, then misses the next part of the story.

Bites do need set up, and that often involves explaining the gist of what the person is going to tell the viewer, but you should not parrot.  Focus on why the sound bite is relevant in the set up.  Often the bite is relevant for two reasons, the person saying it and/or the bite explains the importance of the information you are providing.  So, focus on those reasons when setting it up.  “This lawmaker is behind the legislation.”  “This witness saw exactly what happened.”  “So why is this research important?  This doctor explains.”  Catch my drift?  That makes the viewer want to hear the sound bite, and immediately recognize the importance of the context of the sound.  Since you have so little time to explain much of anything, you need each word to really count, including set ups to sound bites.  Parroting wastes time.

If the sound bite is hard to understand, you can paraphrase afterwords, but say that’s why you are doing it.  “Just to make sure you heard that, he said…”  Parroting involves directly repeating the bite, without explaining why.  If you explain why, it is not parroting.

One last thought on parroting sound bites.  It makes the anchor or reporter reading the script, appear that they do not understand the story and, have no idea about the person the sound is coming from.  It screams, “This anchor just reads, and doesn’t know that he/she is talking about!”  Think about it.  When you talk to someone and they repeat exactly what you said back to you, you question if the person really gets what you are talking about.  Same rule applies go parroting bites in news copy.  Credibility is crucial.  So don’t parrot bites.

Taking Teasing Challenges Head On.

Survival Kit, Tease Writing Comments Off
Jan 142013

Whenever I publish an article on teases, journalists talk it up on Facebook and Twitter.  Teases, as I have said before, are not natural to us newsies.  So we have plenty to discuss because teases are a completely different writing style.   I asked on FB and Twitter:  What are the biggest challenges you face when writing teases?  Here’s the list and some fixes.

Tease writing challenges

  • Making the time to write them
  • Not giving away too much of the story
  • Picking what to tease
  • What order to put teases in

The number one secret of killer tease writers is this:  Make time to really work on your teases.  These are not the elements you save for last and just throw something in to get them done.  Teases make or break your newscast.  You are judged on them harshly and often.  They have to be a priority.  They need a special amount of time set aside.  Give yourself a chance to write and read over the teases to challenge yourself:  Are these really the best I can do?

That said many of you mentioned writing the teases right after you write the story you are teasing.  That can be an effective technique, as long as you go back and look at them again.  Why?  Often you end up giving away too much of the story. Sometimes you need a little separation from writing the story, to see what your short term memory actually retains.  What is it about that story that made you want to tease it in the first place?

Picking what to tease is very challenging, especially when you look at your rundown and think, the stories all sound run of the mill, with no good sound, average video and the same old facts.  This is key.  There should be a reason every story is in your newscast.  It may be that a little tidbit is interesting, the fact the fire happened in a key demo of the market you are tapping into, or because you need video on a day when you have few resources and too many copy stories.  Realistically not all of the reasons are super compelling, but they are reasons that have WIFM (“What’s In It For Me”).  So draw on the reason why the story is in the newscast and try to build on that for a tease.  Viewers do not expect every story to be a gut wrenching, heart stopping, amazing moment.  Remember at their core, viewers want tangible relatable information.  Information is teasable.  Just don’t oversell. (see “Reel ‘Em In Without Exaggerating”).

Finally, order.  How many producers have wasted way too much time on this?  For the most part, the way to “stack” teases is this deep, deeper, next.  You can play around with the deep, deeper part, but not the next (unless you are in the second to last block of course).  If viewers see a pattern (and they can and will recognize it) of you teasing next right off, they will not stick around for the whole newscast.

So now you can take  those teasing challenges head on! Go knock ‘em dead.

Why don’t you show us how it’s done then! The result of on set rants in the booth.

Getting Along With Peers, Political Hotbed, Producing Comments Off
Jan 092013

So now we know that anchors often resort to onset rants, when they are super frustrated and feel there is no other outlet.  Anchors, we get it.  Other journalists understand some of these issues are hard to take, but it’s time for you to see what impact that moment of weakness has on the rest of the team.

First, the producer.  Let me clue you in on a little secret, producers tend to be control freaks, who place a lot of their self worth on their work.  Their biggest points of pride, the writing and flow of the newscast.  The writing is their stamp, on the newscast.  So when you the anchor make fun of the writing, right or wrong, for many producers it is a deeply personal insult.  In some ways it is the same as viewers sending scathing critiques of your clothes, hair or delivery.  It takes awhile for many producers to understand that the writing has to be a team effort. (see “How to get inside your anchors heads”).  Anchors can say the  critiques are not personal until you are blue in the face, most producers never buy it.

The producer is also the team leader, especially in shops with newscasts that are more content driven rather than personality driven.  So when you make fun of the writing or complain about how it made you look, you are essentially calling out the newscast leader as a fool.  That is how it feels to the producer, and the production staff.  Again, think about this.  I personally know of only one anchor, foolish enough to call out an AND or ND in the middle of the newsroom.  Producers are a type of manager as well.  Show enough respect to talk to the producer one on one.

That said, producers read “I can’t believe that aired again!” and understand, anchors usually do not go off on the set unless they feel they have no voice and that any suggestions in the past were ignored.  So, if the anchors are constantly calling you out on the set, it can be a message.  You don’t respect us, and therefore we don’t respect you.  As the leader of the newscast, you have to try and make amends.  It is important that you not only allow critiques to happen, but actually acknowledge them and make changes at times.  You are fallible.  Everyone is fallible.  Recognize it, grow from it, and allow yourself to self reflect.  Leaders help those around them rise up.  Are you doing that or serving your own self interests?  Spell out to the anchors, that you will really listen to what they have to say.  If you go against their advice, say why.  One more thing, solid leaders also admit when they make mistakes.  If you can set that tone, chances are the people around you will too, and all of you will grow together.  Set up basic trust, that is crucial especially during breaking news.  All of you need each other.

Anchors need to consider another thing before ranting on the set.  It undermines your authority with the production staff as well.  No one wants to sit and hear someone being criticized openly.  If you can say that about the producer, what do you say about the production crew behind their backs?  It causes a sense of superiority that is not appropriate.  Production crews and producers are fully aware of how much they impact your success.  Never, ever, forget that.  Every time you sit on the set, you are placing your fate in many hands, no matter how talented you are.  Do you really want them collectively saying “Why don’t you show us how it’s done then?”  They will monitor how long you take to do your hair and makeup, they will help managers figure out if you take three hour dinner breaks, even on big news days.  In other words, if you regularly rant on the set, you better be the hardest working journalist in the newsroom EVERY SINGLE DAY, or you will have a host of enemies waiting to watch you get yours.  It is just the truth.  A producer I used to work with purposely used words her anchor struggled to pronounce in copy, and especially during breaking news, just to trip the anchor up.  She was tired of the on set rants.  I watched a production crew, purposely call up a mic line early to catch an anchor in a rant, on live TV, just to make her shut up.  I have also seen producers lobby together to request that anchors be fired, because the on set rants became too much to take.

News is stressful.  We all have moments of weakness.  But when those moments happen on set, they are not easily forgiven.  They create the “us vs. them” mentality that damages so many newsrooms and so many newscasts.  Anchors, stop those rants.  Producers, give anchors a forum to talk with you about concerns, and really listen and learn from the information.  Make it your pledge for the new year.  You will be shocked how much better all of you perform when you set aside the ego, and focus on team.

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