It's Been Too Long

Since I've been working on photogging and my website, it's been a while since I've done a dayturn reporting shift. I'm pretty sure it's been about a month. With that said, I feel like my other work at the station is allowing me to become a better reporter. Yesterday I was able to plan out my story and visualize the finished product.

When I first made it to the station at 8 a.m., I knew the story I wanted to do. The night before, the Columbia Board of Education officially cut 33 math and literacy coaches. I knew I wanted to talk to one of the affected former coaches. Even though the writing was on the wall, now it was official.

To get video, I visited summer schools. It was also a fail-safe plan. If I didn't find my ex-coach, I could do a story on the increased summer school numbers.

I spent about an hour making calls, waiting for callbacks, and writing a preliminary script. After the principal from Parkade called me back, I was good to go.

After an interview with Principal Amy Watkins, she let me into Stephanie Maddox's first grade class. As soon as I was done filming, the principal mentioned Mrs. Maddox was a literacy coach. Jackpot! Mrs. Watkins planned this, but I didn't know. Good thing I was paying attention.

I accomplished all of my goals of the day:
- Shoot and use 2 sequences
- Shoot and use a standup
- Find a Compelling Central Character
- Use Twitter (I did twice!)

Here's the finished product:

Balanced Budget Equals Cuts

Same World, Worlds Apart

Whenever talk shifts to my future, someone always asks me "So what do you want to do? T.V. or radio?" If they know me well, they now that I live in two separate worlds of broadcasting.
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Most think of radio and T.V. going hand-in-hand. Mizzou's Broadcast sequence merely separates the two with a slash. But in my experiences, T.V. and radio are worlds apart, and I'm stuck right in the middle.

I'm no double-agent, but at times it does feel like I live two separate lives. Sometimes I'm a T.V. reporter -- telling stories and wearing suits. And any weekend, you can hear me introducing songs, or giving me recent commentary about a reality show. In theory, the businesses are the same. Be interesting enough to keep the audience around, making it through your clients' messages. You need to try to get into your viewers/listeners minds.

The experiences are very different, though. Being a television reporter is very satisfying. The people I've met, the stories I've told, are still memorable -- and I'm barely beginning my career. But being a DJ is so fun, too. Since radio lacks the visual component, you need to be that much better to hold your audience's attention.

It seems as though I'm on a road that will split someday, and I'll be forced to choose one or the other. I'm still searching for a way my two dreams could come together.

The Game Never Stops

I don't like to look into the past much. I would rather push forward. But if valuable lessons can be learned, some things are worth a second (or third) glance.
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Last week when Jill Glavan, Cate Kelly, Jusin Redeker, Kyle Seever, and I covered the Rocheport fire, I feel that we may have missed an angle, and possibly a great story.

Right after our live shot, Howard County authorities told us fire officials would meet us "a couple of miles" away. Those "couple" turned to several miles through the dust-drafting, deer-dodging county roads that HoCo offers.

30 minutes later, we set up an impromptu news conference, collected some talking heads, and found out people were allowed back in their homes. Good news: everyone was safe. Bad news: we couldn't share it with our viewers. Four of us were covering a mediocre presser (Seever took the live truck back). No one was in position to get a reaction from any of the 8 families forced to leave their homes. We were herded like sheep out of the picture, and our story for the morning show was forced to be straightforward.

In no way do I fault myself, Jill, Cate, or Justin. We did what we were asked to do. We went where authorites told us to go. Maybe the families would shun us away. But we could have given a possible story a chance.

Great "stories" are not the standard press conference mumbo-jumbo. They center around people. That's why they call 'em "stories", right? They need characters.

The game never stops. Never let up. Always question. Always think outside-of-the-box. Always look for "the" story. Always.

Best,
-rt

Live! and Learn

As expected, I've come up with an awful pun for my first blog. Yes, my learning took place during a live shot. What wasn't expected, however, was the actual live shot.

9 p.m. - I came back to KOMU yesterday thinking I was the audio operator for the 10 pm newscast. Little did I know that I would be on the other side of the camera.

9:10 p.m. - When we received info about a natural gas pipe explosion, I asked if I could go. Actually, I asked the director Gordon Davis if I was "expendable". It turns out I was.

9:15 p.m. - Jill Glavan and I headed out to the fire. Driving in our live truck, we headed in a general direction, and the orange haze showed us the way.

9:45 - 10:10 p.m. - After rolling through what seemed like every county road Boone and Howard county had to offer, we found a cozy spot next to one of our competitors, KMIZ (KRCG was MIA).

10:11 p.m. - Kyle Seever had already done a live phoner (which was really good), and he was at the ready to set up the live truck. Cate Kelly and Justin Kelly Redeker pulled up right after Jill and I did. They saw the fire from Olive Garden when their news noses smelled a story.

10:25 - Within 15 minutes of arriving, we were on the air. The shot went fairly well, even though there were some slip-ups.

That was the live part. Here's the learning:
10:32 - We find out more information. I want to go live again.

10:33 - I find out we don't have enough time, even though I ask for 20 seconds. Upon hearing this, I overreact and rip my earpiece off in disgust. All this is in front of the camera, mind you.

10:34:23 - The show ends. The anchors recap the story, and finish the show. I'm still steaming.

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10 hours ago, I would have a completely different train of thought about my actions. At first, I felt justified. "I had more info." "A story like this is rare in our market."

Now, it seems more cut and dry. I should not let my emotions get the best of me, especially in front of a camera. And, more importantly, I should not show up the producer, especially if it's something out of his/her control (and last night definitely was).

I'm not a robot. I love the pressure. I yearn for the big story. But acting out doesn't solve anything, and it doesn't prove that I'm a professional.

Lesson learned.. and lived.. "live".

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Shout outs:
Jill Glavan - Great job tweeting! And good slideshow. No one will ever know it was your first time with a camera.
Cate and Redeker - Thanks for field producing! Thanks for your comment after, Cate. Haha.
Kyle Seever - Nice push into the flames. Good work.
Jim and Angie - Pros.
Beth - Thanks for getting all the info on KOMU.com and working OT.
Production - Thanks for filling in for me, Gordon. The show looked great.
Randy - Great instincts sending out the live truck.
Lisa and Holly - Thanks for working the live shot in. Hopefully no hard feelings about the end of the show. You made the right call.

Best,
-rt