...Pictures.
Some pretty, some not -- It depends on how long the tape sat out
of its case in the empty McDonald's French fry bag on the front
seat of the Shooter's car. Without video television would be exactly
like radio, except that on radio they sometimes stop talking during
the music.
AUDIO
...Part
of the television signal that no one cares about, but something
has to accompany the video.
PRODUCER
...Someone
who owns a digital stopwatch, but can't count backwards.
DIRECTOR
...Someone
who can count backwards from 3, but can't afford a digital stopwatch.
The
Pew Project for Excellence in Journalism at journalism.org
is out with it's 2009
"State of the News Media" report and as always
this highly researched and documented report is the most comprehensive
and focused look at where the news media is sitting now and
what may lie ahead.
If you want to know where the entire industry stands at the
start of a troubling and certainly challenging time, I recommend
reading the entire report.
But I've focused on the "Local
TV News" segment and here now offer some highlights
(lowlights?)
Viewership
"An
analysis of data from Nielsen Media Research suggests that viewership
of local news declined or was flat across all timeslots, during
all sweeps periods during the year.2
Evening
newscasts, around the dinner hour, were hardest hit.
The
picture was less bleak for morning news, where ratings remained
steady throughout the four sweeps months, although share declined.
Evening news (around dinnertime) lost ratings in three out
of four sweeps months, with declines as high as 11%. In share
they lost every month save one, when they broke even.
In
late news, after prime time, the numbers fell in all four
sweeps periods.The closest thing to a bright spot in local
news was early morning, although here, too, the bloom appears
to be off the rose somewhat.
For
early morning news (5 to 7 a.m.), the local programs that
come on before the network morning shows at 7 a.m., audience
figures for 2008 were flat or down.
Noon
broadcasts (noon to 1 p.m.) have become increasingly popular
among audiences, and network affiliates continue to add these
newscasts to their schedule. Ratings and share for the timeslot
are somewhat more stable than others excluding morning news,
which held steady from 2007."
Revenue
"According
to 2008 projections by Veronis Suhler Stevenson published in
August, advertising revenue is expected to decline 8.3% in 2009.
In November, the Television Bureau of Advertising estimated
even smaller revenues for 2009, which it estimated would be
7% to 11% lower than its newly reduced expectations for 2008.
But
now those may seem optimistic. In the first quarter, industry
executives said local TV stations were seeing revenues down
as much as 40%. And in an article foreshadowing many of the
problems local television stations would face in planning
their budgets for 2009, Deborah Potter, executive director
of NewsLab, a journalism resource center, and a consultant
to this project, suggests that profits margins have dwindled
to new lows. “For publicly traded businesses accustomed
to a 40 percent profit margin, 20 percent profit seems paltry
— especially to Wall Street,” Potter wrote.6
And
2009 looks worse. In November, the Television Bureau of Advertising
projected that local spot revenue would fall 4% to 8% in 2009.
National spot advertising was projected to fall even further,
between 11.5% and 15.5% compared with 2008.
Average
station revenues are falling, when adjusted for inflation,
and the impact is being felt most severely in smaller markets."
Staffing
"Salaries
for news professionals did grow on average in 2007. But the
gains were almost exclusively made by on-air employees. The
behind-the-cameras staff barely kept up with inflation. And
throughout 2008, there were signs of stations now beginning
to jettison some of their most senior people, including top
anchors, to save money. Cutbacks accelerated in the last few
months of 2008, with all types of newsroom positions being shed.
Moving
ahead, 2009 is shaping up to be perhaps even more difficult.
In the summer of 2008, a survey of news directors found that
most expected staffing levels to be flat in the coming year,
and a growing number feared that cuts were in the offing.
And
that survey was completed before the economy soured in the
fourth quarter. Analysts now warn that the situation in 2009
could be even worse.
While the money is small, stations are getting more serious
with their online ventures, including hiring more people to
sell online ads exclusively. The reason is simple. While small,
the revenues from the Internet are growing and that makes
them significant in the increasingly difficult world of local
television."
Looking
Ahead
"One
other potentially worrisome development for local news operations
is that networks are increasingly demanding money from their
affiliates for programming, while in previous years the payments
moved in the other direction.
These
include changes in financial arrangements between networks
and their affiliates and a reduction in the numbers of hours
of national programming from networks. And at least one network
(CBS) envisions distributing its programs directly through
cable and satellite systems within the next decade —
thus circumventing or cutting ties completely with affiliates.
Should
the reverse-compensation model become the norm, many small-market
stations fear they will have to cut back on local programming,
including news, to make up for the higher costs.
An
end to the network-affiliate model would have more dire consequences
for affiliates. With less or no national programming from
the networks, stations would likely be at a disadvantage in
negotiating fees for retransmission of their programming on
cable and satellite systems.
As
2009 began, the traditional network-affiliate model remained
intact but unsteady. The changes foreshadowed in 2008 may
prompt stations to expand beyond traditional local programming
(mostly news) into more varied content as a protection against
audience erosion.
Still
to be gauged is whether stations will take better advantage
of the extra channels offered by the digital conversion to
add such things as all-sports or all-weather channels, and
whether cable providers will be compelled to carry them, and
how audiences and advertisers will respond if they do. At
the end of 2008, local all-weather channels were the most
common at many stations, although few had yet to offer different
types of content on their digital sub-channels.
Papper
suggested, however, that with newsrooms already stretched
thin, many stations would have to reduce the amount of news
programming if the industry experiences further significant
cutbacks in 2009."
Now
that those sub-channels are available with digital transmission,
how will TV stations use them (besides 24 hour weather?) WNBC
is going full-tilt 24 hour local news with
"New York Non-Stop".
One potential problem: digital subchannels aren’t rated
by Nielsen.
So how exactly will you know how many viewers you have
Is the constant barrage of bad economic news causing viewer
turnoff?
More news on the layoff front in TV news. Bad news locally,nationally
and now internationally.
Be careful if your TV station has the idea of webcasting local
high school sports. New battles are brewing between media outlets
and local school athletic associations as to who owns the rights.
And it's a cloudy
picture.
Those local "learn TV broadcasting" schools are in a
big financial crunch given the poor prospects for future students.
Some are closing
their doors leaving students high and dry.
Cheaper live shots! That's the prospect on using internet videoconferencing
tool Skype to present live video.
Skype has its drawbacks but TV stations are going to explore this
means
of live coverage as budgets tighten.
How does the local magistrate stick it to the TV stations?
With parking tickets
on news vehicles of course.
In the "don't do this" department:
Man
Arrested for Shining Laser Pointer at News Helicopter
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
All Apologies
You
know how everybody that knows anything about computers always
tells you to backup your data so you don't lose it when the inevitable
hard drive crash comes-a-callin'?
Well...
It's not that I disregarded that dictum entirely, I was just lax
in my attitude about it.
And so, when my hard drive did indeed crash a couple of weeks
ago, I was left holding my d**k in my hand.
Dumbstruck, befuddled.
I guess I should have taken more care with the fact that I ran
an actual website that some people really did pop in to check
out.
But no...I was cocky. I was indifferent. "My computer is
working fine"...there was no reason to fear a crash.
So when it did crash, and I mean crash like a freakin' semi jack-knifing
on a slick two lane road full of vegetable carts and pane-glass
windows, I just stood there like the slack-jawed dummy I had become.
The burning plastic/metallic smell wafting over me was my first
sign. I knew I was in trouble but I figured if I just pleaded
"please mommy, make it all go away", the great lord
of computing would take mercy on me and ease my predicament.
No.
I lost it all.
Everything. The entire drive.
I literally lost my website. It was out there in cyberspace waiting
for me. But I couldn't get to it. The programs I use to work on
the site were lost with it. And since I got those programs on
the cheap, I didn't have backup for them either.
So I was left basically at square one. And that's an ugly square.
It's the most hated square of all the squares. Square one is a
bitch.
No one ever returns to square two ya know...but I figure it ain't
a whole lot better.
So right now, after messing with this predicament for a few weeks,
I'd say I'm on square....uh...I don't know...maybe seven.
I'm back up and running, but it took a lotta time, head-scratching,
and oh yeah...money.
Just like me to have to reconfigure the whole shebang.
But I'd like to thank all of you who continue to check out my
site.
It really is a labor of love and I'm glad to be able to work on
it again.
I'm just a TV photog with a website. But I'm going on 12 years
with this thing and my goal is still to keep you guys interested
with some news, some stories and some giggles.
Again...thanks for sticking with me.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Reporting while flying blamed in copter collision
WASHINGTON
-
A midair collision involving two news helicopters over Phoenix
18 months ago occurred because the two pilots lost track of each
other while broadcasting live coverage of a police chase on the
ground, federal officials said Wednesday.
The pilots
were trying to do too much at once - fly, report and monitor multiple
radio channels - before the crash, the National Transportation
Safety Board said.
"The
probable cause of this accident was both pilots' failure to see
and avoid each other," the board concluded in a report on the
collision. "Contributing to this failure was the pilots' responsibility
to perform reporting and visual-tracking duties."
(More)
Now
that we're back to a peanut butter and cup 'o noodles economy
on the eve of the new year, it seems like a good time to put on
our Carnak the Magnificent's turban and take a guess at what's
inside the hermetically sealed envelopes.
What lies
ahead for the TV business and specifically the TV news business
in 2009?
Here are
some predictions from around the media spectrum.
TVPredictions.com
prognosticator Phillip Swann sees big trouble ahead for TV broadcasters
with the upcoming digital switchover. He sees many viewers giving
up on TV entirely with network viewers down drastically. Local
TV may lose 5-7% of viewers just with the transition.
Beet.tv
sees almost all the major media entities making deals with YouTube.
Many forecasters
are seeing 2009 as the year when mobile video really takes off.
Videonuze
says: "The mobile experience is going to seem more and more like
the one you have sitting at your computer, with the added benefit
of portability. To throw a blue-sky variable into the mix, one
wonders if at some point you'll simply plug your phone into your
TV and watch streamed or downloaded video that way."
In fact says
seekingalpha.com,
you will soon be treating your internet as if it were just another
TV. Many of you are already there.
Branding
will become even more important in a world of media excess says
tilzy.tv.
"Just because videos can’t be appropriately monetized in the near
term, developing lasting brands (or reputations) associated with
quality, innovative content will build value that can be monetized
down the road. Experimentation and innovation are key."
Local broadcasters
will begin to monetize their content in 2009 according to mediapost.com.
But internet media will continue to impact TV on the time spent
watching video.
But all is
not gloom and doom for the lowly little local TV station. Although
some are predicting the demise of at least one network (CBS seems
to be the favorite), TV viewing will continue to be the first
choice because "viewership in aggregate is actually going
up, so continuing to understand how social media extends and enhances
that experience (and sources content in reverse) will be mission
critical."
As for the
growth of one-man-band journalists and downsized newsrooms, the
pinch will continue at least until the automakers sense a rebound
and get comfortable again doing more advertising.
Local TV ownership groups are definitely hunkering down for the
new year. Layoffs and job-consolidation will surely continue at
least for the beginning of 2009.
If you are affected by this, my hope is that you can find new
avenues to travel that lead to new opportunities. For those still
hanging on to a TV job and crossing your fingers...ahh.. try not
to make eye contact with the boss.
Maybe they'll forget you work there.
The
future of live ENG transmissions continues to evolve and the latest
entry in the "doing away with 40-ft. masts" category
is WiMax, the 4th-generation wireless broadband access service.
They're experimenting with it in
Idaho of all places, and the reviews are pretty good. ("Most viewers
probably couldn't tell you we're doing anything different.").
Lots of big-name
players are entering the field, but their are still some major
drawbacks that may slow the pace of this technology.
Still, many
folks believe that this lower-cost wireless application will replace
the likes of microwave truck transmissions. MORE...
Now
that the weather is turning colder, it's time to consider the
effects of freezing temperatures on video equipment and offer
a few tips that will keep you shooting when both you and your
camera would rather be indoors.
You don't
have to be working in arctic conditions to have a problem with
condensation. Exposing a camera and lens that have been chilling
outdoors to a warmer environment, especially if it is also humid,
causes the air next to the camera to cool below its dew point;
moisture given up by the warm air condenses on the camera's cooler
surfaces the same way that frost forms on the inside of a window
on a really cold day. Most of this moisture will evaporate as
the camera warms up, but sometimes moisture condenses inside the
viewfinder and between the elements of the lens.The
results are images that look like they've been shot through a
fog filter.
Sometimes
condensation makes its way into the recorder, where moisture sensors
will detect it and shut down the tape mechanism. The best way
to avoid condensation problems is to place the camera in an airtight
plastic bag before bringing it indoors.
Condensation
will form on the outside of the bag instead of on (or within)
the camera and lens. After a brief wait of perhaps 10 or 15 minutes,
the camera should be close enough to room temperature to make
it safe to unseal the bag. Leaving the camera on while it is bagged
will generate a little extra heat and speed the process.
If the condensation
gremlin has already struck, a gentle stream of air from a hair
dryer set to low heat will help chase the humidity away. Just
remember, the goal is to dry out the camera, not cook it. To avoid
damage, the air directed at the camera and lens should be no warmer
than you can tolerate on the back of your hand.
Posted by
Brian Smith at tvtechnology.com
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
A Survival Guide To Your Layoff
Okay...you
can see it coming. The company is downsizing and you are in their
line of fire.
Are you prepared
if that pink slip is attached to your last paycheck. Here's
a guide put together by photojournalist Brad Ingram of WGHP-TV
to help you deal with...the LAYOFF!
Excerpt:
"If you have any personal belongings or equipment stored
at work make sure it’s in one area if possible. Make a list of
all of the personal equipment that is yours and supply that list
to your department head. That way you and your equipment are protected.
MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Houston TV Station Copter Crashes, 2 Dead
Here's
video and media reports of the Houston TV copter crash.
• July
2007: A helicopter flying for Dallas Fox affiliate KDFW made
an emergency landing near Grand Prairie, injuring two reporters
and the pilot.
• July
2007: Two news helicopters collided mid-air in Phoenix while
covering a police chase. Four people died.
• May 2004:
A news helicopter covering a triple shooting crashed onto a
roof in Brooklyn, N.Y. No serious injuries were reported.
• May 2001:
The pilot of a KHOU (Channel 11) news helicopter crashed while
trying to land on the station's roof. He was not injured.
• April
2001: A KTRK (Channel 13) helicopter lost power but landed safely
in Montgomery County while covering a school bus accident. No
one was injured.
• November
2000: KRIV-TV's SkyFOX went down in Houston's River Oaks community,
killing pilot Donald Sumner.
• March
2000: A news helicopter covering a train derailment crashed
in suburban Miami, killing a photographer and a pilot.
“Will
anchors be worth what they were worth? No. You cut back on salaries.
The people who had the ability to get higher pay won’t have
it. It doesn’t mean they won’t be valuable. It doesn’t mean
they’ll lose their jobs. They might, but what it probably means
is they probably won’t make as much money."…”
The
new media paradigm for TV news will answer this question:
What person
will acquire the video?
I think it
will still be several years before the traditional
reporter-photog news crew
will be noticed to be diminishing.
Soon though, people, even big shots, will become comfortable with
the face behind a smaller camera, asking all the questions.
One person
will acquire the video .All of it....including conducting interviews.
If he/she can write the story as well...
instant anchor pack.
Economic realities may force stations to have fewer reporters
and more anchor-read packages to feed the beast.
And if said
video acquirer still wants to be 'on TV'?
What the hell...shoot your standups.
If, in your
position right now...you are a video acquirer...
you...my
friend
just moved
to the front lines.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
After Show Meetings. Do You Have Them?
Do
you have after-show meetings for your local news broadcasts?
If you do,
this article says you probably have
good ratings at your station. A survey found that there was a
"significant relationship' between whether producers and
directors held a show meeting and how they assessed each other’s
competence."
And there's
this: "the key finding is that not only do producers and
directors not communicate well, they don’t even communicate minimally
although, as she rightfully notes, “One cannot succeed without
the other’s participation and involvement.”
What's
the most remarkable moment you've ever witnessed on live TV?
Man on the moon?...
If you watched,
your pride in America was great that day.
And all-in all probably #1.
But... For me it was also November 1963.
I was a kid watching live TV when Jack Ruby shot Lee Harvey Oswald.
It was unbelievable...I remember thinking "did I really just see
that?" Completely stunning in its impact.
Even as a grade-schooler I thought: "How could he do it? And so
easily.
The grownups around here are 'bout to freak."
And the man behind the mic was Ike
Pappas of CBS, who died this week.
That moment
of history marks a timeline for me, when I realized the god-awful
power of television in full display,
and Ike Pappas
made it real for me.
It was a scary time.
Thank God
the Beatles arrived in Feb. 1964.
They made the world a happier place.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Headlines
On
the Go The
outlook for mobile TV news... the broadcast industry hopes
to bring viewers back by taking its show on the road.
This
Week's Highlights
At
ESPN, Play-by-Play Goes Virtual
" "the
cable powerhouse is looking to extend its domain in virtual
worlds by merging video game graphics with real-life sports
anchors."
The Newspapers' Final Voyage
The
reality is now approaching that sooner rather than later, all
newspapers will move to online access only.
Some have suggested this could happen quickly once the dominos
start falling.
Maybe as soon as 2012.
This is going
to really shake things up when newspapers finally see that there
is no longer a profit in delivering hard copy papers to their
readers.
The
death of the newspaper will be a sorry sight for a couple of generations
that have grown up dirtying our fingers with newsprint ink.
Trouble is,
newspapers can't figure out a proper business model online either.
They're failing at both ends right now. Talk about a squeeze play.
Internet news readers have demanded that their news info be made
available for free, and free don't pay no
reporter salaries.
So newspapers are being forced into a web-based, advertiser-only
revenue vein, that can't carry the weight needed to fund a daily
newsgathering operation.
Honestly,
is there a single newspaper in the country that has a profitable
enough website to carry their whole operation?
I doubt
it.
To survive, papers are going to have to go super local. Mostly
with sports I suspect. That's another reason why they are branching
out into local news video. The local news website (whether print, TV, or radio)
that corners the market and can become a one-stop shop for all
your local print and video needs, may be the sole market survivor
in the battle to attract and retain local news enthusiasts.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Teenager TV
Local
TV stations which are putting on five, six or more hours of TV
news everyday are often struggling to find enough viable content
to feed an ever-hungry beast.
Guess who might be able to help?
If you said
high school teenagers...
go to the head of the class.
"Videos
written and edited by high school students could become a reason
for them to watch the news—and a way for local TV news operations
to recruit younger viewers." MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
And now it's "All-Platform Journalist"
Alright...enough
already. We gotta settle on a term for this new-fangled journalist
of the future. We've had: digital journalist, one-man-band, multi-media
journalist, new media journalist...
and now
CNN gets into the mess with creating one-person bureaus manned
by "all-platform journalists". CNN now becomes the latest media
outlet to 'expand
by downsizing'. You gotta love the marketing chutzpah.
Let
an all-platformer give you a look at her daily
routine here.
In this, the reporter is female. But I noted in her daily rundown
that at no time did she say: "grabbed my gear and went and shot
interviews and B-roll."
Yes there are two types of "all-platform journalists". One includes
shooting video and one does not. One puts together a TV news story
and one basically puts together a web story. Will it all soon
be combined? I'm not sure it's possible to do what this young
journalist is doing at CNN...AND shoot a video story in the same
day. In fact...it's impossible.
I've
noticed that most of the journalists portrayed in the media who
are shooting. writing, and editing TV stories are
male. Not to say it isn't being done by some hard-working
females out there, because I've run into a few at small-market
stations who are working their butts off.
But
I still contend that in general, the women who now have jobs as
TV reporters at their respective stations...for the most part
want no part of becoming an "all-platform journalist." Given the
ultimatum, I still believe many of them, not all, would look for
another job.
So
will the APJ become a male stronghold in the world of TV news?
Or will the journalism students now entering the business, male
AND female realize that in order to succeed, they're gonna have
to start humpin' some gear and getting their hands dirty? As I've
said before...all of this won't happen overnight. But the more
TV stations look at this as a way of cutting costs...the bigger
chance your owner will do it too.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
If the Studio's Rockin'...Don't Bother Knockin'
Look...I
realize that earthquakes are serious business.But what is it with
TV news anchors hiding under the desk when this happens to them
while they are on air.
Here's an anchor, not only ducking under, but exhorting "you
camera people" to come join him under there. First he says:
" Stay calm" as if his anchorman persona gives him some
kind of 'I'm the captain here' status. His very next words after
"stay calm" are "UNDER THE DESK!"
This guys not talking to "you camera people", he's talking
to himself, trying to not look like the fraidy-cat he appears.
I know...earthquakes...serious...got
it.
But c'mon...this
guy's just silly.
Tim Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Decision
2008
Are You Ready For "Pitvertising"
Here’s
a new word that might be invading your vernacular in the near
future if you happen to be a frequent mass-transit commuter. Pitvertising.
That’s right.
Ads directly from the deep caverns of your fellow passengers’
armpits.
It might
sound sort of creepy and unpractical, but think of the most common
sight on a crowded subway car. Tons and tons of sweaty armpits,
attached to those very same fellow passengers who are reaching
for the handy support hanger.
And what better way is there to utilize such a medium than by
advertising, oops, we mean “pitvertising” a brand of deodorant?
Deodorant company Right Guard recently sent out a flock of pitvertisers
out into the wilds of London to test out their new form of media.
And while it might not be playing something entertaining like
The Best of Monty Python, at least it’s better than the choice
of entertainment you usually have, which usually consists of glancing
between the same poster ad over and over again or staring into
the depths of a non-displayed armpit.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Is The Rug Being Pulled Out?
Here's
more news on something I've been
alerting you to for a while now. Major newspapers are getting
into the video business big-time and some of them are starting
to grasp the fact that if they do it well, they could pull the
rug out from under TV station websites and become a one-stop-shop
for all your print AND video needs.
Check out
this article on what newpapers are
doing and once again make sure you watch the videos below from
the Washington Post and the Newark Star-Ledger. Also read
how the downsizing of the newspaper industry might make for some
very long morning meetings in the TV newsroom. And how some are
pondering
the possibility of more TV-newspaper mergers.
It's all
disparaging news for local TV news operations, particularly for
the struggling ones. But this IS the future my friends. The more
you know what's coming, the more you will be prepared to take
advantage of it.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Is Your Job Headed to the Newspaper?
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
The Michael Phelps Show
Well...here
it comes. Get ready for the biggest hi-tech TV
extravaganza in the history of the ole boob tube. NBC presents
the 2008 Summer Olympics.
And of course, they've turned on the faucet of dollars to equip
themselves with all the best and brightest state-of-the-art HD
hardware to showcase the 2 week affair, including DiveCam, and
UnderwaterCam and other assorted POV cams that should give viewers
a full assortment of angles and replays to highlight
all the action.
In
a side note...here in Baltimore we know that the greatest swimmer
in the world will no doubt dominate these games. Michael Phelps
grew up here and is returning here to live and work after the
games. With he and Baltimore's female sensation Katie Hoff, the
North Baltimore
Aquatic Club's finest are about to make history. Best of luck
to Michael and Katie!!
Now
that it's weather for wearing shorts, I'm wearing shorts.
I know that photogs wearing shorts can often be pretty unsightly
depending on the legs of said shorts-wearer.
And I've seen every type of photog leg from bulldozer brawny to
vericose vein-ey.
Me...my legs are so skinny that one photog used to joke: "are
those your legs or are you riding a chicken?".
Anyhow...
Since my
knees are now available for inspection, the other day my daughter
said: "Dad...what's that on your knee?"
I'm like: "What?"
She says: "that thing on your knee?".
So in checking this out and I come to realize something I had
never noticed before.
I have callouses on my knees!
Worn,
old scaley patches of roughed up knee-skin.
I'm thinking...jeez I've been shooting news so long, getting down
on my knees for that oh-so artistic low-angle award-winning, god
I am so good video, that I have developed callouses on my KNEES!
I'd like
to know exactly when this happened so I can warn my fellow photogs
at what point in their career they can expect to have knees like
that of a strawberry farmer.
But I think this thing just kinda creeps up on you.
And now I have to live with not only bony kneecaps...but bony
kneecaps covered in what looks like low-grade sandpaper.
So go ahead
guys...check your knees right now.
You old-timers will discover you have well-worn callouses that
no amount of skin lotion and vigorous rubbing will ever make smooth
again.
And you young guys...if those patches of rubbed and scrubbed skin
aren't there yet...just know that your time will come.
Just another
visible reminder to one day show the grandkids.
"Yep...I worked so hard getting those hard-to-get angles that
my knees will forever bear the scars of my dedication and desire
to make my TV news stories great."
And at the
old-photogs home we'll all sit around and compare our battle scars.
Kinda like a night at the VFW...
except we'll toast the glory days with bottles of Jergens.
TV
Turmoil
" Revolving
door in small news markets part of the biz
Bozo
Dead
" Larry
Harmon, longtime Bozo the Clown, dead at 83
How To Be A Vee-Jay
"Who
will be easier to transition into this new VJ mode?
Reporters or photogs?
Train a person to write a basic TV story...or train a person to
shoot and edit a TV story?
Photogs with any kind of writing aptitude will win this contest.
And I can sense it. Reporters in general are unnerved by this
new development. They see how this may pan out and a lot of them
are feeling a tad insecure about the prospect, knowing that they
have no intention or desire to learn how to shoot and edit news."
MORE....
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Keeping the Passion Alive
From
time to time it's good to re-connect with the basics that make
for great visual storytelling in TV news. So here are a list
of standard procedures from photog Corky Scholl on how to
make your stories stand out from the pack. More...
Breaking
in the new reporter in most TV newsrooms usually involves nothing
more than handing them their assignment ( the crime de jour usually)
and sending them to the garage in search of a van. But there's
gotta be a better way than this sink or swim scenario.
As this
report notes..."a newsroom that invests a little time
early on to help new hires learn their way around will reap rewards
more quickly in the form of better and more original stories."
Here's a
how-to on breaking in the new guy
the RIGHT way. MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
New Gadgets
Everybody
likes new gadgets...right? Most TV news photogs are gadget freaks
to some degree. So here for your perusal are just a few of the
new devices
making their debuts.
Get a load of the new developments in 3-D TV (without the funny
glasses), the latest in ultra-high definition TV, a new HD flash-based
camcorder from Sony, and the coolest new shockproof mini-cam to
stick on a helmet or cycle for catching that POV stuff on a wild
ride. MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
MAKING NEWS: Savannah Style...
Here
from Nick Davis Productions is the 1st episode of the 2nd season
of "Making News"...an in-depth look at the behind-the-scenes
action at a local TV news operation.
You might remember the first season of this series that followed
the drama of a TV news station in Midland, Texas.
Now they've moved on to Savannah, Georgia.
In Episode 1, we meet the team of WJCL-TV, possibly the lowest-rated
ABC affiliate in the country. Follow the anchors and reporters
as they launch a campaign to get a foothold in their community.
Even
more layoff buzz around the industry.
It looks like we're in the beginning stages of a paradigm shift.
Some are predicting that "the local TV news formula of using
star anchors to attract viewers may be headed for the ash heap."
With "more emphasis on delivering the news by means other
than traditional broadcasts and less on presentation by highly-paid
anchors and reporters."
I can't help but see opportunities here for those of us who are
open to expanding our skill sets and thus becoming more valuable
to a TV operation. MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Antennas -Back to the Future
The
fact is that there are still many unresolved issues with DTV reception
problems with indoor antennas. A lot of people are either
going to be headed to their roof to affix one, or perhaps just
give up and call their local cable provider. MORE...
In
the field I sometimes use my little Casio 2.5" TV as a monitor
during live shots and such. As of February of course, that comes
to an end.
A whole lotta little TV's like this one are going to end up as
paperweights soon enough.
In fact I think most people, if they don't have cable or satellite
TV, won't even bother getting new tuners for TV sets up to 19"
or so. The landfills are going to be bursting with discarded TV's.
Seems a shame to deep six a perfectly fine TV just to fulfill
the FCC's demand to go digital.
Eventually digital TV tuners will be integrated into most cell
phones I imagine. The tuners to allow it are getting smaller
and smaller.
The Asuka Corp. out of Taiwan has come up with what may be the
smallest
digital TV up to now. A 3" screen that won't work in the U.S.
Go figure.
So until those cell phones can receive the digital TV signal,
we TV guys in the field have no way to monitor our picture away
from the truck. And my little Casio was so sweet.
Damn the FCC.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
The "Mo-Jo" vs. The "Vee-Jay"
What
we in the TV news industry are calling the "one-man-band', or
"vee-Jay" (video journalist), the newspaper industry seems to
like the label "mojo" or mobile journalist.
The difference: very little.
As newspapers
struggle to survive in a new world of instant access, they seem
to be merely copying what the TV news folks have been doing for
decades.
Mojos are
being equipped with video cameras and laptops and sent out the
door to create news stories. That sure sounds familiar to me.
Instead of producing news for a daily paper, they are turning
stories for their web sites. Also just like TV stations.
Old newspaper
types of course, look down their noses at this type of news coverage.
Is it merely a fad they ask.
Many feel
that being out of the newsroom for extended periods means less
face-to-face discussion with editors and colleagues. Communication
can get muddled or missed. That argument to me seems to be a reach.
These mobile journos have cell phones, right?
Either way,
the bottom line is that TV stations and newspapers are morphing
into using the same tools to capture the news. These two media
entities in the future will compete for patrons in much the same
way.
In fact,
with the inherent gravitas that many newspapers have garnered,
they could win the battle of delivering news seekers what they
want.
If your major daily newspaper offered solid local video news coverage
along with its established print expertise on its web site, would
you even need to visit a TV station website?
Local TV
news operations need to recognize and address the fact that they
are now also in competition with the local newspaper for video
news content.
And newspapers need to realize that the world of print journalism
is no longer enough for the next generation of news seekers.
Truth is
that in many ways it is a race.
For the winner: continued survival in an age of immediate gratification. MORE...
"How
many of you producers and reporters are producing content for
another medium? This report says
the number's almost 70%. Although almost half of you say you need
more training to do it better.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Top 10 Angry On-Camera Meltdowns
If
you haven't seen this yet, you've got to take a look at this video.
Anchors, hosts, weatherman and more all letting their anger get
the best of them on-air. What viewers don't really know is...this
stuff happens all the time. Behind the scenes we are often tired,
angry and loose-lipped.
I'd warn
you about the language in this video, but I'm pretty sure your
boss is busy cussing out the guy on the assignment desk right
now, so go ahead and play this.
Remember
the big shift that's supposed to happen with TV ENG microwave
transmisions?
Sprint Nextel
was buying up all that "live shot" spectrum space and compensating
TV stations with new digital transmission and reception gear.
It's called
the "2 GHz relocation".
Every TV
station has to inventory its equipment, present a shopping list
to Sprint, have it verified by a third-party, receive the hardware,
test to make sure there is no interference and turn the whole
thing around literally overnight.
Quite a set
of demands.
And oh yeah,
this all has to happen by Sept. 30th of this year!
Some TV stations
like KTVK in Phoenix have already completed the turnaround. Yet,
as of today, the vast majority of TV stations with call letters
haven't received a single piece of new equipment. Much of it is
still sitting in a warehouse.
Sprint has
asked for an additional 29 months to make it happen. The FCC has
granted them 18
months.
What's the
holdup?
Well, if
you said LAWYERS...you win a Stewie doll.
In the great
clamor to make all of this happen, nobody figured out who was
going to pay the taxes on this stuff.
Read more about it here.
In
the meantime, suppliers are marketing gear outside of the relocation
process. Portable, compact microwave systems that can be carried
in a regular-size auto and set up on the fly for breaking-news
events are now hot items. These new wireless transmitters mount
on the back of a camera and are good for a short enough distance
to make them really valuable in downtown situations with a lot
of buildings.
"You grab one of the news cars, throw it in the back seat,
run to the story, and set up and go.”
So
what's ahead for editing systems this year? A couple of
trends are emerging as was seen at NAB.
Lots of new formats, plenty of horsepower, and even stereoscopic
3D entries.
Editors today
are going to have to adapt and move quickly to keep pace with
a demanding market. MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Sony's New TV Dropping Jaws
It
costs too much. The screen is too small. But this new TV from
Sony is about to blow all the others out of the water.
The new OLED
technology is providing such incredibly lifelike images that you
need to catch your breath.
Name a drawback of plasma or LED screens and this TV overcomes
it. But at only 11" across and a price of $2500, it's not yet
ready for prime time.
Yet, the
jaw-dropping picture quality is about to set a new standard for
high-end TV's. Oh yeah...and it's only 3mm thick. MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Finding and Keeping Good Assignment Editors
"Show
me a good assignment desk, and I'll show you a winning newsroom,"
says Joseph Coscia, former news director at KDKA-TV in Pittsburgh
and once an assignment editor at New York's WABC-TV.
So where
do you find good assignment editors and how do you keep them?
MORE...
I
thought in opening up another messageboard
that I would try to entice students in colleges, universities
and high schools to ask questions here and get them answered by
folks who are now working in the media.
Of course
the board is open to any and all posters on any subject, but I
realize that there are other more established forums for media
kvetching. Hopefully with some prodding, I can find students with
legitimate questions about TV journalism that will be answered
here.
If not...well
then start kvetching.
Registration is quick and painless so please take 15 secs and
join
up.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Share the Wealth
I
have a good friend who is a production freelancer who has asked
me many times: "Why do all of the TV stations have cameras at
a press conference, shooting the exact same thing, wasting resources
on duplicating an event, when one camera's video is all you need?"
"Why
don't your bosses work out a pool arrangement for stuff like that?"
I start talking
about "competition" and "getting an edge" and he wisely says:
"At a news conference!!"
Well...it
looks like some news bosses in Philadelphia are taking my friend's
advice. The NBC and Fox affiliates there are working on an arrangement
to share video at just such events. The costs of doing business
may make this kind of working agreement more of a reality in news
markets everywhere. And ya know what?....it makes sense to me. MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
The Battle for "Smallest HD Camcorder"
Yes...the
battle of "smallest" HD camcorders has begun. But in
this case, smallest also means "most compromised". You're
going to get a debatedly great video picture with these new camcorders.
But you'll also give up wide angles, need a powerful computer
to deal with their new capture format, and not even bother if
you own a Mac.
With these
cams, smaller isn't necessarily better. But the HD camcorder war
is only just now heating up. MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Avoiding the "Instant"
A
tragic
accident in Maine has focused attention on TV live trucks
as one was involved in a fatal collision this week
It looks like the TV truck was not at fault as the other vehicle
crossed the center line and collided with the truck.
We can only pray for the poor young woman who lost her life and
for the occupant of the truck to quickly recover. Nothing you
can do to prevent something like this. Fate put those folks in
that position.
But
it does offer up an opportunity to mention the safety procedures
to be used by TV live truck operators.
Mark Bell is the head honcho for live truck safety. Check out
his site at www.engsafety.com.
Of course, the main thrust of Mark's site is to not throw that
mast up in the wrong circumstances, but driving issues are also
addressed.
At my station
lately, there has been a much greater emphasis placed on safety
procedures. That may be true at many stations across the country
as owners look to lessen the problems that accidents create. Hopefully
you will take the time to review the safety procedures where you
work and take them to heart. As we know all too well, your life
can be taken in an instant. Avoiding that"instant" may be the
most important thing we will ever do.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Transferring Old VideoTapes To DVD
Fortunately,
high prices and intimidating learning curves have been replaced
by cost-effective, user-friendly editing solutions.
Features previously available to professional editors only are
now in the hands of the everyday consumer.
Even with the most basic video-editing software and hardware,
you can convert analog tapes to a variety of digital formats easily,
including DVD. MORE...
LiveNewsCams.com
" "...The
concept is simple, let people watch news as it happens anywhere
in the world…raw, unedited on your computer at work or home."
In
honor of the new baseball season, and the Baltimore Orioles being
off to the best start in all the major leagues...(you heard right
Pancho), here for your enjoyment is the BEST
baseball blooper you will EVER see.
In my town...this video is a hometown staple. It is best watched
either before, during or after the consumption of a crabcake and
the downing of a Natty Boh.
Introducing...the indomitable...the unconquerable...the unstoppable,
the one...the only...the EARL of Baltimore...EARL
WEAVER!
(WARNING: You are about to hear an uncensored version
of a no-holds-barred, unrestained, full-tilt Weaverfest. Plan
accordingly.)
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
The New Toys Your Bosses Want
Among
the throngs at the National Association of Broadcasters convention
April 11-17 in Las Vegas will be the top engineers for major broadcast
groups.
All
come with slightly different agendas and some with radically different
timetables. All of them, however, will have their minds on one
date for certain: Feb. 17, 2009, the last day broadcasters will
be allowed to transmit an analog signal.
Here’s a look at how six of the
major broadcast groups will spend their time on the NAB floor
making final plans for the digital transition.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
The Whole She-Bang!
ONE-MAN-BANDS!!
There's a furious debate going on in TV journalism right now over
the use of one-man-bands, the solo video journalist who shoots,
writes, and edits his own news story.
Stephan Warley at tvspy.com has just written an article in "Defense
of Video Journalists", noting that "local broadcasters will
have to produce video content for multiple platforms: broadcast,
web, cell phones, and video on demand. Once again, the VJ model
is much better suited to distributing unique content to multiple
platforms."
The readers of B-Roll. net are most assuredly aware of Michael
Rosenblum's focus on turning TV newsrooms into "VJ" havens.
Stations like KRON have gone totally VJ.
But as of now ,completely shifting to that format seems risky
to me. Some stations using it have
not succeeded.
Still, the OMB option is proliferating.
Newspaper reporters are being
trained to gather video and assemble stories for their websites.
Awards
are now being specifically given to OMB journalists.
I know a lot of good TV news photogs want this thing to just
go away.
But fellas....it's not.
And like it or not, YOU may be asked to do it.
Let's face it, in the near future, either reporters are gonna
learn how to shoot and edit, or photogs are gonna learn how to
write and assemble.
I say....start doing some writing now.
Look at the packages you are doing and give it a go at writing
it yourself. You can create your own future if you have the desire.
Because the OMB model WILL become an accepted adjunct in the TV
newsrooms of the future.
It is economically smart for station owners and can create entirely
new levels of developing stories if done well.
I
know there are a slew of older photogs who want no part of this.
And the truth is, this thing is not going to happen overnight.
Tomorrow you will still be out there in the van cranking
out another story with another reporter. Next year you will still be in that van cranking out that
story. (That reporter will have already lost his job as usual.)
But five years from now? It's looking different.
Yep...technology is forcing the issue. And bottom line...you
can't fight the technology.
You old guys...just hang on and pray. You'll probably eke out
of the TV news business as the last generation of the old style.
("Yep...we used to have lunch and a smoke while the reporter
logged and wrote.")
You new guys...brush up on your writing skills.
ALL you guys are due a beer or two for just surviving in a new
landscape being forced on us.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Layoffs Everywhere!
Okay...this
layoff thing is starting to get serious. All over the country
TV stations are laying-off personnel left and right.
CBS is doing most of the hacking. Just this week, their are layoffs
in Chicago,New
York,Boston,San
Francisco and Pittsburgh.
Also Denver
and Sacremento.
For the most part, it looks like the unlucky personnel are the
higher-paid talent...anchors and reporters. Affirming the old
adage: "Never be the highest paid person at the TV station." But
producers and writers are also getting the boot.
As of now, it looks like news photographers have escaped the downsizing.
Not all photogs of course, but the union contracts at larger stations
and the lower salaries at the smaller stations have surely helped
keep us employed. For once, it's a good thing to be paid so poorly.
A'int that some sh-t.?
The
new media paradigm for TV news will answer this question:
What person
will acquire the video?
I think it
will still be several years before the traditional
reporter-photog news crew
will be noticed to be diminishing.
Soon though, people, even big shots, will become comfortable with
the face behind a smaller camera, asking all the questions.
One person
will acquire the video .All of it....including conducting interviews.
If he/she can write the story as well...
instant anchor pack.
Economic realities may force stations to have fewer reporters
and more anchor-read packages to feed the beast.
And if said
video acquirer still wants to be 'on TV'?
What the hell...shoot your standups.
If, in your
position right now...you are a video acquirer...
you...my
friend
just moved
to the front lines.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
After Show Meetings. Do You Have Them?
Do
you have after-show meetings for your local news broadcasts?
If you do,
this article says you probably have
good ratings at your station. A survey found that there was a
"significant relationship' between whether producers and
directors held a show meeting and how they assessed each other’s
competence."
And there's
this: "the key finding is that not only do producers and
directors not communicate well, they don’t even communicate minimally
although, as she rightfully notes, “One cannot succeed without
the other’s participation and involvement.”
What's
the most remarkable moment you've ever witnessed on live TV?
Man on the moon?...
If you watched,
your pride in America was great that day.
And all-in all probably #1.
But... For me it was also November 1963.
I was a kid watching live TV when Jack Ruby shot Lee Harvey Oswald.
It was unbelievable...I remember thinking "did I really just see
that?" Completely stunning in its impact.
Even as a grade-schooler I thought: "How could he do it? And so
easily.
The grownups around here are 'bout to freak."
And the man behind the mic was Ike
Pappas of CBS, who died this week.
That moment
of history marks a timeline for me, when I realized the god-awful
power of television in full display,
and Ike Pappas
made it real for me.
It was a scary time.
Thank God
the Beatles arrived in Feb. 1964.
They made the world a happier place.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Headlines
On
the Go The
outlook for mobile TV news... the broadcast industry hopes
to bring viewers back by taking its show on the road.
This
Week's Highlights
At
ESPN, Play-by-Play Goes Virtual
" "the
cable powerhouse is looking to extend its domain in virtual
worlds by merging video game graphics with real-life sports
anchors."
The Newspapers' Final Voyage
The
reality is now approaching that sooner rather than later, all
newspapers will move to online access only.
Some have suggested this could happen quickly once the dominos
start falling.
Maybe as soon as 2012.
This is going
to really shake things up when newspapers finally see that there
is no longer a profit in delivering hard copy papers to their
readers.
The
death of the newspaper will be a sorry sight for a couple of generations
that have grown up dirtying our fingers with newsprint ink.
Trouble is,
newspapers can't figure out a proper business model online either.
They're failing at both ends right now. Talk about a squeeze play.
Internet news readers have demanded that their news info be made
available for free, and free don't pay no
reporter salaries.
So newspapers are being forced into a web-based, advertiser-only
revenue vein, that can't carry the weight needed to fund a daily
newsgathering operation.
Honestly,
is there a single newspaper in the country that has a profitable
enough website to carry their whole operation?
I doubt
it.
To survive, papers are going to have to go super local. Mostly
with sports I suspect. That's another reason why they are branching
out into local news video. The local news website (whether print, TV, or radio)
that corners the market and can become a one-stop shop for all
your local print and video needs, may be the sole market survivor
in the battle to attract and retain local news enthusiasts.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Teenager TV
Local
TV stations which are putting on five, six or more hours of TV
news everyday are often struggling to find enough viable content
to feed an ever-hungry beast.
Guess who might be able to help?
If you said
high school teenagers...
go to the head of the class.
"Videos
written and edited by high school students could become a reason
for them to watch the news—and a way for local TV news operations
to recruit younger viewers." MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
And now it's "All-Platform Journalist"
Alright...enough
already. We gotta settle on a term for this new-fangled journalist
of the future. We've had: digital journalist, one-man-band, multi-media
journalist, new media journalist...
and now
CNN gets into the mess with creating one-person bureaus manned
by "all-platform journalists". CNN now becomes the latest media
outlet to 'expand
by downsizing'. You gotta love the marketing chutzpah.
Let
an all-platformer give you a look at her daily
routine here.
In this, the reporter is female. But I noted in her daily rundown
that at no time did she say: "grabbed my gear and went and shot
interviews and B-roll."
Yes there are two types of "all-platform journalists". One includes
shooting video and one does not. One puts together a TV news story
and one basically puts together a web story. Will it all soon
be combined? I'm not sure it's possible to do what this young
journalist is doing at CNN...AND shoot a video story in the same
day. In fact...it's impossible.
I've
noticed that most of the journalists portrayed in the media who
are shooting. writing, and editing TV stories are
male. Not to say it isn't being done by some hard-working
females out there, because I've run into a few at small-market
stations who are working their butts off.
But
I still contend that in general, the women who now have jobs as
TV reporters at their respective stations...for the most part
want no part of becoming an "all-platform journalist." Given the
ultimatum, I still believe many of them, not all, would look for
another job.
So
will the APJ become a male stronghold in the world of TV news?
Or will the journalism students now entering the business, male
AND female realize that in order to succeed, they're gonna have
to start humpin' some gear and getting their hands dirty? As I've
said before...all of this won't happen overnight. But the more
TV stations look at this as a way of cutting costs...the bigger
chance your owner will do it too.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
If the Studio's Rockin'...Don't Bother Knockin'
Look...I
realize that earthquakes are serious business.But what is it with
TV news anchors hiding under the desk when this happens to them
while they are on air.
Here's an anchor, not only ducking under, but exhorting "you
camera people" to come join him under there. First he says:
" Stay calm" as if his anchorman persona gives him some
kind of 'I'm the captain here' status. His very next words after
"stay calm" are "UNDER THE DESK!"
This guys not talking to "you camera people", he's talking
to himself, trying to not look like the fraidy-cat he appears.
I know...earthquakes...serious...got
it.
But c'mon...this
guy's just silly.
Tim Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Decision
2008
Are You Ready For "Pitvertising"
Here’s
a new word that might be invading your vernacular in the near
future if you happen to be a frequent mass-transit commuter. Pitvertising.
That’s right.
Ads directly from the deep caverns of your fellow passengers’
armpits.
It might
sound sort of creepy and unpractical, but think of the most common
sight on a crowded subway car. Tons and tons of sweaty armpits,
attached to those very same fellow passengers who are reaching
for the handy support hanger.
And what better way is there to utilize such a medium than by
advertising, oops, we mean “pitvertising” a brand of deodorant?
Deodorant company Right Guard recently sent out a flock of pitvertisers
out into the wilds of London to test out their new form of media.
And while it might not be playing something entertaining like
The Best of Monty Python, at least it’s better than the choice
of entertainment you usually have, which usually consists of glancing
between the same poster ad over and over again or staring into
the depths of a non-displayed armpit.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Is The Rug Being Pulled Out?
Here's
more news on something I've been
alerting you to for a while now. Major newspapers are getting
into the video business big-time and some of them are starting
to grasp the fact that if they do it well, they could pull the
rug out from under TV station websites and become a one-stop-shop
for all your print AND video needs.
Check out
this article on what newpapers are
doing and once again make sure you watch the videos below from
the Washington Post and the Newark Star-Ledger. Also read
how the downsizing of the newspaper industry might make for some
very long morning meetings in the TV newsroom. And how some are
pondering
the possibility of more TV-newspaper mergers.
It's all
disparaging news for local TV news operations, particularly for
the struggling ones. But this IS the future my friends. The more
you know what's coming, the more you will be prepared to take
advantage of it.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Is Your Job Headed to the Newspaper?
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
The Michael Phelps Show
Well...here
it comes. Get ready for the biggest hi-tech TV
extravaganza in the history of the ole boob tube. NBC presents
the 2008 Summer Olympics.
And of course, they've turned on the faucet of dollars to equip
themselves with all the best and brightest state-of-the-art HD
hardware to showcase the 2 week affair, including DiveCam, and
UnderwaterCam and other assorted POV cams that should give viewers
a full assortment of angles and replays to highlight
all the action.
In
a side note...here in Baltimore we know that the greatest swimmer
in the world will no doubt dominate these games. Michael Phelps
grew up here and is returning here to live and work after the
games. With he and Baltimore's female sensation Katie Hoff, the
North Baltimore
Aquatic Club's finest are about to make history. Best of luck
to Michael and Katie!!
Now
that it's weather for wearing shorts, I'm wearing shorts.
I know that photogs wearing shorts can often be pretty unsightly
depending on the legs of said shorts-wearer.
And I've seen every type of photog leg from bulldozer brawny to
vericose vein-ey.
Me...my legs are so skinny that one photog used to joke: "are
those your legs or are you riding a chicken?".
Anyhow...
Since my
knees are now available for inspection, the other day my daughter
said: "Dad...what's that on your knee?"
I'm like: "What?"
She says: "that thing on your knee?".
So in checking this out and I come to realize something I had
never noticed before.
I have callouses on my knees!
Worn,
old scaley patches of roughed up knee-skin.
I'm thinking...jeez I've been shooting news so long, getting down
on my knees for that oh-so artistic low-angle award-winning, god
I am so good video, that I have developed callouses on my KNEES!
I'd like
to know exactly when this happened so I can warn my fellow photogs
at what point in their career they can expect to have knees like
that of a strawberry farmer.
But I think this thing just kinda creeps up on you.
And now I have to live with not only bony kneecaps...but bony
kneecaps covered in what looks like low-grade sandpaper.
So go ahead
guys...check your knees right now.
You old-timers will discover you have well-worn callouses that
no amount of skin lotion and vigorous rubbing will ever make smooth
again.
And you young guys...if those patches of rubbed and scrubbed skin
aren't there yet...just know that your time will come.
Just another
visible reminder to one day show the grandkids.
"Yep...I worked so hard getting those hard-to-get angles that
my knees will forever bear the scars of my dedication and desire
to make my TV news stories great."
And at the
old-photogs home we'll all sit around and compare our battle scars.
Kinda like a night at the VFW...
except we'll toast the glory days with bottles of Jergens.
TV
Turmoil
" Revolving
door in small news markets part of the biz
Bozo
Dead
" Larry
Harmon, longtime Bozo the Clown, dead at 83
How To Be A Vee-Jay
"Who
will be easier to transition into this new VJ mode?
Reporters or photogs?
Train a person to write a basic TV story...or train a person to
shoot and edit a TV story?
Photogs with any kind of writing aptitude will win this contest.
And I can sense it. Reporters in general are unnerved by this
new development. They see how this may pan out and a lot of them
are feeling a tad insecure about the prospect, knowing that they
have no intention or desire to learn how to shoot and edit news."
MORE....
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Keeping the Passion Alive
From
time to time it's good to re-connect with the basics that make
for great visual storytelling in TV news. So here are a list
of standard procedures from photog Corky Scholl on how to
make your stories stand out from the pack. More...
Breaking
in the new reporter in most TV newsrooms usually involves nothing
more than handing them their assignment ( the crime de jour usually)
and sending them to the garage in search of a van. But there's
gotta be a better way than this sink or swim scenario.
As this
report notes..."a newsroom that invests a little time
early on to help new hires learn their way around will reap rewards
more quickly in the form of better and more original stories."
Here's a
how-to on breaking in the new guy
the RIGHT way. MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
New Gadgets
Everybody
likes new gadgets...right? Most TV news photogs are gadget freaks
to some degree. So here for your perusal are just a few of the
new devices
making their debuts.
Get a load of the new developments in 3-D TV (without the funny
glasses), the latest in ultra-high definition TV, a new HD flash-based
camcorder from Sony, and the coolest new shockproof mini-cam to
stick on a helmet or cycle for catching that POV stuff on a wild
ride. MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
MAKING NEWS: Savannah Style...
Here
from Nick Davis Productions is the 1st episode of the 2nd season
of "Making News"...an in-depth look at the behind-the-scenes
action at a local TV news operation.
You might remember the first season of this series that followed
the drama of a TV news station in Midland, Texas.
Now they've moved on to Savannah, Georgia.
In Episode 1, we meet the team of WJCL-TV, possibly the lowest-rated
ABC affiliate in the country. Follow the anchors and reporters
as they launch a campaign to get a foothold in their community.
Even
more layoff buzz around the industry.
It looks like we're in the beginning stages of a paradigm shift.
Some are predicting that "the local TV news formula of using
star anchors to attract viewers may be headed for the ash heap."
With "more emphasis on delivering the news by means other
than traditional broadcasts and less on presentation by highly-paid
anchors and reporters."
I can't help but see opportunities here for those of us who are
open to expanding our skill sets and thus becoming more valuable
to a TV operation. MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Antennas -Back to the Future
The
fact is that there are still many unresolved issues with DTV reception
problems with indoor antennas. A lot of people are either
going to be headed to their roof to affix one, or perhaps just
give up and call their local cable provider. MORE...
In
the field I sometimes use my little Casio 2.5" TV as a monitor
during live shots and such. As of February of course, that comes
to an end.
A whole lotta little TV's like this one are going to end up as
paperweights soon enough.
In fact I think most people, if they don't have cable or satellite
TV, won't even bother getting new tuners for TV sets up to 19"
or so. The landfills are going to be bursting with discarded TV's.
Seems a shame to deep six a perfectly fine TV just to fulfill
the FCC's demand to go digital.
Eventually digital TV tuners will be integrated into most cell
phones I imagine. The tuners to allow it are getting smaller
and smaller.
The Asuka Corp. out of Taiwan has come up with what may be the
smallest
digital TV up to now. A 3" screen that won't work in the U.S.
Go figure.
So until those cell phones can receive the digital TV signal,
we TV guys in the field have no way to monitor our picture away
from the truck. And my little Casio was so sweet.
Damn the FCC.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
The "Mo-Jo" vs. The "Vee-Jay"
What
we in the TV news industry are calling the "one-man-band', or
"vee-Jay" (video journalist), the newspaper industry seems to
like the label "mojo" or mobile journalist.
The difference: very little.
As newspapers
struggle to survive in a new world of instant access, they seem
to be merely copying what the TV news folks have been doing for
decades.
Mojos are
being equipped with video cameras and laptops and sent out the
door to create news stories. That sure sounds familiar to me.
Instead of producing news for a daily paper, they are turning
stories for their web sites. Also just like TV stations.
Old newspaper
types of course, look down their noses at this type of news coverage.
Is it merely a fad they ask.
Many feel
that being out of the newsroom for extended periods means less
face-to-face discussion with editors and colleagues. Communication
can get muddled or missed. That argument to me seems to be a reach.
These mobile journos have cell phones, right?
Either way,
the bottom line is that TV stations and newspapers are morphing
into using the same tools to capture the news. These two media
entities in the future will compete for patrons in much the same
way.
In fact,
with the inherent gravitas that many newspapers have garnered,
they could win the battle of delivering news seekers what they
want.
If your major daily newspaper offered solid local video news coverage
along with its established print expertise on its web site, would
you even need to visit a TV station website?
Local TV
news operations need to recognize and address the fact that they
are now also in competition with the local newspaper for video
news content.
And newspapers need to realize that the world of print journalism
is no longer enough for the next generation of news seekers.
Truth is
that in many ways it is a race.
For the winner: continued survival in an age of immediate gratification. MORE...
"How
many of you producers and reporters are producing content for
another medium? This report says
the number's almost 70%. Although almost half of you say you need
more training to do it better.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Top 10 Angry On-Camera Meltdowns
If
you haven't seen this yet, you've got to take a look at this video.
Anchors, hosts, weatherman and more all letting their anger get
the best of them on-air. What viewers don't really know is...this
stuff happens all the time. Behind the scenes we are often tired,
angry and loose-lipped.
I'd warn
you about the language in this video, but I'm pretty sure your
boss is busy cussing out the guy on the assignment desk right
now, so go ahead and play this.
Remember
the big shift that's supposed to happen with TV ENG microwave
transmisions?
Sprint Nextel
was buying up all that "live shot" spectrum space and compensating
TV stations with new digital transmission and reception gear.
It's called
the "2 GHz relocation".
Every TV
station has to inventory its equipment, present a shopping list
to Sprint, have it verified by a third-party, receive the hardware,
test to make sure there is no interference and turn the whole
thing around literally overnight.
Quite a set
of demands.
And oh yeah,
this all has to happen by Sept. 30th of this year!
Some TV stations
like KTVK in Phoenix have already completed the turnaround. Yet,
as of today, the vast majority of TV stations with call letters
haven't received a single piece of new equipment. Much of it is
still sitting in a warehouse.
Sprint has
asked for an additional 29 months to make it happen. The FCC has
granted them 18
months.
What's the
holdup?
Well, if
you said LAWYERS...you win a Stewie doll.
In the great
clamor to make all of this happen, nobody figured out who was
going to pay the taxes on this stuff.
Read more about it here.
In
the meantime, suppliers are marketing gear outside of the relocation
process. Portable, compact microwave systems that can be carried
in a regular-size auto and set up on the fly for breaking-news
events are now hot items. These new wireless transmitters mount
on the back of a camera and are good for a short enough distance
to make them really valuable in downtown situations with a lot
of buildings.
"You grab one of the news cars, throw it in the back seat,
run to the story, and set up and go.”
So
what's ahead for editing systems this year? A couple of
trends are emerging as was seen at NAB.
Lots of new formats, plenty of horsepower, and even stereoscopic
3D entries.
Editors today
are going to have to adapt and move quickly to keep pace with
a demanding market. MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Sony's New TV Dropping Jaws
It
costs too much. The screen is too small. But this new TV from
Sony is about to blow all the others out of the water.
The new OLED
technology is providing such incredibly lifelike images that you
need to catch your breath.
Name a drawback of plasma or LED screens and this TV overcomes
it. But at only 11" across and a price of $2500, it's not yet
ready for prime time.
Yet, the
jaw-dropping picture quality is about to set a new standard for
high-end TV's. Oh yeah...and it's only 3mm thick. MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Finding and Keeping Good Assignment Editors
"Show
me a good assignment desk, and I'll show you a winning newsroom,"
says Joseph Coscia, former news director at KDKA-TV in Pittsburgh
and once an assignment editor at New York's WABC-TV.
So where
do you find good assignment editors and how do you keep them?
MORE...
I
thought in opening up another messageboard
that I would try to entice students in colleges, universities
and high schools to ask questions here and get them answered by
folks who are now working in the media.
Of course
the board is open to any and all posters on any subject, but I
realize that there are other more established forums for media
kvetching. Hopefully with some prodding, I can find students with
legitimate questions about TV journalism that will be answered
here.
If not...well
then start kvetching.
Registration is quick and painless so please take 15 secs and
join
up.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Share the Wealth
I
have a good friend who is a production freelancer who has asked
me many times: "Why do all of the TV stations have cameras at
a press conference, shooting the exact same thing, wasting resources
on duplicating an event, when one camera's video is all you need?"
"Why
don't your bosses work out a pool arrangement for stuff like that?"
I start talking
about "competition" and "getting an edge" and he wisely says:
"At a news conference!!"
Well...it
looks like some news bosses in Philadelphia are taking my friend's
advice. The NBC and Fox affiliates there are working on an arrangement
to share video at just such events. The costs of doing business
may make this kind of working agreement more of a reality in news
markets everywhere. And ya know what?....it makes sense to me. MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
The Battle for "Smallest HD Camcorder"
Yes...the
battle of "smallest" HD camcorders has begun. But in
this case, smallest also means "most compromised". You're
going to get a debatedly great video picture with these new camcorders.
But you'll also give up wide angles, need a powerful computer
to deal with their new capture format, and not even bother if
you own a Mac.
With these
cams, smaller isn't necessarily better. But the HD camcorder war
is only just now heating up. MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Avoiding the "Instant"
A
tragic
accident in Maine has focused attention on TV live trucks
as one was involved in a fatal collision this week
It looks like the TV truck was not at fault as the other vehicle
crossed the center line and collided with the truck.
We can only pray for the poor young woman who lost her life and
for the occupant of the truck to quickly recover. Nothing you
can do to prevent something like this. Fate put those folks in
that position.
But
it does offer up an opportunity to mention the safety procedures
to be used by TV live truck operators.
Mark Bell is the head honcho for live truck safety. Check out
his site at www.engsafety.com.
Of course, the main thrust of Mark's site is to not throw that
mast up in the wrong circumstances, but driving issues are also
addressed.
At my station
lately, there has been a much greater emphasis placed on safety
procedures. That may be true at many stations across the country
as owners look to lessen the problems that accidents create. Hopefully
you will take the time to review the safety procedures where you
work and take them to heart. As we know all too well, your life
can be taken in an instant. Avoiding that"instant" may be the
most important thing we will ever do.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Transferring Old VideoTapes To DVD
Fortunately,
high prices and intimidating learning curves have been replaced
by cost-effective, user-friendly editing solutions.
Features previously available to professional editors only are
now in the hands of the everyday consumer.
Even with the most basic video-editing software and hardware,
you can convert analog tapes to a variety of digital formats easily,
including DVD. MORE...
LiveNewsCams.com
" "...The
concept is simple, let people watch news as it happens anywhere
in the world…raw, unedited on your computer at work or home."
In
honor of the new baseball season, and the Baltimore Orioles being
off to the best start in all the major leagues...(you heard right
Pancho), here for your enjoyment is the BEST
baseball blooper you will EVER see.
In my town...this video is a hometown staple. It is best watched
either before, during or after the consumption of a crabcake and
the downing of a Natty Boh.
Introducing...the indomitable...the unconquerable...the unstoppable,
the one...the only...the EARL of Baltimore...EARL
WEAVER!
(WARNING: You are about to hear an uncensored version
of a no-holds-barred, unrestained, full-tilt Weaverfest. Plan
accordingly.)
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
The New Toys Your Bosses Want
Among
the throngs at the National Association of Broadcasters convention
April 11-17 in Las Vegas will be the top engineers for major broadcast
groups.
All
come with slightly different agendas and some with radically different
timetables. All of them, however, will have their minds on one
date for certain: Feb. 17, 2009, the last day broadcasters will
be allowed to transmit an analog signal.
Here’s a look at how six of the
major broadcast groups will spend their time on the NAB floor
making final plans for the digital transition.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
The Whole She-Bang!
ONE-MAN-BANDS!!
There's a furious debate going on in TV journalism right now over
the use of one-man-bands, the solo video journalist who shoots,
writes, and edits his own news story.
Stephan Warley at tvspy.com has just written an article in "Defense
of Video Journalists", noting that "local broadcasters will
have to produce video content for multiple platforms: broadcast,
web, cell phones, and video on demand. Once again, the VJ model
is much better suited to distributing unique content to multiple
platforms."
The readers of B-Roll. net are most assuredly aware of Michael
Rosenblum's focus on turning TV newsrooms into "VJ" havens.
Stations like KRON have gone totally VJ.
But as of now ,completely shifting to that format seems risky
to me. Some stations using it have
not succeeded.
Still, the OMB option is proliferating.
Newspaper reporters are being
trained to gather video and assemble stories for their websites.
Awards
are now being specifically given to OMB journalists.
I know a lot of good TV news photogs want this thing to just
go away.
But fellas....it's not.
And like it or not, YOU may be asked to do it.
Let's face it, in the near future, either reporters are gonna
learn how to shoot and edit, or photogs are gonna learn how to
write and assemble.
I say....start doing some writing now.
Look at the packages you are doing and give it a go at writing
it yourself. You can create your own future if you have the desire.
Because the OMB model WILL become an accepted adjunct in the TV
newsrooms of the future.
It is economically smart for station owners and can create entirely
new levels of developing stories if done well.
I
know there are a slew of older photogs who want no part of this.
And the truth is, this thing is not going to happen overnight.
Tomorrow you will still be out there in the van cranking
out another story with another reporter. Next year you will still be in that van cranking out that
story. (That reporter will have already lost his job as usual.)
But five years from now? It's looking different.
Yep...technology is forcing the issue. And bottom line...you
can't fight the technology.
You old guys...just hang on and pray. You'll probably eke out
of the TV news business as the last generation of the old style.
("Yep...we used to have lunch and a smoke while the reporter
logged and wrote.")
You new guys...brush up on your writing skills.
ALL you guys are due a beer or two for just surviving in a new
landscape being forced on us.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Layoffs Everywhere!
Okay...this
layoff thing is starting to get serious. All over the country
TV stations are laying-off personnel left and right.
CBS is doing most of the hacking. Just this week, their are layoffs
in Chicago,New
York,Boston,San
Francisco and Pittsburgh.
Also Denver
and Sacremento.
For the most part, it looks like the unlucky personnel are the
higher-paid talent...anchors and reporters. Affirming the old
adage: "Never be the highest paid person at the TV station." But
producers and writers are also getting the boot.
As of now, it looks like news photographers have escaped the downsizing.
Not all photogs of course, but the union contracts at larger stations
and the lower salaries at the smaller stations have surely helped
keep us employed. For once, it's a good thing to be paid so poorly.
A'int that some sh-t.?
The
new media paradigm for TV news will answer this question:
What person
will acquire the video?
I think it
will still be several years before the traditional
reporter-photog news crew
will be noticed to be diminishing.
Soon though, people, even big shots, will become comfortable with
the face behind a smaller camera, asking all the questions.
One person
will acquire the video .All of it....including conducting interviews.
If he/she can write the story as well...
instant anchor pack.
Economic realities may force stations to have fewer reporters
and more anchor-read packages to feed the beast.
And if said
video acquirer still wants to be 'on TV'?
What the hell...shoot your standups.
If, in your
position right now...you are a video acquirer...
you...my
friend
just moved
to the front lines.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
After Show Meetings. Do You Have Them?
Do
you have after-show meetings for your local news broadcasts?
If you do,
this article says you probably have
good ratings at your station. A survey found that there was a
"significant relationship' between whether producers and
directors held a show meeting and how they assessed each other’s
competence."
And there's
this: "the key finding is that not only do producers and
directors not communicate well, they don’t even communicate minimally
although, as she rightfully notes, “One cannot succeed without
the other’s participation and involvement.”
What's
the most remarkable moment you've ever witnessed on live TV?
Man on the moon?...
If you watched,
your pride in America was great that day.
And all-in all probably #1.
But... For me it was also November 1963.
I was a kid watching live TV when Jack Ruby shot Lee Harvey Oswald.
It was unbelievable...I remember thinking "did I really just see
that?" Completely stunning in its impact.
Even as a grade-schooler I thought: "How could he do it? And so
easily.
The grownups around here are 'bout to freak."
And the man behind the mic was Ike
Pappas of CBS, who died this week.
That moment
of history marks a timeline for me, when I realized the god-awful
power of television in full display,
and Ike Pappas
made it real for me.
It was a scary time.
Thank God
the Beatles arrived in Feb. 1964.
They made the world a happier place.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Headlines
On
the Go The
outlook for mobile TV news... the broadcast industry hopes
to bring viewers back by taking its show on the road.
This
Week's Highlights
At
ESPN, Play-by-Play Goes Virtual
" "the
cable powerhouse is looking to extend its domain in virtual
worlds by merging video game graphics with real-life sports
anchors."
The Newspapers' Final Voyage
The
reality is now approaching that sooner rather than later, all
newspapers will move to online access only.
Some have suggested this could happen quickly once the dominos
start falling.
Maybe as soon as 2012.
This is going
to really shake things up when newspapers finally see that there
is no longer a profit in delivering hard copy papers to their
readers.
The
death of the newspaper will be a sorry sight for a couple of generations
that have grown up dirtying our fingers with newsprint ink.
Trouble is,
newspapers can't figure out a proper business model online either.
They're failing at both ends right now. Talk about a squeeze play.
Internet news readers have demanded that their news info be made
available for free, and free don't pay no
reporter salaries.
So newspapers are being forced into a web-based, advertiser-only
revenue vein, that can't carry the weight needed to fund a daily
newsgathering operation.
Honestly,
is there a single newspaper in the country that has a profitable
enough website to carry their whole operation?
I doubt
it.
To survive, papers are going to have to go super local. Mostly
with sports I suspect. That's another reason why they are branching
out into local news video. The local news website (whether print, TV, or radio)
that corners the market and can become a one-stop shop for all
your local print and video needs, may be the sole market survivor
in the battle to attract and retain local news enthusiasts.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Teenager TV
Local
TV stations which are putting on five, six or more hours of TV
news everyday are often struggling to find enough viable content
to feed an ever-hungry beast.
Guess who might be able to help?
If you said
high school teenagers...
go to the head of the class.
"Videos
written and edited by high school students could become a reason
for them to watch the news—and a way for local TV news operations
to recruit younger viewers." MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
And now it's "All-Platform Journalist"
Alright...enough
already. We gotta settle on a term for this new-fangled journalist
of the future. We've had: digital journalist, one-man-band, multi-media
journalist, new media journalist...
and now
CNN gets into the mess with creating one-person bureaus manned
by "all-platform journalists". CNN now becomes the latest media
outlet to 'expand
by downsizing'. You gotta love the marketing chutzpah.
Let
an all-platformer give you a look at her daily
routine here.
In this, the reporter is female. But I noted in her daily rundown
that at no time did she say: "grabbed my gear and went and shot
interviews and B-roll."
Yes there are two types of "all-platform journalists". One includes
shooting video and one does not. One puts together a TV news story
and one basically puts together a web story. Will it all soon
be combined? I'm not sure it's possible to do what this young
journalist is doing at CNN...AND shoot a video story in the same
day. In fact...it's impossible.
I've
noticed that most of the journalists portrayed in the media who
are shooting. writing, and editing TV stories are
male. Not to say it isn't being done by some hard-working
females out there, because I've run into a few at small-market
stations who are working their butts off.
But
I still contend that in general, the women who now have jobs as
TV reporters at their respective stations...for the most part
want no part of becoming an "all-platform journalist." Given the
ultimatum, I still believe many of them, not all, would look for
another job.
So
will the APJ become a male stronghold in the world of TV news?
Or will the journalism students now entering the business, male
AND female realize that in order to succeed, they're gonna have
to start humpin' some gear and getting their hands dirty? As I've
said before...all of this won't happen overnight. But the more
TV stations look at this as a way of cutting costs...the bigger
chance your owner will do it too.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
If the Studio's Rockin'...Don't Bother Knockin'
Look...I
realize that earthquakes are serious business.But what is it with
TV news anchors hiding under the desk when this happens to them
while they are on air.
Here's an anchor, not only ducking under, but exhorting "you
camera people" to come join him under there. First he says:
" Stay calm" as if his anchorman persona gives him some
kind of 'I'm the captain here' status. His very next words after
"stay calm" are "UNDER THE DESK!"
This guys not talking to "you camera people", he's talking
to himself, trying to not look like the fraidy-cat he appears.
I know...earthquakes...serious...got
it.
But c'mon...this
guy's just silly.
Tim Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Decision
2008
Are You Ready For "Pitvertising"
Here’s
a new word that might be invading your vernacular in the near
future if you happen to be a frequent mass-transit commuter. Pitvertising.
That’s right.
Ads directly from the deep caverns of your fellow passengers’
armpits.
It might
sound sort of creepy and unpractical, but think of the most common
sight on a crowded subway car. Tons and tons of sweaty armpits,
attached to those very same fellow passengers who are reaching
for the handy support hanger.
And what better way is there to utilize such a medium than by
advertising, oops, we mean “pitvertising” a brand of deodorant?
Deodorant company Right Guard recently sent out a flock of pitvertisers
out into the wilds of London to test out their new form of media.
And while it might not be playing something entertaining like
The Best of Monty Python, at least it’s better than the choice
of entertainment you usually have, which usually consists of glancing
between the same poster ad over and over again or staring into
the depths of a non-displayed armpit.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Is The Rug Being Pulled Out?
Here's
more news on something I've been
alerting you to for a while now. Major newspapers are getting
into the video business big-time and some of them are starting
to grasp the fact that if they do it well, they could pull the
rug out from under TV station websites and become a one-stop-shop
for all your print AND video needs.
Check out
this article on what newpapers are
doing and once again make sure you watch the videos below from
the Washington Post and the Newark Star-Ledger. Also read
how the downsizing of the newspaper industry might make for some
very long morning meetings in the TV newsroom. And how some are
pondering
the possibility of more TV-newspaper mergers.
It's all
disparaging news for local TV news operations, particularly for
the struggling ones. But this IS the future my friends. The more
you know what's coming, the more you will be prepared to take
advantage of it.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Is Your Job Headed to the Newspaper?
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
The Michael Phelps Show
Well...here
it comes. Get ready for the biggest hi-tech TV
extravaganza in the history of the ole boob tube. NBC presents
the 2008 Summer Olympics.
And of course, they've turned on the faucet of dollars to equip
themselves with all the best and brightest state-of-the-art HD
hardware to showcase the 2 week affair, including DiveCam, and
UnderwaterCam and other assorted POV cams that should give viewers
a full assortment of angles and replays to highlight
all the action.
In
a side note...here in Baltimore we know that the greatest swimmer
in the world will no doubt dominate these games. Michael Phelps
grew up here and is returning here to live and work after the
games. With he and Baltimore's female sensation Katie Hoff, the
North Baltimore
Aquatic Club's finest are about to make history. Best of luck
to Michael and Katie!!
Now
that it's weather for wearing shorts, I'm wearing shorts.
I know that photogs wearing shorts can often be pretty unsightly
depending on the legs of said shorts-wearer.
And I've seen every type of photog leg from bulldozer brawny to
vericose vein-ey.
Me...my legs are so skinny that one photog used to joke: "are
those your legs or are you riding a chicken?".
Anyhow...
Since my
knees are now available for inspection, the other day my daughter
said: "Dad...what's that on your knee?"
I'm like: "What?"
She says: "that thing on your knee?".
So in checking this out and I come to realize something I had
never noticed before.
I have callouses on my knees!
Worn,
old scaley patches of roughed up knee-skin.
I'm thinking...jeez I've been shooting news so long, getting down
on my knees for that oh-so artistic low-angle award-winning, god
I am so good video, that I have developed callouses on my KNEES!
I'd like
to know exactly when this happened so I can warn my fellow photogs
at what point in their career they can expect to have knees like
that of a strawberry farmer.
But I think this thing just kinda creeps up on you.
And now I have to live with not only bony kneecaps...but bony
kneecaps covered in what looks like low-grade sandpaper.
So go ahead
guys...check your knees right now.
You old-timers will discover you have well-worn callouses that
no amount of skin lotion and vigorous rubbing will ever make smooth
again.
And you young guys...if those patches of rubbed and scrubbed skin
aren't there yet...just know that your time will come.
Just another
visible reminder to one day show the grandkids.
"Yep...I worked so hard getting those hard-to-get angles that
my knees will forever bear the scars of my dedication and desire
to make my TV news stories great."
And at the
old-photogs home we'll all sit around and compare our battle scars.
Kinda like a night at the VFW...
except we'll toast the glory days with bottles of Jergens.
TV
Turmoil
" Revolving
door in small news markets part of the biz
Bozo
Dead
" Larry
Harmon, longtime Bozo the Clown, dead at 83
How To Be A Vee-Jay
"Who
will be easier to transition into this new VJ mode?
Reporters or photogs?
Train a person to write a basic TV story...or train a person to
shoot and edit a TV story?
Photogs with any kind of writing aptitude will win this contest.
And I can sense it. Reporters in general are unnerved by this
new development. They see how this may pan out and a lot of them
are feeling a tad insecure about the prospect, knowing that they
have no intention or desire to learn how to shoot and edit news."
MORE....
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Keeping the Passion Alive
From
time to time it's good to re-connect with the basics that make
for great visual storytelling in TV news. So here are a list
of standard procedures from photog Corky Scholl on how to
make your stories stand out from the pack. More...
Breaking
in the new reporter in most TV newsrooms usually involves nothing
more than handing them their assignment ( the crime de jour usually)
and sending them to the garage in search of a van. But there's
gotta be a better way than this sink or swim scenario.
As this
report notes..."a newsroom that invests a little time
early on to help new hires learn their way around will reap rewards
more quickly in the form of better and more original stories."
Here's a
how-to on breaking in the new guy
the RIGHT way. MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
New Gadgets
Everybody
likes new gadgets...right? Most TV news photogs are gadget freaks
to some degree. So here for your perusal are just a few of the
new devices
making their debuts.
Get a load of the new developments in 3-D TV (without the funny
glasses), the latest in ultra-high definition TV, a new HD flash-based
camcorder from Sony, and the coolest new shockproof mini-cam to
stick on a helmet or cycle for catching that POV stuff on a wild
ride. MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
MAKING NEWS: Savannah Style...
Here
from Nick Davis Productions is the 1st episode of the 2nd season
of "Making News"...an in-depth look at the behind-the-scenes
action at a local TV news operation.
You might remember the first season of this series that followed
the drama of a TV news station in Midland, Texas.
Now they've moved on to Savannah, Georgia.
In Episode 1, we meet the team of WJCL-TV, possibly the lowest-rated
ABC affiliate in the country. Follow the anchors and reporters
as they launch a campaign to get a foothold in their community.
Even
more layoff buzz around the industry.
It looks like we're in the beginning stages of a paradigm shift.
Some are predicting that "the local TV news formula of using
star anchors to attract viewers may be headed for the ash heap."
With "more emphasis on delivering the news by means other
than traditional broadcasts and less on presentation by highly-paid
anchors and reporters."
I can't help but see opportunities here for those of us who are
open to expanding our skill sets and thus becoming more valuable
to a TV operation. MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Antennas -Back to the Future
The
fact is that there are still many unresolved issues with DTV reception
problems with indoor antennas. A lot of people are either
going to be headed to their roof to affix one, or perhaps just
give up and call their local cable provider. MORE...
In
the field I sometimes use my little Casio 2.5" TV as a monitor
during live shots and such. As of February of course, that comes
to an end.
A whole lotta little TV's like this one are going to end up as
paperweights soon enough.
In fact I think most people, if they don't have cable or satellite
TV, won't even bother getting new tuners for TV sets up to 19"
or so. The landfills are going to be bursting with discarded TV's.
Seems a shame to deep six a perfectly fine TV just to fulfill
the FCC's demand to go digital.
Eventually digital TV tuners will be integrated into most cell
phones I imagine. The tuners to allow it are getting smaller
and smaller.
The Asuka Corp. out of Taiwan has come up with what may be the
smallest
digital TV up to now. A 3" screen that won't work in the U.S.
Go figure.
So until those cell phones can receive the digital TV signal,
we TV guys in the field have no way to monitor our picture away
from the truck. And my little Casio was so sweet.
Damn the FCC.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
The "Mo-Jo" vs. The "Vee-Jay"
What
we in the TV news industry are calling the "one-man-band', or
"vee-Jay" (video journalist), the newspaper industry seems to
like the label "mojo" or mobile journalist.
The difference: very little.
As newspapers
struggle to survive in a new world of instant access, they seem
to be merely copying what the TV news folks have been doing for
decades.
Mojos are
being equipped with video cameras and laptops and sent out the
door to create news stories. That sure sounds familiar to me.
Instead of producing news for a daily paper, they are turning
stories for their web sites. Also just like TV stations.
Old newspaper
types of course, look down their noses at this type of news coverage.
Is it merely a fad they ask.
Many feel
that being out of the newsroom for extended periods means less
face-to-face discussion with editors and colleagues. Communication
can get muddled or missed. That argument to me seems to be a reach.
These mobile journos have cell phones, right?
Either way,
the bottom line is that TV stations and newspapers are morphing
into using the same tools to capture the news. These two media
entities in the future will compete for patrons in much the same
way.
In fact,
with the inherent gravitas that many newspapers have garnered,
they could win the battle of delivering news seekers what they
want.
If your major daily newspaper offered solid local video news coverage
along with its established print expertise on its web site, would
you even need to visit a TV station website?
Local TV
news operations need to recognize and address the fact that they
are now also in competition with the local newspaper for video
news content.
And newspapers need to realize that the world of print journalism
is no longer enough for the next generation of news seekers.
Truth is
that in many ways it is a race.
For the winner: continued survival in an age of immediate gratification. MORE...
"How
many of you producers and reporters are producing content for
another medium? This report says
the number's almost 70%. Although almost half of you say you need
more training to do it better.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Top 10 Angry On-Camera Meltdowns
If
you haven't seen this yet, you've got to take a look at this video.
Anchors, hosts, weatherman and more all letting their anger get
the best of them on-air. What viewers don't really know is...this
stuff happens all the time. Behind the scenes we are often tired,
angry and loose-lipped.
I'd warn
you about the language in this video, but I'm pretty sure your
boss is busy cussing out the guy on the assignment desk right
now, so go ahead and play this.
Remember
the big shift that's supposed to happen with TV ENG microwave
transmisions?
Sprint Nextel
was buying up all that "live shot" spectrum space and compensating
TV stations with new digital transmission and reception gear.
It's called
the "2 GHz relocation".
Every TV
station has to inventory its equipment, present a shopping list
to Sprint, have it verified by a third-party, receive the hardware,
test to make sure there is no interference and turn the whole
thing around literally overnight.
Quite a set
of demands.
And oh yeah,
this all has to happen by Sept. 30th of this year!
Some TV stations
like KTVK in Phoenix have already completed the turnaround. Yet,
as of today, the vast majority of TV stations with call letters
haven't received a single piece of new equipment. Much of it is
still sitting in a warehouse.
Sprint has
asked for an additional 29 months to make it happen. The FCC has
granted them 18
months.
What's the
holdup?
Well, if
you said LAWYERS...you win a Stewie doll.
In the great
clamor to make all of this happen, nobody figured out who was
going to pay the taxes on this stuff.
Read more about it here.
In
the meantime, suppliers are marketing gear outside of the relocation
process. Portable, compact microwave systems that can be carried
in a regular-size auto and set up on the fly for breaking-news
events are now hot items. These new wireless transmitters mount
on the back of a camera and are good for a short enough distance
to make them really valuable in downtown situations with a lot
of buildings.
"You grab one of the news cars, throw it in the back seat,
run to the story, and set up and go.”
So
what's ahead for editing systems this year? A couple of
trends are emerging as was seen at NAB.
Lots of new formats, plenty of horsepower, and even stereoscopic
3D entries.
Editors today
are going to have to adapt and move quickly to keep pace with
a demanding market. MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Sony's New TV Dropping Jaws
It
costs too much. The screen is too small. But this new TV from
Sony is about to blow all the others out of the water.
The new OLED
technology is providing such incredibly lifelike images that you
need to catch your breath.
Name a drawback of plasma or LED screens and this TV overcomes
it. But at only 11" across and a price of $2500, it's not yet
ready for prime time.
Yet, the
jaw-dropping picture quality is about to set a new standard for
high-end TV's. Oh yeah...and it's only 3mm thick. MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Finding and Keeping Good Assignment Editors
"Show
me a good assignment desk, and I'll show you a winning newsroom,"
says Joseph Coscia, former news director at KDKA-TV in Pittsburgh
and once an assignment editor at New York's WABC-TV.
So where
do you find good assignment editors and how do you keep them?
MORE...
I
thought in opening up another messageboard
that I would try to entice students in colleges, universities
and high schools to ask questions here and get them answered by
folks who are now working in the media.
Of course
the board is open to any and all posters on any subject, but I
realize that there are other more established forums for media
kvetching. Hopefully with some prodding, I can find students with
legitimate questions about TV journalism that will be answered
here.
If not...well
then start kvetching.
Registration is quick and painless so please take 15 secs and
join
up.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Share the Wealth
I
have a good friend who is a production freelancer who has asked
me many times: "Why do all of the TV stations have cameras at
a press conference, shooting the exact same thing, wasting resources
on duplicating an event, when one camera's video is all you need?"
"Why
don't your bosses work out a pool arrangement for stuff like that?"
I start talking
about "competition" and "getting an edge" and he wisely says:
"At a news conference!!"
Well...it
looks like some news bosses in Philadelphia are taking my friend's
advice. The NBC and Fox affiliates there are working on an arrangement
to share video at just such events. The costs of doing business
may make this kind of working agreement more of a reality in news
markets everywhere. And ya know what?....it makes sense to me. MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
The Battle for "Smallest HD Camcorder"
Yes...the
battle of "smallest" HD camcorders has begun. But in
this case, smallest also means "most compromised". You're
going to get a debatedly great video picture with these new camcorders.
But you'll also give up wide angles, need a powerful computer
to deal with their new capture format, and not even bother if
you own a Mac.
With these
cams, smaller isn't necessarily better. But the HD camcorder war
is only just now heating up. MORE...
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Avoiding the "Instant"
A
tragic
accident in Maine has focused attention on TV live trucks
as one was involved in a fatal collision this week
It looks like the TV truck was not at fault as the other vehicle
crossed the center line and collided with the truck.
We can only pray for the poor young woman who lost her life and
for the occupant of the truck to quickly recover. Nothing you
can do to prevent something like this. Fate put those folks in
that position.
But
it does offer up an opportunity to mention the safety procedures
to be used by TV live truck operators.
Mark Bell is the head honcho for live truck safety. Check out
his site at www.engsafety.com.
Of course, the main thrust of Mark's site is to not throw that
mast up in the wrong circumstances, but driving issues are also
addressed.
At my station
lately, there has been a much greater emphasis placed on safety
procedures. That may be true at many stations across the country
as owners look to lessen the problems that accidents create. Hopefully
you will take the time to review the safety procedures where you
work and take them to heart. As we know all too well, your life
can be taken in an instant. Avoiding that"instant" may be the
most important thing we will ever do.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Transferring Old VideoTapes To DVD
Fortunately,
high prices and intimidating learning curves have been replaced
by cost-effective, user-friendly editing solutions.
Features previously available to professional editors only are
now in the hands of the everyday consumer.
Even with the most basic video-editing software and hardware,
you can convert analog tapes to a variety of digital formats easily,
including DVD. MORE...
LiveNewsCams.com
" "...The
concept is simple, let people watch news as it happens anywhere
in the world…raw, unedited on your computer at work or home."
In
honor of the new baseball season, and the Baltimore Orioles being
off to the best start in all the major leagues...(you heard right
Pancho), here for your enjoyment is the BEST
baseball blooper you will EVER see.
In my town...this video is a hometown staple. It is best watched
either before, during or after the consumption of a crabcake and
the downing of a Natty Boh.
Introducing...the indomitable...the unconquerable...the unstoppable,
the one...the only...the EARL of Baltimore...EARL
WEAVER!
(WARNING: You are about to hear an uncensored version
of a no-holds-barred, unrestained, full-tilt Weaverfest. Plan
accordingly.)
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
The New Toys Your Bosses Want
Among
the throngs at the National Association of Broadcasters convention
April 11-17 in Las Vegas will be the top engineers for major broadcast
groups.
All
come with slightly different agendas and some with radically different
timetables. All of them, however, will have their minds on one
date for certain: Feb. 17, 2009, the last day broadcasters will
be allowed to transmit an analog signal.
Here’s a look at how six of the
major broadcast groups will spend their time on the NAB floor
making final plans for the digital transition.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
The Whole She-Bang!
ONE-MAN-BANDS!!
There's a furious debate going on in TV journalism right now over
the use of one-man-bands, the solo video journalist who shoots,
writes, and edits his own news story.
Stephan Warley at tvspy.com has just written an article in "Defense
of Video Journalists", noting that "local broadcasters will
have to produce video content for multiple platforms: broadcast,
web, cell phones, and video on demand. Once again, the VJ model
is much better suited to distributing unique content to multiple
platforms."
The readers of B-Roll. net are most assuredly aware of Michael
Rosenblum's focus on turning TV newsrooms into "VJ" havens.
Stations like KRON have gone totally VJ.
But as of now ,completely shifting to that format seems risky
to me. Some stations using it have
not succeeded.
Still, the OMB option is proliferating.
Newspaper reporters are being
trained to gather video and assemble stories for their websites.
Awards
are now being specifically given to OMB journalists.
I know a lot of good TV news photogs want this thing to just
go away.
But fellas....it's not.
And like it or not, YOU may be asked to do it.
Let's face it, in the near future, either reporters are gonna
learn how to shoot and edit, or photogs are gonna learn how to
write and assemble.
I say....start doing some writing now.
Look at the packages you are doing and give it a go at writing
it yourself. You can create your own future if you have the desire.
Because the OMB model WILL become an accepted adjunct in the TV
newsrooms of the future.
It is economically smart for station owners and can create entirely
new levels of developing stories if done well.
I
know there are a slew of older photogs who want no part of this.
And the truth is, this thing is not going to happen overnight.
Tomorrow you will still be out there in the van cranking
out another story with another reporter. Next year you will still be in that van cranking out that
story. (That reporter will have already lost his job as usual.)
But five years from now? It's looking different.
Yep...technology is forcing the issue. And bottom line...you
can't fight the technology.
You old guys...just hang on and pray. You'll probably eke out
of the TV news business as the last generation of the old style.
("Yep...we used to have lunch and a smoke while the reporter
logged and wrote.")
You new guys...brush up on your writing skills.
ALL you guys are due a beer or two for just surviving in a new
landscape being forced on us.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Layoffs Everywhere!
Okay...this
layoff thing is starting to get serious. All over the country
TV stations are laying-off personnel left and right.
CBS is doing most of the hacking. Just this week, their are layoffs
in Chicago,New
York,Boston,San
Francisco and Pittsburgh.
Also Denver
and Sacremento.
For the most part, it looks like the unlucky personnel are the
higher-paid talent...anchors and reporters. Affirming the old
adage: "Never be the highest paid person at the TV station." But
producers and writers are also getting the boot.
As of now, it looks like news photographers have escaped the downsizing.
Not all photogs of course, but the union contracts at larger stations
and the lower salaries at the smaller stations have surely helped
keep us employed. For once, it's a good thing to be paid so poorly.
A'int that some sh-t.?
Here's
video from this week's Baltimore premiere of the new musical "Hairspray"
that I shot while waiting to escape the media horde. John Waters,
Zac Efron, Amanda Bynes et.al. walked the red carpet. Kinda cool
for a beat down city like B-More to grab some media glitz. John
Waters returning home and all. I couldn't help thinking though that
just up the block and around the corner I have covered multiple
shootings and assorted bad guy stuff. Luckily I think these fresh
new celebs got a glimpse of the good side of a troubled city.
Tim
Rutherford PhotogsLounge.net
We
Have a Winner!
TV
News Hottie Smackdown
The
voting is over! And this was a knockout blow...a clear runaway.
The ladies of Houston's KPRC-TV (Lisa Baldwin,Wendy Corona,Lauren
Freeman, Daniella Guzmán) went straight to the lead, opened
up and never looked back.
Like Secretariat
rolling in the Belmont, the KPRC gals drew away from a clearly dominated
group of wannabes and rode off into PhotogsLounge history with 68.4%
of the vote. The most lopsided of victories ever in the Hottie Smackdown.
The masses
have spoken. Well...at least 377 of the masses. And they love the
KPRC gals long time. And why not? If these ladies do their jobs
anything like they make promo photos...the local TV news in Houston
must be FAB-u-lous!
For winning
this contest in such overwhelming fashion, the ladies of KPRC receive...uh...let's
see...a special PhotogsLounge tribute (Yay...Lisa Baldwin,Wendy
Corona,Lauren Freeman and Daniella Guzmán!!) and an open invitation
to visit me here at PhotogsLounge anytime and possibly send some
more photos of yourselves to be placed in my special PhotogsLounge
Premium Photo Closet.
These of course, are the photos I peruse in my closet.
And for all
of the KPRC colleagues and friends of these lovely ladies...you
will do their bidding...no questions asked...for..oh let's say...a
day and a half. Then, as always, the minions may feel free to tell
them to shove that stupid web poll thing up their respective butts.
So there ya go girls. A day and a half of royal playtime. With the
stick mic as your scepter, may your demands be met with unquestioned
servitude.
Can you say: "2-part standup!"
PhotogsLounge.net
and the TV News Hottie Smackdown got a mention on Chicago's WBBM-TV's
morning newscast. Take
a look!
Tim
Rutherford PhotogsLounge.net
This
Week's Highlights
All
apologies My
computer crashed big-time on me a few weeks ago so I haven't been
able to update much. Funny...Windows XP can work one minute, and
the next minute attempt to destroy everything you have ever done.
Another lesson learned...you guessed it...the hard way.
Alleged
sexual predator's father hits reporter outside courthouse Another
TV journo getting clocked by an irate relative outside the courthouse.
These incidents always seem to happen outside the courthouse.
That's because...guess what?...that's where the bad guys are!
This time it was a reporter catching the fist. So often it's the
photog who gets the camera knocked into his eye. Who provokes
more...the camera-holder or the mouthy mike-holder? Maybe the
public is wise-ing up. Speaking for photogs everywhere I say:
"Yes!...Please!...Punch the reporter first!"
Nashville
station may pull back on innovation Here
are two TV outfits going in different directions. WKRN in Nashville
is pulling the plug on the heart of its interactive media foray.
Their star blooger quit in frustration butting heads with the
vicious blogosphere and the "rub between those running interactive
operations and the big traditional media companies". And taking
a different route, ITV in The U.K. is ramping
up its efforts at citizen journalism. There is a happy median
in there somewhere for many TV groups. But I'm pretty sure that
VJ's isn't it. But as the report notes: "What are we doing about
the fact that every second spent talking about news online and
outside of our communities is a second spent not watching us".
Philly
TV reporter suspended for using N-word Man...the
N-word is charged with emotion. But this guy just sounds like
an idiot. I don't care if you are even discussing the use of the
word itself, this is a word that caucasians would be better off
sticking in the do-not-use file. It almost seems to me that the
whole debate about its use has to be settled by African-Americans.
And I believe this process is now positively underway. In the
meantime, know that it it a cruel, harsh and inflammatory word
that is better left out of all conversations. I know...it seems
wierd that a single word could cause such intense reaction. But
the fact is that is does and it always will. Cross this line at
your own peril.
Critic:
What local anchor blogs reveal
Beware all
you TV reporters and anchors that fashion yourself hip by publishing
your own blogs. You are opening yourselves up to ridicule by the
snarky and venomous media critic. Not to mention the general blogosphere
who sees your blog as no more important than any one else's. Cool
job aside...you had better have some merit to your blog, or it
will become just another target to goof on.
Live
TV on cell phones better than you'd expect The
future is here. The picture is watchable. The video streaming
is sustainable. The cellphone is now another TV set. All content
providers must now develop a mobile TV stategy, or risk the loss
of all the burgeoning technophiles out there who demand their
content on-the-go.
Tim
Rutherford PhotogsLounge.net
The
Worst Tour Guide
I'm
the worst tour guide.
Sometimes
my friends visit from out of town and they like to see a little
bit of Baltimore. So we drive around the city while I point out
some of the interesting sights.
Problem
is, because I'm a news photog, I end up sounding like some sort
of macabre show barker.
"Over there
by the fountain...yeah that's where the homeless guy drowned while
diving for pennies."
"There on that corner...I swear to God...eleven people got shot.
Some kind of revenge thing."
"The parking lot of that KFC, guy wouldn't give up his cash, some
thug shot him dead. When I got there the poor bastard still had
his bag of chicken clutched in his hand."
"Those apartments...yeah...that's where the juvenile delinquents
pushed a jeep thru the wall of an apartment bedroom. Killed a
girl while she slept."
See what
I mean? I see so many bad things...people end up telling me to
just shut the hell up.
"You're depressing
man!" "Just shut up and show me Camden Yards."
This is what
I get for chasing the underbelly.
"Hey...you
guys want to see where Edgar Allan Poe lived? Funny thing...bunch
of knuckleheads barged onto a tour bus there. Robbed everybody
on board."
Next tour
starts at the top of the hour.
Bring your camcorders.
The father of remote TV news trucks has passed away. Edward H.
Hewson Jr. started Northwest Mobile Television, a subsidiary that
was one of the first in the country using trucks equipped with broadcasting
equipment to provide on-the-scene news and sports reports. Here
is his obit.
And in Mr. Hewson's honor, here is a collection of early TV remote
trucks to have a look at. See them all.
What
is it with the bad karma going on at some TV stations these
days? Fires, towers going down, floods!
I always thought the ratings were so bad at my TV station because
I surmised the facility was built on top of an old Indian burial
ground. And the sacred spirit hosts there never liked our weatherman.
Anyhow...here's some links to some of the traumas that our fellow
broadcasters are dealing with.
Take
a look at this video.
Sony has developed a razor-thin and pliable video display.
There are still a lot of obstacles to this type of screen going
into widespread use. But this thing is truly remarkable.
Here's some more
info on it.
Tim
Rutherford PhotogsLounge.net
OOPS!
TV news vans
crash into things all the time. Here's some proof.
Tim Rutherford PhotogsLounge.net
Shooting
Abroad
" Know
The Ins & Outs Before Leaving The Runway
"First
Loser"
Want
to know the difference between winning the Kentucky Derby and losing
the Preakness? Just take a look at these two photos I made. Carl Nafzger
(trainer of Street Sense) gets the circus treatment before
the Preakness, and the outcast treatment after the race.
The media follows the winner in America. Second place here becomes
only "first loser". And on this day, Street Sense came up
short. Bang...no more circus for Carl. Back to the reality of one-on-ones
with the lowest man on the sports page totem pole at the local paper. Tim
Rutherford PhotogsLounge.net
For
more info, pics and videos about the media at the Preakness...click
here.
Inside
a Media "GangBang"
The
post position draw for the Preakness Stakes was held in Baltimore
on Wednesday. ESPN did a one hour live telecast of the drawing.
After the show,
the trainers and owners made themselves available to the media.
My TV camera was well-positioned and locked so I took the opportunity
to give you a POV tour from inside the media scrum.
Here is the video.
Your
news live shots may soon be evolving into a completely new animal.
Forget microwave transmissions. New technology is allowing KPIX
in San Francisco to broadcast with the use of the consumer product
"Slingbox".
So
You Want to be a News Director
From the outside
looking in, the job doesn’t seem that hard. “I remember as a producer
looking into that news director’s office and wondering, ‘What the
hell do they do all day?’” says Kathleen Choal, news director at
KVOA-TV in Tucson, AZ. “All I see them doing is talking on the phone
and watching TV!”
She knows better
now. A news director’s job is part admiral, part accountant, and
all consuming. It’s the kind of job you’re never really prepared
for, but you’re still expected to step in and do it well from day
one. Read the entire article.
The
Queen and Mr. October
Queen
Elizabeth paid a visit to Baltimore, Md. in May of 1991 as the first
President Bush treated her to the American Pastime, a Baltimore
Orioles baseball game.
First off, the people of Baltimore had no reason to think that the
Queen of England would ever come here. I mean, what did Baltimore
have to offer a queen? Turns out...it was baseball.
And
good ole George the First brought her and her hubby Prince Phillip
to town. I was lucky enough to be at the right place at the right
time when my boss asked me if I wanted to be the local pool TV photographer.
(There would only be one local TV camera allowed.) I jumped on the
opportunity and it was a grand night I must say.
They
hustled all the local press out onto the field and then brought
out the rest of the national and international media. It was a wild
scene of reporters, cameras and hysterically cheering fans.
Funniest
moment: The Orioles were playing the Oakland Athletics that night.
At the time, Reggie Jackson was the hitting instructor for the A's
and was present and in uniform as the Queen, Prince Phillip, President
Bush and Barbara Bush stood in the dugout and shook hands with the
line of players from both teams.
One still photog from the U.K. asked me if I could point out who
this Ripken fellow was. He was told he was a "big deal" over here.
So
Reggie's in line to shake hands with the Queen and my mind starts
flashing back to the movie "Naked Gun" with Leslie Neilsen. I'm
thinking.."Holy crap...this is just like the movie. Here comes Reggie
to kill the queen!"
I was picturing him in the movie marching through the infield like
a robot repeating: "Must kill Queen." And
Neilsen disguised as the umpire foils the plot.
But the real Reggie didn't kill the Queen or you'd have read about
it in the papers. But I'm sure as he was shaking her hand he must
have been chuckling to himself at the irony of the whole thing.
And
all this was happening in Baltimore of all places.
Once in a lifetime stuff.
I'm
sure that this photog didn't give this another thought when he stuck
this flag on his camera. I'm not gonna climb on my high horse and
berate him for doing it. I've done things like this that may have
crossed the "objectivity" line in the past. Usually no
one gives a crap. Nowadays the internet can kill you on such things.
For crying out loud this guy made the Drudge Report!
When
tempers are riding high on the scene of a volatile issue, I've found
that just doing your job well usually doesn't allow you the opportunity
to do something stupid. This guy's GM has to show the community
that this will not be tolerated, so the cameraman gets a lecture
and a spanking. And, oh yeah, the merciless pounding he will receive
from the other photogs in his city. This guy will forever be known
as the "guy with the flag". The news cycle will move on.
But his phellow photogs will never let this die.
Tim
Rutherford PhotogsLounge.net
The
Virginia Tech Media Horde
Just
back from Blacksburg, VA are the TV news photogs from WMAR-TV
in Baltimore with photos and highlights of the media horde that
descended upon the campus of Virginia Tech. These guys have
never seen anything as big as this. Estimates of 200 sat trucks
and thousands of journalists. There was no such thing as exclusive
video. "Everybody was gang-bangin'" said veteran photog
Jim Joslyn. Trucks from every part of the U.S. tucked into a spot
in a parking lot and started hammering out the saddening details
of this horrifying story.
Here
are some photos from the scene there: VaTech#1VaTech#2 VaTech#3VaTech#4 VaTech#5VaTech#6 VaTech#7VaTech#8 VaTech#9VaTech#10
My
guys also gave us a post-mortem briefing in the Photog's Lounge.
Photog Jim Joslyn and sat truck op Keith Fox said that this event
was by far, the largest media horde that they had ever encountered.
Here are the video
highlightsof that discussion: . Play
video.
Here
also is a link
to another series of stories on how the networks, local stations,
and citizen journalists impacted the scene in Blacksburg.
Tim
Rutherford PhotogsLounge.net
Momentary
Morons
Here's
a typical response I've found myself giving lately to this question:
"What did you shoot yesterday?" Me:
"Uhhhhhhhhhhhh......hmmmmmmmmm.....yesterday????"
Is
is just me or does anyone else find it difficult to remember what
story you shot yesterday.
I know I'm getting older and the faint touches of Alzheimer's
have begun banging on my neurons now and again, but why does it
seem so hard to remember yesterday in this business?
I always thought my memory was pretty good. I mean every once
in a while I can knock off a whole category or two on Jeopardy.
"Who is Bruno Hauptmann?
Yeah baby...I freakin' rule on the Lindberg kidnapping!"
But
what I did yesterday?....I go brain dead. Stuck in the netherworld
of my own faulty synapses.
"Let me think....yesterday....yesterday..."
It's like having a faulty ignition. "This damn thing just won't
turnover!"
By
the time I remember what I did yesterday, the person who asked
me what I did yesterday, could'nt freakin' care less what I did
yesterday.
They were just being nice.
And: "What'ya shoot yesterday" is just kind of a nice conversation
starter when you really
don't care to be having a conversation in the first place but
feel obligated to say something to the person you're about to
spend the next eight hours with.
Anyhow...I think I'm not the only one with this problem.
I think the TV news business has a lot of these momentary morons.
"Yesterday...duhhhhhhh..."
In this type of work we seem to be so busy working on today, that
yesterday becomes ancient history the minute we report to work.
Unless of course you end up doing: "Murder" Folo...or "Accident"
Folo...or "Whatever the Lead Story Was Yesterday"...Folo.
Chances are though that you didn't have a thing to do with that
story and you're about to spend the first hour of today trying
to track down the file video that never made it out of Van 2 which
already has left the building headed to your particular hinterlands.
In
TV news, we seem to be pushing so much on TODAY...EVERYDAY...that
YESTERDAY, gets put behind us quicker than a scruffy hitchhiker
in the rear view mirror.
"What'd I shoot yesterday?...
Beats the hell outta me.
Where we headed.?"
WFTV Eyewitness
News reporter Tim Wetzel and his cameraman got roughed up a little
during a confrontation with a Marion County businessman on Thursday.
The news crew was at Hercules Fence to do a story about what the
company had on its sign outside. Every week, the fencing firm apparently
puts what it thinks is a funny saying on its sign.
This week's "joke" offended a lot of folks: "What has 4 wheels and
flies? A dead cripple in a wheelchair." Marion residents contacted
Channel 9 to say they were upset about the joke on the sign, and
they said that despite their complaints, the company wasn't doing
anything about it.
When the Channel 9 crew arrived at the company to ask about the
sign, a man there pushed Wetzel and his cameraman out the door.
The tragedy
at Virginia Tech highlights for me what has become almost a hidden
problem that befalls the journalists who cover these types of
horrific events. Who counsels the journalists? Of
course at this early point the victims, survivors and their families
must be foremost in everyone's mind. Dealing with such a "monumental"
tragedy will be their nightmare for many months to come. Honestly,
I don't know how a family could possibly deal with such a thing.
But ultimately
the journos will return to their other assignments as the news
cycle rolls along...and I have always wondered how much stress
and residual trauma sits in the gut of the reporters and photogs
who have to cover these kinds of stories.
Paramedics
who deal with death and trauma are almost universally offered
a roadmap of how to get help in dealing with this stuff. But for
journalists who actually feel the pain and remorse of covering
such atrocities, the path is not as clear. Some TV station ownership
groups do offer counseling to their employees, but for this specific
need of dealing with grief of such outsized proportions...where
is the outlet?
Fortunately
there is at least one group who can help. The Dart Center
for Journalism and Trauma's mission is to "create and
sustain partnerships among media professionals, therapists and
others concerned with trauma, and nurture peer-support among working
journalists."
Right now at their website
you can get some tips from reporters who have covered such incidents
in the past, along with direction in finding help for the journalist
who may need counseling in dealing with such an overload of grief.
I know we
journalists like to think we have some pretty thick skin when
it comes to dealing with death and grief in our communities...but
no one should be above seeking help when you are feeling overwhelmed
by the demands of our profession.
Tim Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
I
Swear to F***ing God!!
What goes on in
the control room of a TV newscast when the audio is screwed up? Viewers
of KJRH-TV in Tulsa found out that TV
people know lots of bad words.
God I love it when this stuff happens. YouTube is the dog!
Top
Ten Editor Lies
#10..."It only shifts in preview."
More...
NFL
Recovers from Brain Cramp
It looks like
the NFL has come to its senses and will once again this season
allow local TV news photographers to shoot on the sidelines.
I thought
last year's restrictive policy decision was a huge mistake, and
it seems the RTNDA has convinced them now that it's to their benefit
to allow access once again.
Any
photog who has shot sideline video no matter at what level, will
tell you that with your eye buried in the viewfinder, you had
better have some Baryshnikov moves when it comes to avoiding getting
clobbered.
So here for
your viewing pleasure are a bevy of
photog sideline splatters.
If you're like me, you gonna wince with every one of these 'cause
we've all been there.
So to the
guys who have gone down in the hope of not missing the shot, I
lift my glass to you and say: "Brother...we feel your pain."
But it's still damn funny.
Tim Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Good
God!
Geez!...did
the "Leave it to Beaver" gang fall into the old-man-ugly-machine
or what??
If these guys knew they'd end up looking like this, I think they
would have probably raised a little more hell back in the old
neighborhood.
Now I know what the Who meant when they sang: "hope I die
before I get old".
These guys would be the first ones released in a hostage situation!
I'm
guessing for them "getting lucky" means they found their
car in the parking lot.
I think
I hear the Beav on the phone right now. Saying something about
"fallen down and can't get up".
For their many contributions to the world of television I'm
gonna personally send each of them a medic alert bracelet.
I imagine
it's hard for these guys to wax nostalgic for the early days of
TV when they probably can't remember ANYTHING.
NABET claims
the new language would have a "devestating effect" on the writers,
producers, and desk people that it represents.
ABC says
they are "shocked and saddened" by the union's decision to break
off talks. I can just see the ABC lawyers sitting around being
all "shocked and saddened". How can they even go on?
Maybe,
to help ABC alleviate their pain and suffering, the union should
send them a case of Kleenex to dry their eyes and, oh yeah, a
few bottles of Head On.(Apply directly to forehead.) Or in this
case, since the union is being such a pain in the ass.....
Also, since
we're talking union...here from the archives of PhotogsLounge.net
are the photogs' answers to the question: Should
TV photogs be represented by a union? It's a really good inside
look at the pros and cons of collective bargaining and its role
in the media.
This
52-inch screen goes on your head
" Headplay's
Personal Cinema System, a sun visor with a built-in monitor, lets
you take your entertainment with you.
Injuries!
You knew the
curb was there somewhere and you had taken a glance over your
shoulder at it just before the bad guy was led out of the police
station. So you were pretty confident you could briskly walk backwards
for a few hundred feet with your eye buried in the viewfinder,
capturing the loud protestations of said bad guy. And then, just
as his hurled spit is landing at your feet....OOOPPS! Down Goes
Frazier! Yep...now
you've gone and done it. Your ankle is shredded like fresh cole
slaw. The ligaments announcing their rupture like a Timberland
gunshot. And you're down! And embarrased. And in pain. And you
want Mommy.
And all you get are chuckles and pointed fingers.
No...it's not fun getting hurt on the job. Here are some
stories of how other TV news photogs have battled injuries
and a couple of resources to ease your pain.
Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Work...it
isn't just for sleeping anymore!
Apparently
WABC-TV anchorman Steve
Bartelstein has been fired for ...get this...sleeping
on the job. He missed a morning news cut-in and they had to
air weather and traffic instead.
Oh the humanity! How could he? Ya think maybe getting up every
day at 3 AM may have had something to do with it? He's done this
before we're told, so they axed him. So as a public service I
thought I'd provide you with 10 sure-fire
excuses to use on the boss when he/she catches you asleep
at the switch(er). Tim
Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Photog
Lounges
Here's
a few more descriptions of YOUR Photog
Lounges from around the globe. As usual, it seems the lowly
photog is at the bottom of the company ladder when it comes
to providing the basic necessitites of a working professional
One photog writes: "No chairs, no couches, no lockers,
no water cooler".
Ouch.
Cemetery
urination costs photog his TV job
Yes...read the
story of this long-time Iowa photog who just couldn't hold it any
longer and now is forever branded as the guy who pissed his job
away.
Time
to look at a little sports news around the nation and it looks like
the traditional sports segment in your local newscast is being re-evaluated
by a lot of TV stations. Here's a few stories about the decline
of the sports segment, not to mention the rise and fall of a few
sports anchors as well.
We have
a Champion! The people have decided! And the TV News Hottie
Smackdown's Lombardi Trophy goes to the lovely ladies of WBBM-TV
in the great city of Chicago ,Illinois. The gals at WBBM were a
clear and convincing favorite...unlike their football team. But
no Rex Grossman's here. These ladies dominated from the outset and
never looked back...rolling away from the competitors in Indy, New
Orleans and Boston. The PhotogsLounge readers have made a statement
with their runaway choice. And to the victors go the spoils. I'm
not quite sure what that should be. Perhaps a year's supply of reporter's
notebooks. Or maybe a new QB in the NFL Draft. For now, all hail
the hotties at WBBM! May they carry their victory with charm and
class. At least until they have to do another smoking chimpanzee
story at the zoo. In TV news...your pride can go out the window
faster than a Devin Hester kick return. Tim Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
What
is it lately with all these assaults on news crews? It does
always seem to occur during sweeps when stations are trying
to bump their ratings a bit. And what better way to grab viewers
then having one of your reporters smacked around by some lowlife
on the Better Business Bureau's Top Ten list. I've never liked
doing assault interviews because the chance for something bad
to happen is ratcheted up. Especially when the reporter thinks
they have some kind of bubble around them that prevents such
things.
If I'm going to do it, I want to know what I'm dealing with.
Specifically WHO I'm dealing with. I don't like being handed
that kind of assignment willy-nilly. I'm very protective of
my willie.
Check out the latest assault stories to the right.
How
many times have you asked your reporter for a white balance
on their notepad, and they turn the pages over until they get
one with no writing on it to present to you?
I think it's kinda cute.
I don't have the heart to tell them it doesn't make a whit of
difference whether their scribbles are on there or not. I
just need some white!
The
first ever rain for a Super Bowl game caused some problems
for the CBS crew. They had a tough time wiping off rain-splattered
lenses and getting rid of that nasty condensation.
And one cameraman took one
of those patented sideline collisions.
All
in all the broadcast was remarkably free of errors or showy gimmicks.
The super-slo-mo cameras were a welcome advance. But don't look
for it at every NFL game in the future.
I'd grade the broadcast a B+.
And Prince might not be everyone's cup o' tea, but lord that dude
makes his guitar playing look effortless. Thousands of guitarists
everywhere know he must have spent many, many hours alone in his
room, mastering his instrument.
Tim Rutherford
PhotogsLounge.net
Barbaro's
Last Stand
Here's
a replay of the blog I did right after the Preakness this
year when Barbaro had his mishap.Some
behind the scenes stuff.
It's a sad day for a lot of horse people around the globe. Barbaro
put up a gallant fight and his doctors are to be commended for
their efforts. In the end, they didn't want the horse to suffer.
But I'll never forget the hush that came over the crowd that day
when Barbaro pulled up. And the solemn scene back at the barn
as he was put in the ambulance. I was really hoping he would pull
through. But as the people who are in it know all too well...horseracing
is a very tough business.
"...That
hassle got him thinking: What if there were a portable satellite
dish, which folds up like a piece of luggage, and could be used
for camping and tailgate parties or in dorm rooms? And that’s
how a longtime television producer turned into an inventor. "
From the man who brought you "ChiPs" and the "New
Hollywood Squares" comes an invention that allows you to
take satellite TV anywhere you go. Read how this crafty TV producer
put a sat receiver in a suitcase and is ready to sell to the masses.
Read more...
We have
a winner in the latest TV News Hottie Smackdown!
In a closely
fought battle, WPXI-TV's Krista
Villarreal came on strong near the end to win this one going
away with 35% 0f the vote.
And now
with this honor, Krista can rightly claim her key to the royal bathroom
and of course, the daily genuflecting of every man, woman and child
employed at WPXI.
Each day
Krista should be reminded by the folks there that they are honored
by her queenly presence and should she need say, a new inkpen, or
a grande expresso, or her car washed, that they are only too happy
to satisfy her needs.
Her every
wish is to be granted by all the lowly minions at her station.
Then, say
in a week or two, you may remind Krista that the party's over for
the winner of some stupid online poll, and she may indeed kiss your
ass. "Oh well", she'll say..."it was good to be queen."
Here's
a video of the Australian cameraman going on strike during a live
broadcast. Below is a link to the story and an editorial criticizing
the move.
(Personally
I think it's a pretty ballsy move, but to think there wouldn't
be recriminations seems naive to me. T.R.)
Here's
some cameraphone images from some of my recent stories in 2007.
Tim
Rutherford PhotogsLounge.net
Firefighter's
funeral. Very long procession of emergency vehicles from all over
the country for this fireman killed while fighting a rowhouse fire
in Baltimore. This could have been a terrific piece. Ended up throwing
it together just to make slot.
Check out the
name of this bar near a gas explosion scene in Baltimore.
Ya gotta love
it, right?
Baltimore
mayor Martin O'Malley will know in 2 weeks if he will become the next
governor of Maryland. It will be close...maybe go to absentee ballots....but
latest polls show he will beat incumbent Robert Ehrlich.
This
thing scares me to death!! Your dog would attack you if he saw
you wearing this!
Ravens
Stuff
I
did Brian Billick's presser today on the removal of Jim Fassel as
Baltimore Raven's offensive coordinator. We carried the noon announcement
live and we were scrambling to set up.
We
still beat the competition on the air but I got caught by one of
my own "what the assignment desk really means" entries. The assignment
desk says "How long until you're ready." REALLY
MEANS: "Your shot is up!"
At
the last second, I had to relinquish my IFB to the talent...and
sure enough, with no communication, I got caught with a big ole
nasty check-focus zoom on the air. At least that's what I was told.
No big deal. We still pulled it off well.
Here
also are some cameraphone pics of my shoot last week of the Ravens
playing paintball.
Oh
to be young, single and rich. These players rolled up in a convoy
of Hummers, Escalades and assorted big black SUV's and broke open
their brand-new-in-the-box paintguns, belts, cammys, and every possible
accessory needed to play soldier for a couple of hours. Sure enough,
me and my camera took a couple of hits. Not too bad though.
A guy was there shooting with a nice Canon Mini-DV and it sure looked
a lot easier for him having only to wield 4 lbs. instead of 25.
Didn't even get to edit the piece later. We simply don't have enough
people. Tim Rutherford PhotogsLounge.net
The
Amish School Shooting
I
just returned from the Amish School Shooting scene in Lancaster
County, Pennsylvania. Here are some images from my camera phone.
This is about as much press as I've seen in a while. Washington,
Philly, Baltimore, all the nets, the locals, New York...all invading
what amounted to an intersection of a couple of country roads in
the middle of rural Pennsylvania. You had about 250 people all looking
for bathrooms and food. The maniac responsible is dead, and
these poor plain-people are left to bury their children and wonder
why. Tim
Rutherford PhotogsLounge.net
Chopper
4 crashes during search
Once again a near death incident. Glad everyone's
safe...but here's another reason why I've given up helicopters
for good.
"Where's
the remote? It's been missing for months. The television in our
lounge basically stays on the same channel until someone new walks
into the room. Of course it's less than three feet away from anyone
sitting down at any given time. I don't think we actually care
what's on, the warm glow sort-of attracts photog's like gnats.
We also have a cafeteria and a BBQ grill and table outside."
Keith
Bubach KCPQ-TV Seattle, WA
"The "photog
lounge" at KCPQ in Seattle consists of...well.....Hey wait a minute.
We don't have a photog lounge. It took 8 months to get a TV. The
7 photogs we have, ya' thats right 7, don't have a lot of time to
hang out and chill. We cover the number 12 market with a staff of
7 photogs. Sure we only have to fill one 1/2 hour show.......BUT......It
is still a big challenge. And a fun one at that...."
"Slow
and Stupid"
Or: How to run a red light and avoid the penalty
Okay...first
off, A disclaimer: If there is even the slightest chance you could
be involved in an accident...DO NOT TRY THIS!
Okay...with
that out of the way...TV news crews do so much driving around
their respective cities and towns that it is often the case that
we have to squeak by an intersection where the light is in the
process of turning from yellow to red.
Since
TV news crews are ALWAYS in a hurry, occasionally it is necessary
that, in order to avoid missing the mayor's admission of guilt
in his perjury case, or the finals of the county fair pig race,
we need to scoot through those amber to red changing traffic lights
and get our asses down the road.
Of
course the natural tendency when approaching an intersection where
the light is yellow and about to go red, is to pound that pedal
to the floor and bust through that sucker. If you almost make
the light by zooming through it...well...that counts right?
Wrong.
Especially if a police officer is in a position to see you do
it. Speeding up to make the light is a no-no from a cop's point
of view. And rightly so.
Here's
my PhotogsLounge method for running the light and avoiding the
cops: DO the exact opposite.
Take
your foot off the gas...slow down...put both hands on the steering
wheel, put a dumbfounded look on your face, and creep through
the light looking like you wouldn't know a red light from a green,
blue or purple light.
Yes
my friends...slow and stupid makes the light.
This
applies mostly to unmarked vehicles. A police officer's decision
to pull over your marked news vehicle is directly related to how
much he or she said officer hates your weatherman.
Look
at it from a police officer's point of view. Who are you going
to bother to stop? A knucklehead who busted through that light
racing his engine in the process, OR...an idiot who looks as though
he doesn't even know what day it is, let alone what color the
light was?
A
little acting is required here. Feel free to put on your stupidest
looking expression and let a little spit drool down your chin.
Might wanna take a split sec and muss your hair. We're going for
the absent-minded professor look here. Or maybe the banjo-playing
mutant in Deliverance.
Cop's
gonna figure" "I'll be damned if I'm spending the next half hour
explaining the traffic laws to a moron who should have "funny
farm" permanently set in the GPS.
I've tested this method and it is guaranteed to work for you as
it has for me.
Repeat
after me: "Slow and stupid makes the light".
If
your assignment desk is like mine however, they are alreading
packing up the podium at the event anyway. No need to get a ticket
to boot.
Tim
Rutherford PhotogsLounge.net
"Oh...ma....gawdddd!
As
I said last week:
"My hunch: late-night guest shots, some new promo shoots,
Let's crank out another celebrity shall we."
Here's your proof from David Letterman.
What is THE most
embarassing thing that can happen to a national news
anchor??
You
got it. Going to the bathroom with an open mike.
CNN’s Kyra Phillips will have to live with this
for all her born days.
My hunch: late-night guest shots, some new promo shoots, Let's
crank out another celebrity shall we.
Segway
Links Hi-Tech Camera to Action
"
One step closer to the "Bionic-Cameraman"-I can see
how this thing would come in handy on a lot of shoots. "
TV
News Hottie Smackdown
We
Have a Winner!
The votes have been tallied
and the winner of the latest TV News Hottie Smackdown from
KTNV-TV Las Vegas,NV is Christine
Beltran who garnered 36.6% of the votes...37 out of a total
101 votes. Christine led from the start and rolled away to a convincing
victory.
Christine wins a month's supply of doting and fawning from her colleagues,
and is entered in the contest for the Grand Prize-a year of unridiculed
standups and 3-point lighting on all her live shots.
Congrats Christine! Final Results
The
Worst Tour Guide
I'm
the worst tour guide.
Sometimes
my friends visit from out of town and they like to see a little
bit of Baltimore. So we drive around the city while I point out
some of the interesting sights.
Problem
is, because I'm a news photog, I end up sounding like some sort
of macabre show barker.
"Over there
by the fountain...yeah that's where the homeless guy drowned while
diving for pennies."
"There on that corner...I swear to God...eleven people got shot.
Some kind of revenge thing."
"The parking lot of that KFC, guy wouldn't give up his cash, some
thug shot him dead. When I got there the poor bastard still had
his bag of chicken clutched in his hand."
"Those apartments...yeah...that's where the juvenile delinquents
pushed a jeep thru the wall of an apartment bedroom. Killed a
girl while she slept."
See what
I mean? I see so many bad things...people end up telling me to
just shut the hell up.
"You're depressing
man!" "Just shut up and show me Camden Yards."
This is what
I get for chasing the underbelly.
"Hey...you
guys want to see where Edgar Allan Poe lived? Funny thing...bunch
of knuckleheads barged onto a tour bus there. Robbed everybody
on board."
Next tour
starts at the top of the hour.
Bring your camcorders.
FCC
Looks at Stations' Use of PR Videos
Why would TV stations even bother with this
stuff? Are they that hard up for content? Pull another story
off of Pathfire guys.
Filter
Facts
by Chris
Ray
"The
worst situation is mixed light sources. You might be in a room
that is lit on one side by daylight from the window, but lit
on the other side by tungsten. Which filter do you choose" More...Photogspeak
"Would
you ever stop shooting video to help at a scene?" More...
"Dog
Bites Man"
is a dog "the
typical Spokane, WA news crew consisted of: a reporter, a producer,
an assistant producer, and a director. A Director? Are you kidding
me?.
Local
TV news when you want it More
stations offer programs on mobile devices, Web in bid to hang
onto fickle audiences.
Producer
Burnout Yeah...producer
burnout, reporter burnout, photog burnout...who isn't
burned out in this crazy bidness?. Anthem
Butchered How
many events have you attended where the singer stumbled on the
national anthem? This guy has got to be the worst ever! Watch
this funny video.
Holiday?
Never heard of it Do
you know what they call Thanksgiving in the TV news business?
Thursday.
By Tim Rutherford.
After
the Shoot! New
Listings! Cincinnati,
OH,
Paihia, New Zealand "In
Cincinnati you should go to Milton's...Very close to 3 of the
5 stations in town." More...
"
New
Listing! Kansas
City, MO "Brother
Ike's Rural Grit Happy Hour". Jam session for bluegrass, folk,
blues, honkeytonk musicians. Bring your instrument if you
want to join in."More...
"I smack my
radio and make sure it's working right. I ask if I heard right,
and all I get is "Yep." Ok...off to my truck I head with thoughts
of old Japaneese Godzilla movies running through my head."
More...
Photogs
in Cities Around the World Tell You Where to Go and What to Do! Example: "...When
in New Orleans many people automatically
head for Bourbon Street in the French Quarter. That's fine if you
like overpriced drinks, obnoxious tourists and the smells of vomit
and urine. For something different, try Frenchmen Street in the
Faubourg Marigny, just downriver from the Quarter." More...
-What
the Assignment Desk Really Means... Assignment desk says: "I need you there
by 2 o'clock!" Really means: "It doesn't start 'til 2 thirty...but I need
to start covering my ass after missing the anchor's speech at
that ladies luncheon yesterday.
...Someone
who owns a digital stopwatch, but can't count backwards.
The
Pew Project for Excellence in Journalism at 
You
know how everybody that knows anything about computers always
tells you to backup your data so you don't lose it when the inevitable
hard drive crash comes-a-callin'?
"The
probable cause of this accident was both pilots' failure to see
and avoid each other," the board concluded in a report on the
collision. "Contributing to this failure was the pilots' responsibility
to perform reporting and visual-tracking duties."
Now
that we're back to a peanut butter and cup 'o noodles economy
on the eve of the new year, it seems like a good time to put on
our Carnak the Magnificent's turban and take a guess at what's
inside the hermetically sealed envelopes.
The
future of live ENG transmissions continues to evolve and the latest
entry in the "doing away with 40-ft. masts" category
is WiMax, the 4th-generation wireless broadband access service.
Now
that the weather is turning colder, it's time to consider the
effects of freezing temperatures on video equipment and offer
a few tips that will keep you shooting when both you and your
camera would rather be indoors.
Okay...you
can see it coming. The company is downsizing and you are in their
line of fire.
The
reality is now approaching that sooner rather than later, all
newspapers will move to online access only. 
Let
an all-platformer give you a look at her 
From
time to time it's good to re-connect with the basics that make
for great visual storytelling in TV news. So here are a 
The Asuka Corp. out of Taiwan has come up with what may be the
Remember
the big shift that's supposed to happen with TV ENG microwave
transmisions?
In
the meantime, suppliers are marketing gear outside of the relocation
process. Portable, compact microwave systems that can be carried
in a regular-size auto and set up on the fly for breaking-news
events are now hot items. These new wireless transmitters mount
on the back of a camera and are good for a short enough distance
to make them really valuable in downtown situations with a lot
of buildings. 
"Why
don't your bosses work out a pool arrangement for stuff like that?"
Well...it
looks like some news bosses in Philadelphia are taking my friend's
advice. The NBC and Fox affiliates there are working on an 
A
But
it does offer up an opportunity to mention the safety procedures
to be used by TV live truck operators. 
ONE-MAN-BANDS!!
I
know there are a slew of older photogs who want no part of this.
And the truth is, this thing is not going to happen overnight.
Okay...this
layoff thing is starting to get serious. All over the country
TV stations are laying-off personnel left and right. 
Another
TV journo getting clocked by an irate relative outside the courthouse.
These incidents always seem to happen outside the courthouse.
That's because...guess what?...that's where the bad guys are!
This time it was a reporter catching the fist. So often it's the
photog who gets the camera knocked into his eye. Who provokes
more...the camera-holder or the mouthy mike-holder? Maybe the
public is wise-ing up. Speaking for photogs everywhere I say:
"Yes!...Please!...Punch the reporter first!"
Here
are two TV outfits going in different directions. WKRN in Nashville
is pulling the plug on the heart of its interactive media foray.
Their star blooger quit in frustration butting heads with the
vicious blogosphere and the "rub between those running interactive
operations and the big traditional media companies". And taking
a different route, ITV in The U.K. is 
Man...the
N-word is charged with emotion. But this guy just sounds like
an idiot. I don't care if you are even discussing the use of the
word itself, this is a word that caucasians would be better off
sticking in the do-not-use file. It almost seems to me that the
whole debate about its use has to be settled by African-Americans.
And I believe this process is now positively underway. In the
meantime, know that it it a cruel, harsh and inflammatory word
that is better left out of all conversations. I know...it seems
wierd that a single word could cause such intense reaction. But
the fact is that is does and it always will. Cross this line at
your own peril. 
The
future is here. The picture is watchable. The video streaming
is sustainable. The cellphone is now another TV set. All content
providers must now develop a mobile TV stategy, or risk the loss
of all the burgeoning technophiles out there who demand their
content on-the-go.
Problem
is, because I'm a news photog, I end up sounding like some sort
of macabre show barker. 
So
Reggie's in line to shake hands with the Queen and my mind starts
flashing back to the movie "Naked Gun" with Leslie Neilsen. I'm
thinking.."Holy crap...this is just like the movie. Here comes Reggie
to kill the queen!" 
And
Neilsen disguised as the umpire foils the plot.
Just
back from Blacksburg, VA are the TV news photogs from WMAR-TV
in Baltimore with photos and highlights of the media horde that
descended upon the campus of Virginia Tech. These guys have
never seen anything as big as this. Estimates of 200 sat trucks
and thousands of journalists. There was no such thing as exclusive
video. "Everybody was gang-bangin'" said veteran photog
Jim Joslyn. Trucks from every part of the U.S. tucked into a spot
in a parking lot and started hammering out the saddening details
of this horrifying story.
Of
course at this early point the victims, survivors and their families
must be foremost in everyone's mind. Dealing with such a "monumental"
tragedy will be their nightmare for many months to come. Honestly,
I don't know how a family could possibly deal with such a thing.
Maybe,
to help ABC alleviate their pain and suffering, the union should
send them a case of Kleenex to dry their eyes and, oh yeah, a
few bottles of Head On.(Apply directly to forehead.) Or in this
case, since the union is being such a pain in the ass..... 
Yep...now
you've gone and done it. Your ankle is shredded like fresh cole
slaw. The ligaments announcing their rupture like a Timberland
gunshot. And you're down! And embarrased. And in pain. And you
want Mommy.
Steve
Bartelstein has been fired for ...get this...
We
still beat the competition on the air but I got caught by one of
my own "what the assignment desk really means" entries. The assignment
desk says "How long until you're ready."
'
Ray
Pfeffer KFMB-TV San Diego, CA
Okay...with
that out of the way...TV news crews do so much driving around
their respective cities and towns that it is often the case that
we have to squeak by an intersection where the light is in the
process of turning from yellow to red. 
A
little acting is required here. Feel free to put on your stupidest
looking expression and let a little spit drool down your chin.
Might wanna take a split sec and muss your hair. We're going for
the absent-minded professor look here. Or maybe the banjo-playing
mutant in Deliverance. 
