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Post by MoundofSound on Oct 11, 2005 22:04:54 GMT -5
Was watching NCIS tonight when KUTV did a cutaway to the announcement of the verdict from Provo in the murder case of the parents accused of killing their daughter. I have forgotten the names in the case because I was amazed at just how awful this cut in was done. The reporter Kathryn _______ was so un-prepared, stammered and stumbled horribly, sounded totally unready to go on, paused so long I thought she was going to freeze. It was horrible. Her interaction with Mark K back in the studio was nothing but awkward. I understand the pressure of live shots, and that they are the most difficult to pull off. But this one wasn't even close. Certainly not what one has come to expect from KUTV. Just thinking out loud, wondering if it wouldn't have been better to wait until the next break and give people everyone a chance to prep better.
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Post by Sailor on Oct 12, 2005 10:58:02 GMT -5
I didn't see the specific cut-away that you mentioned. However your words are so full of truth. The difference between amature and professional is that extra 15 - 30 seconds or even 5 minutes to go over, what you're going to say, review it in your mind, maybe make a note or two, revise your script and get it right the first time.
As I have posted many times, I am a radio geek, not that much interested in TV, but the same principle holds true for Radio. PRE-READ, think ahead. If you have to throw your visitors and friends out of the studio so you're not distracted, do it.
The litigation attorneys often say, "I never ask a question, unless I already know the answer." That phrase should be adopted to TV and Radio... "Never open the Microphone, unless you already know exactly what you're going to say!"
When you drive around the west, and listen to some 'entry level' radio stations, you hear this all the time, people opening the microphone without having any idea what they are going to say.
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Post by dolt on Oct 12, 2005 11:10:06 GMT -5
aahhh ... I've got nothing  |
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tvdude
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Post by tvdude on Oct 12, 2005 16:58:33 GMT -5
This has always been a problem at KUTV. It's not that Kathyrn May wasn't prepared, it's that the powers-that-be will rush a cut-in during primetime programming in order to beat the other stations who usually won't cut-in unless it's a huge story. KUTV will sacrifice Viacom dollars (as they are Viacom--Peter from Paul to pay the Piper...) to get an extra minute or 2. And that's all the reporter has to get 4 minutes of informaiton in, 1 minute or so...It's a breaking news atmosphere implemented by the previous news director who is now gone, but sounds like is continuing with the current head of news...too bad. Haste makes waste.
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Post by Agent86 on Oct 12, 2005 20:10:48 GMT -5
KUTV is into the habit of bringing you news no matter what. This is a plus and a negative at the same time. Obviously you've discussed the negative and bringing up the plus would just seem like discussing a creed about all stations.
It seems more that KUTV in general needs more experienced people in the field. There is a difference between Katherine and let say, Fields Mosely. Katherine seems more like another Christian Klien. Pretty girl who we can daze men with while she tries to read. Too bad when she left they replaced her with a shorter clone. What KUTV needs is people who can actually read a line with confidence and ease. Too bad most the people who can do that are in their "unpretty" staff and are doing radio hits.
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tvdude
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Post by tvdude on Oct 12, 2005 22:32:28 GMT -5
Agent,
I agree. Kathyrn May was put on that story because she is the "Utah County Bureau Reporter". If it would have been a Fields, or Brian Martin, or they would have sent one of the anchor/reporters, (Mike Headrick)...that quick hit during primetime would probably have gone smoother; my point is only that they push news when they really don't need to. If they would spend more time getting it right, it won't come off they got it wrong, a pretty obvious statement, but it's amazing how many stations across the nation rush information just to be first...and like the post headline states: ...first isn't always best.
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Post by x on Oct 13, 2005 0:22:12 GMT -5
Amen Brother Herbert. (And if you get that reference, you're a True Geek.)
This might be one of those cases where digital TV can help allieviate the problems. A station could run a crawl on the main channel, disrupting it as little as possible, then direct people to channel x.2 for live coverage. The story gets broken by whomever first, but because there's less pressure to actually go on the air 9because the info is already out there) the reporter could have more time to prepare. Think it might work?
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Post by Sailor on Oct 13, 2005 12:59:33 GMT -5
One thing that comes to mind is that the crawl will become this frequent tool for getting there first... I can't wait for the crawl that says... "Dog lost in Murray, switch to x.2 for live coverage"
In my mind (small though it may be), it should be pretty damn important to run the crawl. I don't object for severe weather warnings, but would really be pissed for a lost dog announcement.
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Post by x on Oct 15, 2005 15:05:20 GMT -5
If it's a choice between getting a crawl and a full-out interruption for a breaking news special report, I'll go with the crawl every time. They do need to be careful though. Overusing it because "it's not that intrusive" is a Pandora's Box. The explosion of bugs is a perfect example.
Another good example is Commiecast cable. There's a little email feature on the box that will tell you when there's a message. It used to be that the messages were usually about lineup changes. Now, they're 99% ads. They had stopped for a long time, but now they're back again. I think I should write a nastygram.
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