Producer Shadow Shift: 1/28/09

In a typical broadcast newsroom, the producers are the big dogs. As assistant producer Lisa Russell put it, "They're in charge."

I experienced a day's work with the "big dogs" on Wednesday. The first major part of their job involves participating in the story meeting for the nightside reporters with Stacey Woelfel, KOMU's news director (or his designee). From there, the producers figure out where the assigned stories will be placed in the newscasts (for the 5, 6, and 10). Their job also means they format how one's story will appear - for instance, whether a reporter will do a live shot or weather wall. Perhaps the most important aspect however comes from their determination of how long a story will run.

This idea that producers control the time of stories is one of the biggest things that Russell has learned since she arrived to KOMU. She says, "If you're a reporter, you can't just have extra time, it has to be talked about." She also said that while seemingly scary and threatening, the staff at KOMU are all incredibly helpful and easy to ask questions of. Russell added that time management is also a huge lesson she's learned since joining the producing ranks.

Reporters understand most of their assignment details after the initial story meeting, but one important morsel of information displayed by the producers in INews is whether a reporter will move to the weather wall or be assigned a live shot. This means that, in some cases, a reporter will basically do two standups; one in-studio at the weather wall, the other out in the field. Both of which are included in the story.

Producers can be most helped by reporters when they call in with story updates. Russell says that regular updates from reporters help producers time their shows. For example, if a story is very difficult and a reporter is unable to get people to talk on-camera, their assigned time of a story may be reduced since it has less-solid video. On the flip side, if a reporter finds fantastic sources and records great video, then they may merit a longer report.

Russell says the most common mistakes made by reporters has been with scripting in INews. She says some reporters struggle with the formatting involved for live shots, weather wall appearances, and locators. She said there's no excuse for reporters to make mistakes like that - she demonstrated that many tips and suggestions for formatting are already in INews "help" files.

The hardest part of producing, according to Russell, is that the entire job of creating a newscast can be overwhelming. She said it's also difficult to accomodate everything that reporters want, or to deal with on-the-fly changes that can come up as late as midway through a newscast.

The biggest difference between a reporter and producer, says Russell, is that reporters enjoy physically leaving the station, talking to sources, and doing something new every day while storytelling. Producers, she says, must enjoy being in charge and looking at the big picture.

Post-B2 Lecture Rant on "New Media"

I'm all for advancing good storytelling through all forms of media - be they broadcast, radio, internet, and social networking. But I have a beef with Twitter. It's one thing to use Facebook to share your "status", personal info, pictures, etc to relevant friends or acquantences. But Twitter is essentially a worthless text tool for people whose attention spans require them to check their cell phones every 3 minutes and send a text saying @BRIAN "I'm sitting on the toilet!" or @BRIAN "I JUST DRANK A GLASS OF WATER!!"

What's the purpose of referring to yourself as @___?


I might be stuck in 2004 when the mainstream Verizon cell phone didn't have all these newfangled goodies like nationwide internet access, touch screens, and applications. I refuse to get a Blackberry and I regret the 2 weeks I spent with an Iphone over the summer of 08. To me, there's a distinct personal line that comes with a cell phone, and I don't enjoy sharing my every move with other people. Maybe I'll be forced to get a Twitter account - I won't welcome it, I won't enjoy it, and I certainly don't look forward to it. But at the end of the day, it's part of the "new media" and I accept that some find it useful.

Live Truck Shadow Shift: 1/26/09

I knew this shift would be interesting with snow expected in Mid-Missouri - it was only fitting that my guides for this shadow shift were assigned a winter-weather live shot at one of Columbia's busiest roadway intersections. Kyle Seever was the driver and overall "live truck operator" while Candice Crawford reported.

Setting up a live shot doesn't seem to be very difficult; just somewhat time consuming and very step-intensive. In other words, miss a connection or plugging in a particular cable, and an entire newscast (or at the very least, a particular live shot) can be ruined. Seever and I arrived about an hour and a half before the 5pm show to the scene of the live shot, set to be the intersection of Providence Rd. and Stadium Blvd. - all 7 or 8 lanes of its beauty.

Before leaving KOMU, Seever made sure that we had extra batteries for the camera in case the truck's generator failed. We ensured that there was a tripod in the back of the truck and a tool kit with all mic extensions and wires. Upon arriving at Providence & Stadium, our first task was to raise the mast of the live truck - the DirecTV-sized dish capable of sending microwave signals to KOMU's studio in an instant. Seever noted that it is important to make sure the mast is raised to its maximum height of roughly 7 sets, and directed my attention to the large "DO NOT PARK UNDER A POWER LINE - YOU CAN BE KILLED!" warnings. Trees are also a risky nearby object - avoid them. From there, we can start the generator and begin setting up the camera, tripod, and mic/IFB for the reporter. As the weather was the focus of our story, we made sure that the tripod and extra light kits we brought were safely secured to the ground with sand bags from the back of the truck.

While I'd love to continue on in-depth, it's 11:44pm and I have an 8:00am class - I'll keep it brief for the sake of staying awake through Broadcast 2 Lab at 1pm.

Seever pointed out that an IFB is an "interruptible feedback" device. It allows the reporter to talk to producers and the control room, and also to stay on-pace with the newscast's upcoming cues. He advised that reporters MUST bring their scripts, weather gear, and, when necessary, a separate IFB as sometimes reporters find it icky to share an IFB among many people. Seever said that reporters can best help live truck operators by showing up on time - at least 15 minutes prior to a show starting. He also said that specific directions on where to bring the truck are important - in other words, not just "downtown Columbia" or "along Highway 63" - he said directions like "8th and Cherry" or "Northbound 63 and Broadway" are vital to proper setup. Lastly, he said the most common problem facing live reporters include: overt nervousness and looking at scripts (one should know their topic well enough to not memorize a set script) and being unfamiliar with IFB sounds (as one can hear producers, anchors, and themselves speaking on delay) and becoming confused.

Shadow Shift #1: Production Assistant

Brian Mortensen
Production Assistant shadow, Jan. 23 10 PM show.


Upon arriving to KOMU, I was told that no trained person would be working the shift that night. Jennifer Niederjohn, the supervising producer, taught the Recuts and teleprompter duties to two trainees as I observed and asked questions. In general, the job seems quite simple but very detail-oriented. During my shadow shift, Jen emphasized the necessity for production assistants to communicate with other people in the newsroom; especially the main producer.

The recuts area seems quite overwhelming on first glance, but after a few minutes of being shown the set-up, it's relatively easy to grasp. The overall job of the production assistant is to take video from the NBC Newschannel server and import it to the KOMU system for use in the newscast. Some shows may require you to create teases for upcoming stories from video on the local system - this scenario seems easier than a national story because you don't have to download the video, instead one just creates a sequence into the existing slot on INews. Niederjohn said teases are usually about 20 seconds long, while national stories require about 45 seconds of video. The production assistant will find out what video specifically needed for a show by talking to the producer, who should specify what shots they want. In addition, most requests are assigned on the INews rundown for the show. Niederjohn said it's important to reference video and avoid showing things that have nothing to do with words being read. She also said that graphics from national stories cannot be used unless there is no other video available from Newschannel.

Once this video is found, the production assistant must enter the NRCS server. NRCS is basically how the station gets video onto its server for use elsewhere in the station - and how specific sequences stay within the rundown for use on air. Once entering the NRCS, you drag the specific sequence into the bin you're working on, and then capture the video using "QuickDub" or a playlist on Newschannel. The PA must ensure that the downlinked video is properly routed, so checking the large switchboard in the middle of the recuts area is important to make sure that video will be captured.

Niederjohn said the hardest part of the job for most production assistants is being able to get all video done on time for a particular newscast. Of all the nightly shows, she said the 5pm is the busiest, while the 6 and 10 are less recut-heavy. The difficulty in finishing comes from the amount of time necessary to properly edit the video - including resizing and adding curtains to make national video (which comes in 4/3 format, not high-defintion standard 16/9) suitable for KOMU broadcast. She said if a production assistant is pressed for time and overwhelmed with the amount of work necessary, the PA must ask for help from just about anyone bar reporters. She said most of the time any of the producers in the newsroom can help answer questions provided they're not loaded with duties at the time.


Niederjohn said the computer system is reliable, but if it were ever to fail, she suggested rebooting or restarting the computer and moving to another work station. If the problem exists at another work station, then she recommended telling a supervisor about the issue so it can be investigated.

As a supervising producer, Niederjohn had a unique perspective as a staff member on the best way for PAs to get along with reporters and producers. She said simply that respect for each other and communication are the biggest issues among coworkers. In addition, she said that one should "Always ask, don't assume" if in doubt.

After finishing the recuts for the 10PM show, we went into the control room to operate the teleprompter for the newscast. This seemed very simple but crucial to the overall broadcast - I feel the prompter is an enormous crutch in broadcasting, and it makes Jim Riek and Angie Bailey's jobs incredibly more straightforward.

During my shadow shift I saw the necessity for steady production assistants. Niederjohn told us that PAs' work is essential and provides a backbone for a smooth show.