Broken News

The Onion News Network pokes some fun at the hype stations place on breaking news...don't let the facts get in the way of the coverage. The breaking news culture feeds the frenzy in this spoof as the producers have an obit graphic ready for the reporter on scene in this mock live report. If only the real news tried as hard as ONN.

Breaking News: Something Happening In Haiti

Video for the sake of video

Blogging some video off YouTube just because it's fun to watch...






One of the "news pegs" used in broadcast newsrooms that J-schools really don't teach to is the compelling "video or audio" element. I'm sure they use the "compelling" photograph news peg at newspapers, even if they don't want to take responsibility for how it drives content. In television, this explains the endless number of useless, low impact stories. Think about all those fires at abandoned buildings. The assignment desk always makes any fire more important by justifying it through the video.

"We have flames," someone will shout across the newsroom.

The next thing you know those flames are in the A-block and there's a video tease. Consider all those worthless traffic accidents you see in small and large market newscasts? Do we have video? If you do, it's in the rundown and the less sexy, but high impact story from an important government meeting is cut.

Flip Video to the Titan News Rescue!

FLIP VIDEO ON THE SCENE COLLECTING AUDIO AND VIDEO FOR TITAN RADIO NEWS










This story on TitanRadio.net and Titan Radio is courtesy of Alex Hines and my Flip Video camera. Shot on the scene and the audio ripped from the AVI file for the noon radio newscast...and raw video and the interview posted online via TitanRadio.net and YouTube. Quick, easy and the gear fits in your pocket. It's raw and dirty...but when you're working for free...





Stolen truck really runs away
Monday, May 19, 2008
NEW WILMINGTON, Lawrence County-- Borough police solved a case of a reported stolen pickup on Monday as they determined it was never stolen-- it ran away. On Sunday evening, Westminster history major Matt Steffy reported his truck stolen. He and his roommates live in a rented home along New Castle Street. It appears someone may have failed to put the truck in park. Roommate Alex Stubenbort tells Titan Radio News it rolled away from the house and down a hill into McClure's Run next to the New Wilmington park. You can see raw video of the scene where the pickup rolled and hear Stubenbort's account of what happened.

You can also see the video here on titanradio.net or via ou YouTube links below:
Raw video #1 of the runaway truck
Raw video #2 of the runaway truck
More Video- Roommate explains what happened

Shooting commencement highlights with Flip Video

I used Pure Digital's FLIP VIDEO to shoot the video for this year's highlights now on titanradio.net. There's very little to complain about this tiny, tough little camera that saves AVI files you can edit in most video editing software, upload online, embed, etc. Flip Video's files are more user friendly that those expensive consumer hard drive cameras with specialized video extensions that make it impossible to do anything with them outside the limited software that comes with the camera.

Flip Video is affordable and pretty cool. Just keep extra AA batteries handy.

The raw video clips are on YouTube. Links to all of them are on titanradio.net.

BC 601's Amazing Race Theme Comes to Life

NEW WILMINGTON, Pa (titanradio.net)--Instead of cramming for a final exam, Westminster College junior broadcast communications majors worked with Titan Traverse to bring their own version of reality TV's The Amazing Race to life. Broadcast Capstone instructor Brad Weaver says students were required to come to the first day of class with a completed application for the television show. He also required them to team up with someone in the class or off campus.

"The questions on the application were provocative, forcing them to think about their goals outside of college," Weaver said. "I used the application as a tool for self-reflection and to explore career paths."

You can see and hear from students in the video files here on titanradio.net or watch via our YouTube link.

Initial reactions from the students were mixed.

Melissa Maines of Clearfield said, "I've been watching the show since the first season, so I was really excited when Mr. Weaver told us about the assignment."

At the other end of the spectrum was Aimee Gerber of New Castle: "My first reaction to this assignment was ‘absolutely not,' but this application isn't like any other application. This one forced us to think about ourselves, about our character, what we're most afraid of, how we cope with conflict."



As the semester and the project progressed, attitudes changed especially after Titan Traverse staged it's own version of The Amazing Race for the students to run. Chose the raw video clip you want to view from the links here:

• Raw video clip 1: Race to the finish line & meet the winners
  
• Raw video clip 2: Shooting compass bearings with Titan Traverse
  
• Raw video clip 3: Racers drive each other up the wall

Bill Sadler of Youngstown, Ohio, commented, "Putting the million-dollar prize aside, our project has a hidden message. This was to show us we have a wide variety of strengths, and we are qualified for any task given to us. We will be entering the ‘race' of the job market soon and will be competing against many for one prize."

Doug Kunst of Bellevue said, "The Amazing Race was a clever way for us to reflect on who we are and where we have come from. For me, it was realizing how good a fit I am to broadcasting."

Nicole Piszczor of Broadview Heights, Ohio, related, "In the end, it made me realize more about who I am as a person and as a professional."

Shayna Marti of New Wilmington observed, "The application asked questions that really made you think about yourself and your partner. I realized that I really didn't know my partner that well, but I recently found out we make a pretty good team."

Weaver said, "One of my goals was for the students to discover ways to ‘sell' themselves beyond the bullet points of a résumé, while exploring the kinds of questions employers might ask."

Each team was responsible for producing the three-minute application video The Amazing Race requires. The final exam period was an Amazing Race-themed event organized by Westminster's Titan Traverse staff. It included canoeing across Brittain Lake, climbing a rock wall, mountain biking, and solving clues to reach the finish line.

WARNING: With YouTube the F-bomb is the last thing you want to drop on local TV

SEE THE VIDEO HERE- WARNING...you will hear it if click it.

WNBC management and anchor Sue Simmons would seem less than professional when this aired in the nation's largest market. While most New Yorkers probably hear it or say it several times a day, it's a shame someone paid that much can't control her language around an open mic. Could it be that big egos carry big tempers with big mouths? Just read the news, please.

USA Today reports she's apologized. Perhaps she should sit out a newscast with a bar of soap in her mouth.

Live from N.Y.: Local anchor apologizes for saying [expletive] on the air

http://blogs.usatoday.com/ondeadline/2008/05/live-from-ny-lo.html

Sue Simmons says she's "truly sorry" for using foul language during a promotional spot for the newscast she anchored late last night on WNBC-TV.

"Simmons was teasing a story about the high cost of groceries when tape of a cereal box suddenly switched to the cruise ship from which a woman fell and disappeared Sunday night," the Daily News says. "The goof prompted Simmons to shout off-camera, "What the [expletive] are you doing?" The screen then went black."

About 30 minutes later, Newsday says the 11 p.m. broadcast began with an apology.

SEE HER humble APOLOGY HERE.

END OF THE SEMESTER IS MID-SWEEPS

My end of the semester frustrations
seems to be echoed on my favorite shows...
where the heck are these storylines going?

2008 TCL Farewell

The County Line's 2008 Farewell Video-- A tribute to those TCL staffers, crew & BC Capstone students who wrap up their time with the show as they head off to the next stage of their careers...

Bumping into people at the NAB

Finding Jimm Needle in
the NAB haystack in Vegas
Look who I ran into at the NAB in Las Vegas. 2003 Westminster grad Jimm Needle. Jimm's now working as a video producer Midway USA and lives in Columbia, Missouri. He's one of the video producers for the company's corporate and programming video efforts. He was in Vegas with his team scouring over the acres and acres of new DV gear on the exhibit floor. We were able to catch up and check out the sites. I even convinced him to go on the Star Trek Experience with me. Sure it's geeky-- but I'm a geek. Jimm's birthday is Saturday. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JIMM!!! It was great to see Jimm and catching up. I think we walked a few miles talking...and walking...and talking. We also did the lunch thing and agreed the NAB looked a little ragged this year. Almost like the folks organizing it didn't really try.

I missed 2003 alum Jon Joy-- Jimm's old partner in crime at Westminster. Jon was in town at the beginning of the week. Sadly, MTV called him back to L.A. for "The Hills." It's tough working in the glamorous field of television and video production. Sorry I missed you, Jon.

BEA PANEL PRESENTATION A SUCCESS

Most people react to this trip to Las Vegas with envy. However, the pictures in your head may be like this....BUT WAIT....

This is not my reality. This is a picture of the pool at the Flamingo Resort and Casino I walk past every day to the monorail that takes me to the dull, colorless world of the convention center's conference rooms. Perhaps conference presentations and panels should move to a nice cabana next to the swimming pool?


The panel I presented with had a decent number of people in the audience. While there were some transient visitors who left, others joined us while our program was already in progress. Half our attendees were college students.

I consider that to be a positive. We had about two dozen people in the audience by the end of the 75 minute session. It really does help when people show up. Can you imagine the panel presentaton where there are more folks on the panel than in the audience?

My presentation on the REAL TV COVERAGE OF A MOCK CONVENTION was well received. Another plus-- I am only bringing home four of the 20 DVDs I brought of the 2007 Westminster Mock Convention. I offered the DVDs to the audience as a bonus in case they wanted to see what works and what doesn't when covering a live, one-time only event.

ANOTHER SIGN THE NAB/RTNDA CONVENTION IS IN TROUBLE...
The blogs about the NAB/RTNDA Convention are predicting it will die after this year. While the Las Vegas Convention Center puts out one set of numbers, blogs like FTVLive suggested that the once lavish and often hailed largest electronic show on the planet is powering down.

All the NAB exhibits were packed up and the hall closed today. That's a real smack in the face to BEA members who arrived Thursday. BEA's convention runs through Saturday and the exhibits didn't shut down last year until Saturday morning. I guess that could feed the myth that the BEA is just a forgotten pet project of the NAB.


The Final Cut Pro Discussion Continues...
All but two people I chatted with today indicated their institutions use Final Cut Pro (a Mac product). Bigger schools like the University of North Texas use Final Cut Pro and Avid for digital video editing. One high school teacher indicated her district uses Adobe Premiere, while another explained his school uses the software package that came with the consumer cameras they purchased. I've talked to nearly 40 people at the convention and I've only found one Adobe user. However, they all have acknowledged the absence of Adobe at the BEA once I pointed it out to them. INTERESTING.

Details details details

MILKING THE MOCK CONVENTION IN TIME FOR PENNSYLVANIA'S PRIMARY ELECTION
Friday, 1:30 PM
Broadcast Education Association Convention 2008
Covering the one-time-only-event: making the (academic) most of it
(Student Media Advisors)
This roundtable discussion will offer tips for campus media advisors on the broadcast of large scale one-time-only events. The panel will explore what worked and what did not work in the coverage of election returns, music festivals, parades, conventions and similar one-time-only events. The panelists will share tips on pre-production, production and post-production techniques that serve to maximize the academic benefits of such an event while providing quality programming to viewers and listeners.
Moderator: Richard Vogel, William Penn University
Mary Spillman, Ball State University
Using Your Web Site to Enhance On-Air Election and Special Event Coverage.
Frank Barnas, Valdosta State
Covering All Bases, Covering All Races: Managing Mulitple Breaking Stories in Election Night Coverage.
Scott Burke, Oakland University
When Presidents Visit and Rooms Fill: Video Coverage of Events Involving Multiple Venues and Audiences.
Gary Martin, Cosumnes River College
The March in March: A one-day documentary as 10,000 protest at the California Capitol.
Marjorie Yambor, Western Kentucky University
Mayhem & Moxie: Student Coverage of a College Radio Music Festival.
Brad Weaver, Westminster College Real Television Coverage of a Mock Presidential Convention.
Respondent: Nancy Carlson, Ball State University