Political Hotbed – Page 13 – Survive Your Job In Television News

Producing Alliances: Assign and direct.

Line producers are often in a very uncomfortable spot in newsrooms. You are in charge of a newscast, yet you are not a manager with any teeth. Competition between producers generally is pretty intense so you cannot really confide in another producer at your station. Your job is confusing for other people in the newsroom to really grasp. You don’t want to spill your guts to your EP, so it can appear in your review a few months later.

So who do you align yourself with? I always had the best luck with directors and assignment editors.

In the article “Right Hand Meet Your Left” I describe why having a good relationship with your director is important. Now I want to talk more about the benefits of this smart alliance.

Directors tend to be extremely detail oriented. That means they can pick up on things you might do that you aren’t even aware of. When starting out as a producer, I had problems with my weekend newscasts timing out correctly. During the morning and weekday noon shows, I had no timing problems. I tried different techniques for several weeks with no luck. I was ready to pull my hair out! Then I decided to ask the director for advice. But, he was much more experienced and I was concerned he would think less of me. When I finally asked if he noticed anything about my timing he said: “Yes. I’ve been waiting for you to ask. I didn’t want to seem pushy.” Turns out, the final commercial break varied wildly from the rundown format. I had never known to check the traffic log for my breaks. That was never taught to me. He showed me where to get the log and what to look for. I never mistimed a show again.

Directors also tend to be dismissed by managers and other newsroom employees during a shift. Because of this, they hear everything and if you have developed a strong relationship based on trust, your director may give you a heads up when something big is about to happen that involves you. Several times I found out management was considering moving me to another newscast, from my director. I had several days to prepare before news management got around to telling me. I never betrayed the director’s trust and was able to arm myself if I didn’t like the shift change to try and fight for “my show.”

In some shops directors are considered managers. They are consulted before changes take place especially when it comes to formatting newscasts. You want a heads up when possible and you want to be able to weigh in. Several times directors came to me with proposed format or policy changes and asked my opinion before weighing in themselves. We wanted to be on the same page to protect our shift.

The other smart alliance is with assignment editors. (We will dedicate an entire article to assignment editors soon. They are unsung heroes in many newsrooms.) I went out of my way to develop a relationship with my assignment editors because often they are the next closest thing to producers in terms of constant grind. Again, assignment editors are a type of manager, yet don’t really have teeth, just like producers. And, just like producers, they sit down to work and don’t get downtime until they are in the car on the way home. Assignment editors are also consulted on things that impact your shift, but involve the crews more. They are a great resource for understanding what the crews in the field are going through during an actual shift. Usually the crews are too swamped to fill you in themselves. Crews know management will check in with the assignment desk and therefore usually tell the desk any elements first. If you are not respectful to your assignment editor, you will not get as many updates about the crews and will not get to weigh in on how you want those updates. This can have a dramatic impact on your day-to-day job duties. Also, if you are curt toward your assignment editor, you will end up having to constantly check the assignment file and scroll through hoping to figure out what the newest information is on local vo’s etc. If you are respectful, you might get a top line or quick phone call so you know when to write local elements and when to wait for crucial information.

So how do you set up a solid relationship with the assignment desk? If you have even a moment help make some calls when the desk is overwhelmed. I used to ask my associate producer to check with the assignment editor to see if he/she needed a quick break once or twice a shift. My AP could listen to the scanners and answer the phone and my assignment editor could at least walk the building or grab a snack and relax a little. If breaking news hit, I had the AP get on the desk with the assignment editor and help make calls or, if the assignment editor preferred, be in charge of sending me top lines about the information like a crews’ ETA to the breaking news scene.

Bottom line, producers cannot do their job properly without information, and without a way to cleanly place that information on a television screen. Treat the people who allow you to perform these key tasks with respect and you will get the help you need to put on the best newscast possible each day.

Smart Alliances: Relationships that can make your career.

The old saying is especially true in newsrooms: Guilt by association. Your alliances are very important, not just for your current job, but for future networking opportunities as well. That’s why we are providing a series of articles on building smart alliances. We begin with an overall look at newsroom relationships, then will get more specific based on job description.

Before we begin, stop for a minute and think about your friend base. In many cases with TV news journalists, it’s all people you work with. Now think about how those friends in the business are perceived in the newsroom. We are not saying you cannot be friends with the high maintenance anchor/reporter or temperamental producer/director/assignment editor. But you do need to consider how much time you spend with your newsroom friends in front of other newsroom employees. One question managers ask over and over when considering moving a person up internally for promotions is: “Who are they friends with in the newsroom?” Managers have a better clue than you might realize who the partiers are, who the gossips are and who keeps a nose to the ground and focuses on getting the job done.

The key to newsroom friends is, you can end up in direct competition for shifts. People with different job descriptions can still impact how you are perceived in handling your own job. In upcoming articles we will discuss how to align with people in the newsroom with different job descriptions to help you make the most of your job. Now we are going to look at the kind of reputation you ideally want as a “friend” in the newsroom.

Ideally you want to either be or align yourself with one of three types of friends at work: The Diffuser, The Cheerleader and The Funny Guy/Gal. These people tend to draw positive attention to themselves and get plenty of results. So let’s delve into each a little more.

The Diffuser is a type of peacemaker who has a solid backbone. This is the person people look to weigh in when there’s a heated debate over content coverage. This is also the person who tends to be friendly with all the different personality types in the newsroom. If this isn’t you, this is the type of person you want to align yourself with. Chances are the managers are eyeing this person for future promotions.

The Cheerleader puts a positive spin on crappy situations. This person is not necessarily an ass kisser though. You will hear cheerleaders complain about a decision or issue, then put a positive spin like: “I really hate being put on overnights, it really hurts my family life, but at least I have a job.” This person is usually very good at handling office politics and because he/she is considered a positive person, managers may consult with him/her on and off before making certain decisions impacting a specific shift or group.

The Funny Guy/Gal is really good at lightening the mood. Even if he/she can be sarcastic, management usually considers the person harmless. Like a class clown, one of these is expected in a newsroom and most of the time, everyone appreciates the chance to laugh.

Now a closer look at the type of reputation you want to have. You want to be seen as someone who shoots straight, doesn’t stir the pot and is fair. This not only helps get management’s attention, it also helps you weigh through the inevitable personal battles waging in newsrooms over shifts, who is backstabbing who, and whether people are more loyal to the bosses than coworkers. Keep these characteristics in mind when choosing your smart alliances at work.

It’s GM’s agenda and you are stuck covering it “as news.”

We promise this situation will happen to you. It happened to us at several stations, in small to large markets. General Manager walks into an editorial meeting and says “So what are we doing to cover such and such, ( fill-in the blank, new road widening project, special session by legislature, tax incentive package for a new industry in town etc.) since our viewers the tax payers are getting screwed.” The news director gives a blank look followed by the lifted eyebrow smirk, then stares at you, “So how will you cover that story today?”

If this happens, say you are going to make some calls and get out of the room pronto. Better yet, grab your photog and get out of the building while you make those calls! Why? You do not want the GM to start going off on specific players and agendas for the story. You do not want specifics on how this story should be told, and exactly what the tease will say. That way, if it is the GM skimming headlines and misinterpreting reality, you won’t end up having to tell him/her. Without specifics chances are you can find some small nugget to package.

Next, call the newsroom mega brain. You know, the walking, talking, human factoid! This person can save you hours of stress and research. Do the necessary ego stroke and get the person to give you background information on this subject. You need time to work sources for a backup in case the story falls apart. The “human factoid” usually can at least provide the name and number for a player in town who will give you insight on whether the GM’s “news” really is “news.”

Do your thing, work it and try to find an interesting character or bit of video to showcase so you can get by. If there’s just nothing to the story give the basics, then try and include a little subtle perspective in your anchor intro or tag. Managers tend to play in that copy more anyway. This way, if the story is taken out of context and the GM gets a call, it will more likely become management’s problem instead of the reporter’s failing.

If you cannot find a nugget to package, and there’s simply nothing to the story, offer to write a vo or vo/sot and let your manager know early. That gives management time to derail the GM situation well before the newscast airs. It helps if you can offer an interesting alternative story the manager can have you churn out instead. Sometimes management will then take the GM “news” burden off of you and have an anchor front it somewhere cool on set. You are off the hook, and the GM still feels heard without the station blowing a weak story out of proportion.

If you are told to package a story and say certain things in a tease you don’t like, try and do a subtle rewrite. Also, know this happens to everyone from time to time. Chances are your credibility is not ruined. Those in the know in town realize you got stuck “being the good soldier.”

The 3 b’s to win over your News Director.

A producer recently Tweeted me asking for an article on how to build a relationship with News Directors. Frankly, I could write a book on that subject! But there are some basics easily put into a short blog. First, you need to know, access to your ND varies greatly depending on market size, how many other managers exist in your newsroom and your ND’s temperament. There are some fail safes though that will help no matter your situation. We call them the 3 B’s:

Be subtle
Be consistent
Be loyal

Before we spell out these 3 b’s, let’s give you some insight into what ND’s often think. Simply put, up to half the newsroom is “on board” helping out day to day, the rest are not loyal or don’t seem to pull their weight. (Trust me on this one, I’ve heard many ND’s say it!) That second group appear to fight the ND on everything by being argumentative. The ND gives a critique and the person throws back reasons why it’s “the newsroom’s fault” something wasn’t done. Then comes the “high maintenance” label of being difficult or too needy. This is especially true if you have valid points that, though probably unintentional, showcase the ND’s problem areas in the newsroom or even management style. No one is perfect, including your ND. We’re not saying you need to be a “kiss ass” and do whatever the ND wants all the time. We are not saying your opinion isn’t valid. It’s all in the delivery, which we will spell out in a moment. The ND will have people on staff that they count on for their own gut checks from time to time. You become one of those people with patience and by showing loyalty. This all begins by being subtle.

Being subtle means being the person that sits back and listens to what the ND asks for. Take, for instance, a staff meeting where the ND spells out the news philosophy of the shop. You don’t raise your hand and ask a bunch of questions. You want to hear not only what the ND says but his/her reaction to the flood of questions and instant critiques. Once that’s completed, process what the point of it all seems to be. A day or two later, drop by the news director’s office and say something like: “So I was thinking about the meeting and want to make sure that what you are expecting is ‘XYZ’.” Let ND answer and then thank him or her and walk out. Then try and do what was asked of you. After a few weeks pop your head in and ask for a critique. Yes, you will likely get an honest answer that could be disappointing. Most ND’s recognize that asking for critiques is not the easiest thing to do. The willingness to do so will show respect. Now this is key: Don’t ask for critiques all the time, just when there’s a philosophy change or change in your job assignment. People constantly asking for critiques and therefore validation are considered high maintenance. Remember the first B is to “Be subtle.”

Now that you have a clear idea of what the ND wants, execute it and “Be consistent.” Strive to do it every day. Keep your head down and just do your job. The ND will notice. You may not get a lot of pats on the back. But that doesn’t happen often in TV news anyway. If you screw up one day, the ND may give you the benefit of the doubt if you’ve built this relationship. You just might set yourself up for a promotion or at least an opportunity to ask for better assignments during your next review. Consistently doing your job is another way to show loyalty.

That leads to the third B, “Be loyal.” Before you start shaking your head and thinking to yourself “I’m not a kiss ass” know this: That’s not what showing loyalty is about. Loyalty doesn’t mean planting smooches on backsides. It means not going into the ND’s office and throwing fits when you just got royally screwed over. That doesn’t mean you have to become the news room doormat either. If something happens that puts you in an awful position, go in and ask for advice. If the ND throws something back at you like “How would you fix it?” have a possible solution ready. Spell it out, then accept the critique. Thank the ND for listening when you walk out. You need to do this even if the ND is a screamer. (click here for more on how to handle bosses that scream.) Showing loyalty means knowing your ND is going to screw up occasionally and you aren’t going to rub salt in the wound. You will forgive it and move on in the best interest of the station. If you see a situation that might really cause a problem, like a potential ethical issue, call the ND and give him/her a quick heads up. Don’t call screaming about how you don’t appreciate being in this position. The ND doesn’t care about your feelings. You are replaceable. (Never forget that.) Stay humble and try to work with the ND.

News Directors can be very inaccessible and very hard to read. You may never know if the ND likes you or thinks you are a hunk of junk. But, all ND’s appreciate loyalty. All types of ND’s will eventually notice if you make effort to just do what’s needed and try not to cause extra headaches. The 3 B’s will benefit you, even if you can’t tell right away. ND’s have given me good references throughout my career simply because I always tried to give them what they needed.