Monday, September 17, 2007

Hardee’s Commercial

It seems that the latest Hardees/Carl’s Jr television commercials has struck a nerve with many Triangle residents. Well, my inbox has been flooded with emails from concerned viewers. Here’s the form letter that is going around:

Dear local television manager,
I am highly offended by the sexual content in the latest Hardees/Carl’s Jr. television commercials known as “Patty Melt” and “Flat Buns.“  In my opinion, they violate local community standards. Because you are licensed to serve the public interest in our community, I request that you refuse to air these ads.  If you are already airing them, I ask you to stop.As required by law, please place a copy of this email letter in your station’s public file, to be readily available to FCC representatives, specifically during the license renewal period for your station.

Want to see some of the ad’s in question? Check them out here, here and here.

Wednesday, September 12, 2007

Patriotism, safety and one school’s decision to ban flags

We have been flooded with calls, e-mails and comments today about a principal’s decision to ban students from wearing flags on a high school campus. Opinions are as varied as the locations of the writers…some as far away as troops fighting in Iraq. We first aired the story Tuesday night and only minutes later my mother-in-law was on the phone enraged at what she had just heard. The comments haven’t stopped since and probably won’t for a few more days.

Many of the comments we received said the American flag is a symbol of freedom and to ban it was unpatriotic. While others cited rules saying the flag should never be printed on a shirt or other items.

Tonight I had the chance to talk to the Superintendent, Dr. Stewart Hobbs, who told me the principal was acting in good faith to protect students. The school system has worked very hard to keep gangs and gang violence out of schools. Information from law enforcement said gang members were wearing flags from foreign countries as gang symbols. Since gang symbols are banned under the county dress code the principal banned all flags to protect students. To the principal the ban of flags was not an act of patriotism or the lack of it…simply safety. (Late this afternoon the School Board rescinded the ban and say they could come back with new policy and will be looking at ways to maintain order.)

We ask our schools to keep our children safe. We also ask them to instill a sense American pride and patriotism by flying the flag over the school, saying the pledge every morning. Teaching our laws and our freedoms guaranteed to us in the Bill of Rights. This week the balance of patriotism, freedom and safety collide. The question we all must ask of our selves is who should win? is there a balance? how do you decide?

To read more about this story click here.

Thursday, September 06, 2007

Hidden Talents

What I love most about being a journalist and working in a newsroom, is the energy given from such creative people.

In addition to being hardworking, driven and dedicated journalists many of our staff members have hidden talents that may surprise you. For example, not only is Ken Luallen a wonderful reporter, he is also a STELLAR photographer. I recently checked out his website and was amazed at how talented Ken is.

In addition to Sharon Tazewell being our vibrant and energetic female morning anchor, she is also an extremely talented actress. I had the pleasure of seeing Sharon in Raleigh Little Theatre’s production of Intimate Apparel last night, and was blown away! Sharon is one of the six amazing cast members that take you back to 1905 and tell a beautiful story about all things love. For several weeks, Sharon has been juggling work, family and rehearsals for this incredible production. I can honestly say all of the hard work paid off. If you like theatre, or if you like waking up with Sharon in the morning, go see her in this production, you’ll be glad you did. The SOLD OUT official opening is tonight, Friday September 7th. The show is running until Sunday September 23rd, and lasts about 2.5 hours. Get your tickets today, and see our Sharon Tazewell expose her hidden talent.

Have a great weekend!
Dominique

A New Blogger Is Here!

Ever wonder how news coverage gets planned? Take a look into the world of NBC17’s Planning Editor.

Greetings from the world of planning! My name is Dominique Hogue and I’m the Planning Editor here at NBC17. My primary job function is to find those great stories that both interest and are of importance to our viewers. The majority of all press releases and story ideas from our reporters come through my desk, so needless to say my workday is always very busy.

Each week I will take you beyond the press release and tell you about things happening in our area that may be of interest to you. Being fairly new to Raleigh, I can honestly say I’ve never once been bored since moving here. I consider myself a theatre FANATIC, and was thrilled at how many wonderful shows either travel through, or are locally produced right in our own backyard. From now on any show I attend, I will write about it and let you the viewer know first hand how it was. Don’t worry no negative statements will be made.

In the meantime, if you have a story idea or event you would like NBC17 to cover please feel free to e-mail me directly at .

Best,

Dominique

Tuesday, September 04, 2007

When It Rains It Pours

There is a saying, when it rains it pours. In news, there is either too few stories or too many. It’s black and white. How we cover stories on the days when there is too many stories is not so black and white. While it may not have been literally raining…Friday, it was pouring….news.

The day began like every other day. We met for our morning editorial meeting and firmed up our coverage plans for the day. Reporter Carolyn Costello was working on the criminal contempt of court charges against former Durham District Attorney, Michael Nifong. Our reporter, Frank Graff, was working on a story that highlighted the first year since the new Bishop took over the Diocese of Raleigh. Ken Luallen was sent out the door on spot news regarding a missing child, in Raleigh.

Little did anyone know that by the afternoon virtually our entire coverage plan was going to be flipped on its head. We had to move Frank Graff to the evacuation of the UNC Law School. Ken Luallen was shifted onto the drought heading into Labor Day weekend and Sergio Quintana was added to the news mix to cover the arrest of John McCormick, the missing attorney believe to have embezzled millions from triangle residents and businesses. Plus, Late the afternoon a Durham Judge found Nifong guilty of criminal contempt of court and sentenced him to serve 1 day in jail.
The missing toddler that Ken started out his day covering was found and returned safely to his family. The Diocese story was held over the weekend and aired on Labor Day. In the end, we got all the stories covered.

As a content coordinator, figuring out how to cover all the news of the day and keeping everyone abreast of the changes and developments is our ultimate responsibility. We made decisions as a team. We figured out what stories could be dropped down from PKG’s to VO-SOTs and what stories could be held for another day.

Teamwork and Communication—The recipe for success.

Check out today’s webcast here.

Something on your mind? Sound Off!
-Jason