Posts Tagged ‘newscast’

Media Relations: For Your TV Eyes Only

Monday, May 6th, 2013

While speaking about the media to managers at a conference in Victoria, British Columbia, a woman asked me why TV news stations use the word “exclusive” or point out they are airing a story viewers will only see on their broadcasts.

I sometimes asked that question to colleagues while working as a TV reporter. I argued few people watch five newscasts and compare their content in detail. I don’t recall viewers ever telling me they preferred a station because it aired more exclusive stories. And when TV news stations point out an upcoming story is an exclusive, they are acknowledging that viewers can find most of the same stories on most days on other newscasts. (It’s not like we hear the word exclusive that often.)

I told the woman in the audience I don’t know why news stations declare stories as “exclusive.” When I raised these questions as a TV reporter, co-workers shook their heads in acknowledgement and moved on to other business.

My guess is that TV news stations, like businesses in other industries, do things simply because that’s how it’s always been done. Using an “exclusive” graphic for a story also is an opportunity to kick a little sand in the competition’s face. But no one has presented me with information that labeling a story “exclusive” as often as possible leads to some return on investment.

The woman in the audience didn’t like all this exclusive business. I inferred she considered it all a bit silly. News stations do many things I don’t understand. Just watch some of their promos which appear to be produced by the staff of Saturday Night Live.

You’ll only find this blog on this website.

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Media Relations: The Day I Took A Back Seat On Live TV

Tuesday, January 29th, 2013
keith-on-motorcycle-wblur

I recently found this picture of me sitting on a motorcycle. If I remember correctly, the camera captured this image outside a Harley-Davidson dealership.

Some TV managers routinely told my colleagues and me that women made up a significant portion of our viewers beginning at 5pm. So I figured I was in the driver’s seat after reading and sharing a story about a growing number of women riding motorcycles.

The dealership introduced me to women riders and the story took off. Of course, I couldn’t carry out such a story without taking a seat myself. During my live shot, I sat on the back. But anyone who knows much about motorcycles, which I don’t, realizes people have nicknames for riding on the back seat that are not very masculine. Confident in my credibility as a journalist, I held no animosity toward those snickering at my position. When the ride ended, the story steered a positive light on women and motorcycles.

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Crisis Communications: Making Angry Callers Happy After Negative News Stories

Wednesday, August 22nd, 2012

Crisis Communications: Making Angry Callers Happy After Negative News StoriesLast month, we wrote a series of blogs about crisis communications after a network newscast led people to make angry phone calls to one of our clients. The news report does not mention our client. However, the story discusses another business with a contract with our client. And some of the visuals in the news story reveal that business relationship to viewers.

The crisis appeared to have passed until the network re-aired the story on a different news program. This time, more angry people called than before. Some swore during their voice mails. Others included profanity in their emails. Our client was concerned.

We agreed on a balanced approach. Our client will not overreact and bring unnecessary attention to himself, but he will not bury his head in the sand. While he and his legal representation re-evaluated the contractual relationship with the business in the news story, we recommended he immediately attempt to respond to the callers who were so concerned, they called cursing. We provided him with a series of key points he should consistently make.

Caller ID and email addresses allowed our client to try to respond. Initially, some of our client’s return calls rang and rang and no one answered. But overall, the effort appeared to pay off. Our client spoke with the callers that left messages. They were impressed he called back.  One of the callers is in the same industry and actually is interested in helping our client with his business. His opinion turned around.

Even the angriest callers are willing to forgive a perceived wrong if a business communicates with them directly and genuinely tries to explain itself. People usually respect those strong enough to stand up during a storm instead of hiding in a hole. And when these callers share their story with friends, perhaps the plot will change to a positive one.

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Media Relations: Do Some Journalists Show Their True Colors?

Tuesday, August 7th, 2012

Media Relations: Do Some Journalists Show Their True Colors?
I recently saw this bumper sticker. I’ve seen it before.

People often talk to me about bias in the media. Some complain Fox News Channel is too conservative. Others complain most other media outlets are too liberal.

When I reported on anti-war protests, some demonstrators assumed I disagreed with their views because I worked for a Fox station. A co-worker driving in a Fox vehicle told me how another driver gave him the finger.

Some people decided whether or not to give me an interview based on the fact I worked at a Fox station. I once covered a story on a man who accidentally discharged his gun at a gun show. After we parked our live truck at the facility hosting the show, someone told me the only reason he moved his vehicle to give us space was because we worked at Fox. Another man at the show later told us how the other networks are too liberal.

When I covered a story on a military base, someone who worked there joked how CNN stands for “Clinton News Network.”

Since leaving college, I worked at five TV stations. I don’t recall a manager or producer giving me orders for a story I considered politically biased. I figured local news is more focused on crime and weather, which usually isn’t politically linked, unless you believe bad storms always arrive from the left or right.

Behind the scenes, I knew which reporters were liberal, conservative or moderate. My co-workers who earned more money or were more religious tended to be conservative. The less religious co-workers and those making less money tended to be liberal. But some employees defied the trends. And some workers were fiscally conservative and socially liberal.

Most of the time, I didn’t see a reporter’s view revealed in his or her story. That may have changed somewhat when a station I worked at experimented with a talk show type format during one of the newscasts. Some viewers told me that some of the anchors in this format, perhaps inadvertently, began to show their true political colors.

If I felt a strong opinion about a story I covered, I worked extra hard to fairly represent the opposite side.

Yes, I’m sure some journalists are biased. Many talk show hosts are clearly liberal or conservative, although it’s debatable if these people are true journalists. And staking out strong opinions is in style. Fox and MSNBC hosts often take sides and while they do, their ratings appear to improve.

I personally haven’t experienced journalistic bias. But many viewers clearly see it, which clouds what facts are mixed with sprinkles of fiction. Some people see so much bias, they buy bumper stickers.

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Crisis Communications: Why We Didn’t Send The Media A Statement (Part 1)

Monday, July 16th, 2012

I received a call late in the afternoon. A network newscast broadcasted an investigative report, which placed several companies in a bad light. The business owner who called us for help has a contract with one of those companies, and he worried the investigative report would also negatively impact him.

The news story did not name company names. One of the companies supplied the reporter with a statement. The reporter included portions of the statement in the story and the full statement online. The statement online included the company’s name.

My client received two angry phone calls. The callers made a connection between his business and a company seen in the story. He tried returning the angry phone calls but no one answered.

I’ve aired many investigative stories similar to the one in question. I’m a big proponent of responding to a reporter’s request for comment. In fact, I’m a huge proponent of granting the reporter an interview, not simply giving a statement. In most cases, a company or its spokesperson should be able to handle a tough interview rather than only issue a statement. Plus, providing an interview is a strategic way to get a reporter to tell more of your side of the story.

But this case was different. The news network was not asking my client for comment. The story never named on-air the companies in question. The reporter did not question my client’s actions. My client simply had a contract with the company in question and this national newscast only led two people to make the behind-the-scenes business connection. The angry callers blamed my client for behavior he had nothing to do with. And the angry callers were not key business relationships. When I worked as an investigative reporter at the Fox station in Phoenix, members of the public often scolded me for reasons related to Fox News Channel. I didn’t work for Fox News Channel. But some people focused on the fact the Fox station in Phoenix and Fox News Channel belonged to the same family of businesses and I was an easy target.

My client’s initial emotional reaction was to release a statement and explain himself. But releasing a statement would draw unnecessary attention to his business. No one accused him of anything. In fact, almost no one knew about his contract with the company in the news story. Ultimately, we provided him with tools to handle any future calls. We also helped him communicate to other companies under contract the nature of the news story and the importance of providing excellent service. Finally, we agreed to monitor the situation in case circumstances changed.

Responding to negative reports is important both in traditional and social media. But don’t feel obligated to open the verbal floodgates just because your brother got in trouble and no one is pointing a finger at you. Responding quickly is important, but responding too quickly without thinking matters through can make the case unnecessarily complicated.

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Why The Media Gets Hot And Bothered Over Weather

Sunday, July 15th, 2012

Why The Media Gets Hot And Bothered Over Weather

When rain recently persuaded me to switch on my windshield wipers, I had forgotten how weather often impacted my life.

Reading this Tweet reminded me:  “Love that taking pictures of wet concrete constitutes news in Phoenix today.

Weather and I have often danced together in the rain, from the hurricanes I covered in North Carolina to standing in a strong Phoenix downpour because it made for a much better live shot.

Covering flooding several days straight in a small Arizona town showed my new co-workers when I started at a Phoenix television station the depth of my creativity for live shots and storytelling.

Weather persuaded me to perform an epic-long live shot as I walked from the very front to the very back of a mobile home, showing damage.

Weather led me, again in the cause for creativity, to walk across a bridge on live TV while traffic passed and snow fell.

Weather ruined a good pair of boots as I stood in knee-high water for a live shot from a flooded apartment parking lot.

After weeks of studying a political race and arriving at election headquarters, weather erased all, sent me to damage and landed me as the lead.

Weather, or a lack of it, led me to call a producer and explain the damage didn’t warrant a story. She ignored my advice and assigned me not one but two reports.

Potential weather sent me to the outskirts of town to cover two stories on snow that never arrived.

Weather that had passed led me to splash my foot in a puddle on TV, later forcing me to realize never again to deliver such a stupid live shot.

We can muddy the waters with philosophy, but broadcast media cover the weather first and foremost because it typically translates into top-notch ratings. The problem is too many TV stations don’t decipher between legitimate storms and a few swaying trees and often insist on drenching us with coverage no matter how many snowflakes settle on the ground. This is similar to the embarrassing relative who is loud and obnoxious no matter if he is in front of a few family members at home or whether he is in public where people stand and stare. He has no filter.

Kansas

“Weather is a huge part of news wherever you are located,” a Kansas photojournalist told me. “Tornadoes, heat, rain or lack of rain. To me, it’s the same by comparison. Yes, watched by viewers. Gets ratings for sure. They played the same piece on tornadoes four times here and when weather here happens, every reporter is on it.

Chicago

“Like the world is coming to an end,” said a former Chicago TV news supervisor when I asked him about coverage in his area.

California

“As for our weather coverage, we definitely focus on severe weather more than you might think for a place that gets a decent amount of rain,” said a former Phoenix reporter now in The Golden State. “But they don’t go nuts for a few drops like some folks at [my former station].

Michigan

I asked a Michigan photojournalist, “Do Michigan stations over cover the weather?” “Yes” is his final answer.

Washington

A former Phoenix reporter now further north told me, “Not quite as aggressive. But when it snows, we do go bat s—t crazy.”

Phoenix

“It’s about the same. [My station] is less obnoxious,” told me a Phoenix reporter who has worked at more than one station in the market.

TV stations cover so much weather, people often advise reporters not to include their awesome weather live shots on their resume tapes. Most reporters have an awesome weather live shot and it won’t usually help distinguish them from the other candidates for a job opening. (I included one anyway. It was really awesome!)

The morning that reminded me of all this, the FOX, NBC and CBS stations each led their noon newscasts with weather, when their live shots showed it was no longer raining.

FOX, my former station, called the morning’s rain a “quick and intense downpour.” Their coverage included a reporter’s live shot, video from a department of transportation camera, additional video of a freeway and a report from the weather forecaster.

The NBC station displayed toward the bottom of the screen a banner “Summer Storms” and checked in with its weather person.

The CBS station took us to a live reporter, where the reporter said there was still a “bit of overcast.” Their banner read “Valley Rain” and also took us to their weather forecaster.

The next time you search for an umbrella and worry how the rain impacts your hair and clothes, remember how rain and its cousins of precipitation make some people go “bat s—t crazy.”

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Who The Heck Is Watching Local News Anyway?

Tuesday, June 19th, 2012

Who The Heck Is Watching Local News Anyway?

I’m not sure but someone is.

I can tell you this. Some TV news managers claim they know who watches the local news. But when I asked how they knew, their answers didn’t satisfy me. In my opinion, their evidence was flimsy at best. But some TV news managers feel obligated to appear they know who is watching. Someone needs to take a leadership role during editorial meetings and provide logic when deciding which stories to cover. What stories do people care about? I heard that question countless times during meetings. Imagine if TV news managers said “I really don’t know who’s watching. So your guess is as good as mine.”

Ratings help break down the age groups watching. But are single moms truly watching a specific newscast? If American Idol airs before your newscast, are music lovers actually watching the news that night? On that night, should the newsroom assign more stories about iTunes or concerts?

Maybe TV managers, similar to Colonel Sanders, have a secret formula tucked away in a safe with all the answers. But when I asked, people in the newsroom never convinced me they really knew who was sitting in the living room enjoying the latest edition of breaking news and brush fires along the highway. I inferred I should simply stop asking the question.

So I don’t know the answer. And I’m still asked the question. When people asked me what I did for a living, they often apologized for not recognizing me, saying they don’t watch the local news. Most of my friends insist they don’t watch the local news. But someone still is. Enough people recognized me or my name over the years that I assumed they watched my station with consistency. Some people were even familiar with my style of reporting. If you need further proof, check out a local TV anchor’s Facebook page. Anchors briefly mention they smoked a cigar or they post a picture of the weather and a gazillion people reply. I mean it! A gazillion!

Businesses hand out company flyers pointing out they appeared on a station. I know one business which mentions its appearance on its outgoing voice mail. Media relations clients tell me about the leads they receive after appearing on the news. Some companies simply believe appearing on the news gives them some extra credibility. And with webpages, phone apps and Twitter updates, you don’t need to turn on the TV for your local news.

I don’t know for sure who watches the local news. I don’t know their wealth or education level. I can guess but not with much certainty. I’ve asked. I’ve debated the topic numerous times, even to the point where a TV manager whispered he honestly didn’t know either. But someone is watching. And at any given time, the news still offers you an opportunity to share your business with a whole bunch of people.

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Media Relations: Rehab Centers Can Help Nurse The News Back To Health

Friday, June 8th, 2012

Most journalists hope to deliver powerful stories such as showing the strength of the human spirit. Some of the stories I covered that continue to stand out for me are men and women, young and old, battling back from a significant health problem with the help of a rehabilitation facility. You could define those reports as stories of struggle. I saw them as an alliance between a healthcare professional and often a young person determined to regain something lost or conquer something never before achieved.

The people who oversaw our editorial meetings never made my reports on these subjects the lead story. But I believed few stories in that day’s newscast matched the passion and emotion surrounding the people I profiled.

It is easy for rehabilitation centers to argue some of these stories should stay private. But I often interviewed patients who supported the opportunity to tell their story to as many viewers as possible while hopefully inspiring them. Rehab facilities should open their doors when appropriate and ensure the media and other outlets on the internet realize the centers and their patients can deliver important and often timely healthcare related stories. I remember Joyce, who due to government cuts, was not covered for important types of therapy.

When pitching these types of stories to the media:

  • Establish a relationship with a journalist who has a built-in interest for healthcare stories. Some reporters thrive on breaking news and aren’t interested in stories that immediately place them several commercials into a newscast. Find a journalist who views this as more than just another assignment and will ensure the station doesn’t simply slap the story together like any other.
  • Identify a patient. It’s easy to offer the media only an expert or healthcare professional. But the real story is the patient. More people might sign that consent form than you realize.
  • Plan ahead. It takes time ensuring the patient and the healthcare professional can meet with the media at a time that won’t make others at the facility uncomfortable.
  • Offer the reporter an opportunity to watch the patient take part in physical therapy. Such visuals add so much to any story. Watching someone take that next step is an emotional moment.
  • Look for timely news opportunities. Some stories are so compelling, they don’t need to tie into anything in particular happening in our society. But newsrooms often want the story to connect to some important issue currently on people’s minds. Few issues in today’s environment are debated more than healthcare. Find a timely topic and offer a patient whose personal story will show the world these complex debates are about much more than crunching numbers.

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Media Relations: 11 Reasons I Miss Local News During Sweeps

Tuesday, April 24th, 2012

 Media Relations: 11 Reasons I Miss Local News During Sweeps

 

  1. Listening to the motivational speech during the morning editorial meeting about how crucial ratings is this time around.
  2. Watching promos that are better than the special reports themselves.
  3. Brainstorming sessions to find the best alliteration for a graphic.
  4. News directors exiting their offices an hour before a newscast, standing over a producer’s shoulder, “suggesting” changes to the lineup that no one else understands.
  5. Team coverage every day!
  6. The manager who believes yelling and screaming at us proves something to her superiors.
  7. Screaming from the corner office when the show’s first live shot goes to black.
  8. The excitement of watching in depth reports we slapped together just days earlier.
  9. Wondering how certain people were on vacation when the memo insisted no one gets a day off.
  10. The warm feeling knowing that winning ratings due to my hard work means all that extra money will flow directly into my paycheck.
  11. Watching the most redonkulous stories humans can think up and listening to an anchor indicate with a straight face that this stuff is important.

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Getting your business on TV might mean NOT planning ahead

Wednesday, September 22nd, 2010

A mother goes to thank students in a classroom for making a difference in her life. An ice cream store offers free goodies to men and women who work to protect and serve. An eight-year-old helps save the environment.

The media might not be interested in sending both a reporter and photographer to cover events such as those to produce full-blown stories. But watch local TV news. Much of it consists of many 30-second snippets. Thirty seconds might be a blip on your Google Calendar, but 30 seconds on a newscast still reaches a wide audience. And it’s not uncommon for that 30-second snippet to repeat on several newscasts over two days.

TV types usually call these 30 to 45 second stories VOSOTs: voice over sound on tape. The anchor voices over the tape and then an interview provides the sound on tape.

Businesses and other groups, excited about an event, will call media days, sometimes weeks ahead of time to tell them about these VOSOT type opportunities. I’m exaggerating a bit, but if a media outlet is organized, someone will place this event on a schedule that hopefully someone will look at when the big day arrives. If you’re really unlucky, someone will take down your information and it will disappear by the end of the day.

In these cases, planning ahead might work against a business. Producers are most desperate to fill their shows, often with VOSOTS, the day the show airs or the day before. Yes it’s the communication business, but newsrooms aren’t often organized well enough to refer to an evolving list of ideas that groups and PR firms have presented to them in recent weeks. This is when you strike.

Imagine a producer selling space in her show like it’s the stock market. Be on the floor, shouting I can help! Listen to my story! You are most interesting to a producer when you can do something for her right now, not in several days or weeks. It’s supply and demand. Your VOSOT story ideas often are most in demand at the last minute.

Hats off to those newsrooms that are so organized, they’ll cover something in 2010 that was pitched to them in 2009. But from my experience, it would take a lot less than 30 seconds to list those newsrooms.

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