Archives for January 2007

Woh…two posts from me tonight. But one of my favorite bloggers, tvphotogblog has put together a nifty little video from one rather ordinary day as a television videographer/journalist.

Fun stuff for us tv folks, and the soundtrack kicks.

Clicked on a link tonight on “The Drudge Report” about an ABC TV meteorologist who says he knows not one single tv meteorologist who “buys into the man-made global warming hype.”

Growing up around Birmingham I know there’s an awful lot of people who believe “if James Spann says it, it has to be true.”

But a climate expert on the Weather Channel says the American Meteorological Association ought to strip the certification from any meteorologist who believes global warming is a natural process and occurance.

Interesting read from Spann, especially if you are interested in things like weather, climates and the environment. Go read it..but be patient.

Spann’s weather blog gets thousands of hits each day from weathermen all over the country. He’s known to be one of the most knowledgeable meteorlogists working in television today. In fact, it took me a half-hour to get the Drudge link to work.

Before I get started with this, good to hear from Peggy Phillips on the last posting. Hope you’re enjoying yourself Peggy and please let us all know when your blog returns. Hope it’s soon.

It’s been one year into the VJ thing here in Nashville so I thought some of you might be interested in hearing what I think now of shooting, writing and editing my own stuff, day after day, week after week.

Most days it’s really really good. Some days it isn’t.

What…you want more than that? I could say that about most jobs I’ve had? Well, except for the last one.

The thing that I like most about video journalism is that it truly allows a beat reporter to completely immerse themselves in their subject. For me, it’s covering religion and ethics which has been an interest of mine for years.

Instead of spending an hour or more each morning in a news staff meeting, listening to story ideas for general assigment subjects (ie: what was in the morning newspaper) I am able to maintain contacts with clergy, ministers and Rabbis who continually feed me ideas for stories. I’m also able to stay abreast of things that are about to hit the news and have those on my radar far in advance.

Instead of waiting for stories to hit the newspapers, beat reporters who maintain good contacts can learn what is happening and be better educated to cover those subjects. So maybe it is the beat system that smittens me.

Then again, the freedom of being a vj is far more enticing than I imagined. Several times in the past year I have set out late at night or on a weekend to shoot a story that otherwise would have been overlooked or simply ignored. A half-dozen times I have shot stories that happened at midnight. In a typical newsroom, I would have had to get permission to shoot the story, enlist a photographer to not only show up but to have an interest in sharing that story with the viewers.

None of the 5 or 6 midnight stories I shot were covered by any other news organization. Was it because the story wasn’t interesting? No, it was because they happened at midnight and to cover them, a reporter and photographer would have to agree to be out until 1:30 or 2 in the morning.

I also enjoy the vj and beat system because not every story has to turn the same day it was shot. Doubling our reporting staff gives the station twice the package count each day, so my story doesn’t “have to be in a newscast” because producers have more stories to choose from to fill up each show.

Most of the time, the people I’m interviewing never mention the fact that I’m shooting the video and asking the questions. Oh, sometimes I hear “boy, they don’t give the religion department much of a budget do they?”, but just as many seem rather impressed that one person is doing it all.

In one year I have worked with another photographer four times. Three of those were for out of town stories with multiple live shots, the other time I requested help because they didn’t allow cameras in the service and offered a feed of the service in another room where we could record the event on a deck.

I cannot say that I am always completely satisfied with my finished packages. Just like when I was part of a two-man crew, there are many days when I look at the story on-air and wish I had the time or the foresight to change something. Recently, one of my stories hit CNN and the guy in Atlanta called our producer to compliment us on how the story was told and how it was shot and edited. Our producer told me the CNN producer was a little surprised when told a vj put it together.

My situation here is not the same as every video journalist working today. Some turn stories each and every day. Some, many maybe, are general assignment reporters, getting their assignments by 10am each morning. I might now have such a glowing review of the vj model if that was my situation.

But after a year of vj’ing under my belt, I can honestly say it’s better than I thought it would be. Better with the quality of stories and the shooting, and better with the scheduling and the workload.

I know there are far more people in the business hoping VJs go the way of 8-track tape players and carbon-paper anchor scripts but I don’t think so. Other stations are trying it out at some level and I think they will find it to be just as good or better than the standard 2-man news crews.

I am in for a bit of a change this week. I’m losing my newsroom desk and will move to the VJ area of the building. Instead of editing on my desktop pc I’ll get a laptop. I’m not crazy about the change but it’s hard to campaign to keep my desk when I’m not in the newsroom any more than I am. We have at least two new reporters this month and one also anchors weekend mornings. I suppose they’ll sit in the newsroom more than I do.

The laptop will allow me to edit from anywhere which only adds to the freedom I already enjoy. They told me this time last year they expect 3-4 stories every week and I’m producing a steady 4. I’ve also added a weekly newsletter that goes out to about 350 ministers and then there’s my other blog.

Last July I told a former co-worker and reporter that this job was the best reporter gig I’ve ever had “but ask me again in 6 months”.

It still is. Isn’t that cool?

Maybe it’s just this time of year, when we’re all making resolutions to straighten up and clean out that part of our lives we want to change. I’ve noticed a huge increase in “quit smoking” advertisements online, on tv and on radio.

Well…I’ve said it before, but this is really “My Time to Quit”.

I’ve been a dipper for about 15 years. I started, like a lot of people, when one of the tobacco companies gave me some freebies. It grew to a big problem for me.

Nearly every day it was the last thing I did before bed and one of the first things I did after waking up. Going through a can every day, which adds up to more than $1,000 a year.

I set January 1st for my first day. I made it to the afternoon of January 1st. I threw out the rest of that can and started over. I made it til around 3 o’clock of January 2nd. I asked my Sunday School class to pray for me because I knew I couldn’t quit on my own.

This week, I did a lot better, going Tuesday and Wednesday without anything. I stumbled today but will throw away the rest of the stupid can I bought today when I go to bed. That will be the last time. Won’t it?

I didn’t realize how hard this was going to be. Websites say one can of dip is equivalent in nicotine to 60 cigarettes, so I’ve been running with 3 pack a day folks for nearly 3 decades.

Thing is, I don’t enjoy it anymore. I made it the last couple of days without so much as a craving. I’m using nicotine gum and mints and lots and lots of coffee to replace the stimulant my body craves.

So say a prayer for me tonight. Send along some good thoughts my way in the early afternoon. If I’m going to stop at a tobacco store, that’s when it’ll be. I can do it. You can help.

WKRP is coming to DVD!

A comment from Anonymous (clearly the best commenter on any blog) shows that the hit CBS series from the 70s will be available on DVD come April. Alas, it won’t be everything it ought to be.

Music copyright issues have prevented the show from being available on DVD. For those who remember, every episode featured period rock songs. More than 300 in all. The music set the stage for some episodes. But the release to use those songs in the show did not give the production company the rights to use the songs in future releases (for Nick at Night or VHS). That’s why when Nick at Night ran the series ten years or so ago, we did not hear Bob Seger, Van Morrison and Elton John, but canned generic music.

The new release of season one (the season with the Turkey’s Away episode) comes out in April but without the original music from the series.

Retail price for season one is around $39 which is a bit steep. I have found all four seasons on DVD from TVDVDPlanet.com and they advertise each episode will be exactly like it was when it first played on CBS.

I’ve sen an e-mail to TVDVD Planet to ask for a clarification. Their price for all four seasons is just 68.99. Well worth the price if it’s good quality and original music. I’ll let you know what they tell me.

Thanks Todd, (aka anonymous).

By the way, this news made me curious about another show that should be on DVD but isn’t. Fox says it’s still working to put “The Wonder Years” on DVD but the same music copyright issues are standing in their way. This show wouldn’t be the same without the original music.

Christine Connolly left Memphis a few months ago and is now a working video journalist at KRON in San Francisco. I spoke to her a few days ago while she was on an assignment and she seems as cheerful as ever.

Most Memphis tv news viewers remember Christine as a dependable, consistently solid reporter for the station DOTR. I remember when she first walked through the doors and took the weekend reporter spot when I was anchoring weekends.

Christine and I got to be pretty good friends and I’ve spoken to her several times since I left the station. She even popped by for a couple of days here in Nashville last spring.

Christine and Bevan are engaged now planning their wedding for late this summer. Judging from the photo on Bevan’s website, the left coast agrees with them both.

Working as a one-man-band/video journalist isn’t for everyone and I honestly wondered whether Christine would be up to the challenge of lugging a camera around, driving herself to her stories, writing, then editing the stories without anyone else lifting a finger. Of course, I wondered the same thing about myself this time last year.

But Christine has the moxy and the self-start mentality to get ‘r done and do quite well. She was never a member of the “Brotherhood of Whiners”, seen and heard griping about every little thing and every little decision handed down by powers that be. Even on the dopiest stories she was assigned, she looked for the best way to tell the story in the little time she was given.

She’s enjoying her new role and I know as she gets more comfortable telling the stories in the vj style, she’ll love it as much as I do. I hope so. She’s also working with another former DOTR friend of mine, April Cummings who’s an anchor for KRON.

According to Bevan’s website, he’s been working for KPIX recently, whether that’s a full-time gig or not I don’t know. But he’s still working to do more films and San Fran is a fine place for that creativity.

I’d love to get out there this summer for the wedding and while I won’t rule it out now, getting the Tucker family all the way out to the west coast won’t be easy, or inexpensive.

That reminds me too, I still need to purchase my copy of “Divine Manipulation of the Threads”.

It’s got my vote

The week after Christmas has me taking on new responsibilities around the house. I am the I.T. expert.

“Dad…how do you get this game to work?”

“Dad…my Nintendo DS isn’t working!”

“Jamey…the internet isn’t working.”

“Dad, the Gameboy Advance is broken.”

“Daddy…my iDog won’t light up anymore.”

“Can you fix the cd player?”

“Jamey, a DVD is stuck in the player and won’t come out.”

I swear all of these new gadgets will make either drive me up a wall, or drive Santa to bring only non-electronic toys next year.

My desktop pc has had all kinds of problems these past three weeks. The computer shop wiped the hard drive clean twice and then I had to do it a third time trying to get my editor to work right. Now the software is working but my dual displays aren’t quite right.

I picked the wrong week to give up dipping.