I set out today with the goal of completing a story in one day and I did it! Thanks to great teachers and the help of my fellow vjs I was able complete the story for the 10pm news. It aired around 10:19 Saturday night. Keep your eye on News 2's web site to view the story about motorcycle riders who joined together to show their support for our troops.
It has been a long, hard, yet rewarding week and I have not seen my supportive, beautiful, loving wife very much so I am out of here!
7 comments:
Hey Todd,
I watched your TennCare protest pkg...and since you're letting us look over your shoulder while you go through this learning process, I hope you'll accept a couple of observations from a long-time reporter who is also excited about the new wave of technology, but who has some concerns about what it might bring.
The good news: you put together a visual interesting story...it gives the viewer an "up close and personal" look at the people camped out in protest...and your concerns about tracking your own scripts will ease in time with practice ( nice job on your first attempt.)The shots and editing were slick...
The bad news: two things jumped out at me right away:
1) as a previous poster observed, this was a very one-sided treatment of the issue. Since the governor was the target of the protest, did you make an attempt to get a statement from the Gov's office?...if so, and they chose not to make a statement, some mention that you TRIED to get a response should have been mentioned in the piece or in the anchor tag. And if someone suggested in your newsroom "oh, we've covered the Gov's side before, so we don;t have to put it in this pkg", then they've made a journalistic mistake....
2)your script line "the protesters just want the gov. to 'do the right thing' ", in my humble opionion, crosses the line of objectivety...by phrasing it that way, you imply that what the protesers want IS the right thing....someone on the other side of the TennCare debate might disagree...it's your job to 'play it right down the middle' and not favor one side over the other.
I would suggest that you should have phrased it this way: "...the protesters say they just want the governor to do WHAT THEY THINK is the right thing".
Please accept this as constructive criticism, and not an attempt to bash you or your work. The management of your news department should have caught those two problems before this piece hit air.
I commend your efforts in trying to make this concept work....but some basic principals of journalism should not be tossed to the side in this "VJ Revolution"
M.R.
Todd,
Good luck to you. It's going to be difficult making your rookie mistakes as a reporter in a market as large as Nashville.
Buy or borrow a basic journalism text book. It doesn't have to be one of the behemoths college classes require but it does have to help you with the basics of things like attribution and balance in your stories.
Your writing will improve as you do more of it. Get a copy Strunk and White's "The Elements of Style" or other grammer primer. It will save you from some gaffes.
Read. The more good writing you read; the more you'll write. That's been my experience, anyway.
Read out loud. Practice. It will make it easier to do when you're in the audio booth. If you read novels out loud, act out the dialogue. It sounds silly, I know, but it will help you sound more conversational in your on-air delivery.
Like I said, good luck. They've put both photographers and reporters in a tough situation, trying to learn new skill sets in the deadline driven environment of a TV newsroom. Your approach to it is admirable.
Hell, when I one-man banded in small market TV I put three and four packages together in a day and didn't always have the luxury of telling every single side. Let the anchors do something-- let them call the other sides and write some anchor tags.
Wahoo Todd!! I was watching the news, and heard your name- and thought, "Hey, I know that guy!" Well, of course, I don't know you know you... but I felt like I did- and I was super proud! Great job for your first time out. As a person who is more of a viewer than a VJ (for now), I enjoyed it. The camera work was good, and I enjoyed the editing. My constructive critism is to project your voice a little more. I got the feeling that you were reading the script more than you were believing in the story. Overall, I was excited to see a VJ piece on the air! Way to go!! :)
Much better job with the motorcycle story. It had better video possibilities too and I thought you were creative. Both with the shot selection as well as the editing.
I know it was a one stop shop story but I thought you covered all the angles well.
Your voice is better. Still not sounding comfortable but that will come with time.
Who did the Wynonna interview for you? Was she just talking with people in a natural setting or was she talking to another reporter and you joined in on the interview?
Can you back off of the interviews a bit so they don't look as soft. It seems like you're so close that it's just inside the focal range of the camera with the background ending up crisper than the interview subject. Not always...but sometimes.
Overall a much better story. I figure if I'm going to give you a hard time...I should also balance that with more positive comments when you do better.
Keep practicing. I look forward to seeing more of your work in the future.
Hey Todd,
I want to check-out your motorcycle piece, but I don't see it on the website...can you give me a hint as to where to find it?
Hope you didn't take offense to my post on your protest story...just trying to help...not meant to be a slam...
M.R.
Found it!...nice job...hope you were wearin' your helmet!! ; )
M.R.
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